Iakwe, my name is Winifred “Winnie” Canney. I am CERENE Undergraduate Research Assistant. I live within O’ahu’s Neighborhood Board #1, Hawaii Kai. I’m currently a University of Hawai’i at Mānoa (UHM) and Kapi’olani Community College (KCC) transfer student majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies in Sustainability and Political Science. I’ll be working with the Micronesian communities to hear their perspectives of resilience and experiences with natural disasters. My work will also focus on ways KCC can better support the Micronesian community to increase enrollment into -year or 4-year institutions. I’m Marshallese myself so my intentions are to shift the misleading narrative and highlight the importance of my community in Hawai’i and in higher education.
After receiving my degree, I plan to return home to the Marshall Islands to combat the increasing environmental issues due to climate change. As a Marshallese and a member of CERENE, I decided to work with We Are Oceania (WAO) as they have been a great resilience hub for the Micronesian Compacts of Free Association (COFA) community. They have helped to change the preconceived notions that the state government and local communities have about COFA migrants and provide much needed language assistance for the different ethnic groups within the region. I work specifically with the Youth Empowerment Center at WAO. The center provides college and career resources for Micronesian youth. The center emphasizes changing the youth’s narratives about themselves and staying in touch with their cultural values to succeed here in Hawai’i and wherever they plan on going in life.