One news team member described the task of picking a favorite story this year as "the hardest decision I've ever had to make in my entire existence of breathing."
2025 was a banner year for Hawaiʻi Public Radio reporting, and not only because of the substance, but because of the connections formed between HPR and the communities we work to learn from and inform.
We're also meeting you on video-based platforms like Instagram and YouTube more than ever before! And we can't forget our daily news newsletter, Akamai Recap, to stay in the know.
To call this year's reporting thought-provoking is too simple. So let's just let the reporters and producers speak for themselves:
1. Community hope and healing take root at a native planting project above Lahaina — August 2025
"Not long before the two-year mark of the wildfires, I had the honor of heading up a bumpy dirt track above Lahaina to see first-hand the work of the fire survivors and volunteers behind Kaiaulu Initiatives.
Standing on the hillside above their burned hometown, they motioned towards what used to be their homes and shared the struggles of their post-fire lives. At the same time, looking down to see the blossoms of thousands of native plants they’ve been pouring their time and heart into was truly inspiring."
~ Catherine Cluett Pactol, Maui Nui reporter
2. Quieting invasive coquí frogs to hear the heartbeat of Waimānalo — October 2025
"This story was made for radio. You can hear how the landscape of Waimānalo has changed since the introduction of coqui frogs, and that brings home the importance of volunteer effort to stop their spread. And I only fell down one hill during the reporting trip."
~ Savannah Harriman-Pote, energy & climate change reporter
3. ICE has been sending immigrants from the continental U.S. to Hawaiʻi, and no one knows why — December 2025
"As immigration enforcement has ramped up in the last year, Maddie Bender and I wanted to get a better understanding of what is happening at the Honolulu Federal Detention Center, which is now being used to detain immigrants arrested by ICE. We found that even those detained on the continent have started being sent to the Honolulu FDC.
We spoke to a man who was arrested in California and spent three months in the Honolulu Federal Detention Center. We also spoke with the few nonprofit lawyers who represent those detained by ICE. It is something that we will continue to follow up on in the new year."
~ Ashley Mizuo, government reporter
4. A tale of 2 islands: Bad Bunny song about Hawaiʻi sends a message to Puerto Rico — January 2025
5. 'Times have changed': Should hālau push the boundaries of hula at Merrie Monarch? — April 2025
"Some might consider the culture and arts beat 'the feel good beat.' But it's more about opening layers beyond entertainment to understand our identities and values. For these stories, I reported on how Native Hawaiians have been using music as a tool for social justice, directly related to Bad Bunny's song "LO QUE LE PASÓ A HAWAii," and how there's been a shift in traditional hula dancing at Merrie Monarch."
~ Cassie Ordonio, culture & arts reporter
6. 'Return, reconnect, and remember': Native Hawaiian ʻohana gets ownership of ancestral land — September 2025
"I’m really grateful I got to report on this story because it allowed me to step into the constant battle that is land ownership in Hawaiʻi. As a non-native, it meant so much to be trusted by the Alapaʻi ʻohana and the rest of the folks who were involved to tell their story — and to do it justice.
There are so many properties and areas that have been taken out of Hawaiian hands and are still being fought for every day to protect and conserve them, so it was really incredible to report on a success story for the community."
~ Emma Caires, news producer
7. UH international kickers strike unusual path to college football — October 2025
"Kansei Matsuzawa made national headlines and rounds on the internet because his story was just so good — a guy from Japan who learned the game by studying YouTube videos kicked a game-winning field goal in the first game of the season.
I talked with him and punter Billy Gowers about a month after, who both said their goals were to make it to the NFL. Kansei continued his great performance and was named a Consensus All-American — the first in University of Hawaiʻi history. We will likely be seeing 'The Tokyo Toe' playing at the next level."
~ Jason Ubay, managing editor
8. Tsunami threat has passed for Hawaiʻi. Evacuees may return home — July 2025
"Because I'm usually the last set of eyes for HPR's digital platforms, emergency events are the only times I am bestowed the opportunity to do some nitty-gritty journalism. The tsunami warning in late July certainly became a nose-to-the-grindstone affair at HPR. Though the day was quite stressful for everyone in Hawaiʻi, I enjoy (on some level) firing on all cylinders to get accurate information to the public as quickly as possible."
~ Sophia McCullough, digital news editor
9. Federal cuts could impact Hawaiʻi's ability to keep the brown tree snake away — March 2025
"Around the start of the year there was a lot of interest in finding out exactly how the Trump administration’s drastic federal cuts would trickle down to a local level. My story about the invasive brown tree snake and the people who keep it from coming to and establishing in Hawaiʻi offers a glimpse at one of those downstream impacts. The snake is already a significant problem in Guam, and from there has an easy path to the state. There has been an active effort to keep them away — one that was hurt because of federal cuts."
~ Mark Ladao, news producer
10. ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi YouTube channel preserves Hawaiian culture through 3D animation — September 2025
“I had been a fan of Nanea TV since learning about it as a student at UH Mānoa. I took a class where students were instructed to find a piece of journalism each week that was framed in a community-conscious lens. What that meant was really up to us.
But Nanea TV aired as a short little special for ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi month on Hawaii News Now. I just thought the idea came from such an authentic place, and a full story would be great to capture! A grandmother created this for her moʻopuna; little did she know so many keiki and their mākua would benefit from it!”
~ Hannah Kaʻiulani Coburn, digital news producer
11. 'Good morning, aloha': Auntie Uilani Souza has welcomed riders of TheBus for 40 years — August 2025
“Local working people are one of the many demographics that we serve at Hawaiʻi Public Radio. So why not do a story on an individual who has impacted her community one bus stop at a time? My colleague DW Gibson and I were invited to ride along with Uilani Souza, 76, who began driving the city bus 40 years ago.
Riding along with Souza that morning opened my eyes to realize that no act of kindness is too small. Souza keeps a positive mindset and attitude every day — greeting everyone who hops on her route. She has also become a listening ear for many of her regulars. This story influenced us to continue to highlight influential working people of Hawaiʻi, which I'm excited to do more of in the new year.” *Watch Souza in action on our Instagram page!
~ Tori DeJournett, digital news producer
12. Molokai Bread Spread — June 2025
"Foodie Friday, a segment in our weekday newsletter, the Akamai Recap, has been a fun adventure into nostalgia that started in 2025. I get to revisit old recipes compiled by various groups from around the state and share them with others. It's nice to see what was popular at the time and also which dishes are still popular to this day. The favorite one I've shared was a recipe for Molokai Bread Spread.
I went down the deepest rabbit hole learning more about Molokai Bread and the history of the bakery, as well as the family, behind it. That deep dive to learn more has stuck with me and I have dreams of trying the bread fresh from the bakery."
~ Pixie Clay, managing editor and creator of "Foodie Friday"
Want even more of HPR's favorite 2025 stories? Check out these other end-of-year roundups:
