In 2021, Senator Laura Clint Acasio was appointed by Governor David Y. Ige to serve the people of District 1 on Hawaii island.
Senator Acasio was born in Los Angeles, California. While growing up, Senator Acasio's parents instilled within her a deep respect for the environment. Her father grew abundant fruit trees in their yard and she raised chickens, often taking their fruits and eggs around to their community to ensure everyone had food. Senator Acasio's family also loved to go camping and focused on a "leave no trace" philosophy where they camped with zero waste. It was from her parents that Senator Acasio learned that taking care of the environment also meant taking care of her community.
Senator Acasio later moved to Hawaii, graduating from the University of Hawaii with a degree in geography. While earning her degree in geography, Senator Acasio became exposed to environmental efforts by Native Hawaiians to protect and preserve their lands. This exposure led Senator Acasio to become involved in projects like Protect Kaho‘olawe, the Nature Conservancy, and Pohale Natural Area. After participating in environmental preservation, Senator Acasio began training to become a doula.
Senator Acasio's training to become a doula put her in a position of support for expectant mothers during the birthing process. Her support, she knew, contributed to positive birth outcomes and helped ensure that expectant mothers were respected during the birthing process. Senator Acasio also became exposed to Native Hawaiian traditional medicine through her taining. This furthered her understanding of the connection between caring for the environment and caring for her community. Senator Acasio then decided to become a teacher.
As a teacher, Senator Acasio's care for the environment transferred through her teachings to her students. She focused on relevant placed based experiential learning, which allowed her students to learn through their environment. Her students became actively engaged in civics as questions often posed focused on the needs of the community, the people who were working to benefit their communities, and how her students could similarly become involved. One such issue impacting her students was sex trafficking. Senator Acasio began to learn as much as she could about sex trafficking in Hawaii, including attending education sessions by Ho‘ōla NāPua. What she learned from Ho‘ōla NāPua affirmed her knowing that working together for the betterment of the community benefitted everyone. This knowing, that we are made greater together, shapes Senator Acasio's civic engagement.
While Senator Acasio was teaching, she became active in the Hilo Democratic Party. Most recently, Senator Acasio was the District 2 chair. As a former public school educator and birth worker, Senator Acasio believes in prioritizing the wellbeing of our community through equitable legislation, advocacy, and progressive change. Senator Acasio is an environmentalist who values protecting our land, our waterways, and all of our natural resources for not only the betterment of our lands but for the betterment of all of Hawaii's people.
We are made greater together.