NaHHA’s work is based on communication between the Hawaiian community as the host culture and the tourism industry and tourists as a “foreign audience”, and is therefore closely related to public diplomacy...Although some of the mass hotels and other tourist corporations have been increasingly supportive of cultural initiatives in recent years, the industry’s priority is economic profit, which historically has lead to a commercialization of Hawaiian cultural elements for entertainment purposes.

Currently, I am working for the Native Hawaiian Hospitality Association (NaHHA), a non-profit organization that promotes a greater presence of Hawaiian culture in the tourism industry. NaHHA works “to connect the Hawaiian community and the tourism industry” through “consulting and educating, developing and implementing effective communication tools.” As a contractor of the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority (HTA), NaHHA is the lead agency for State of Hawaii’s initiative to promote Hawaiian culture in tourism.

It being Hawaii, the assembled heads of state were understandably looking forward to some boxy aloha shirt action. But Obama...declared the 20-year tradition over. As disappointed locals have been keen to stress, the colourful shirts are a symbol of Hawaii's multicultural history and it would have been great for tourism on a group of islands that rely heavily on it.

For years, Hawaii has been a popular destination for tourists, but now it’s making a name for itself as a TV and film production hub. A reboot of the 1960s police drama "Hawaii Five-O," which helped develop the state’s movie industry decades ago, is once again boosting its economy. Hawaii has also been getting good publicity from several recent movies which were made here.

The East-West Center is a Hawaii-based, federally supported institution, long a key part of U.S. outreach to the countries of the Asia and the Pacific and a fixture in Honolulu.