The leeward side of Haleakala shows signs of drought and soil erosion. Photo courtesy Councilmember Gabe Johnson’s office

The Maui County Agriculture, Diversification, Environment and Public Transportation Committee will hear three presentations on climate change at 9 a.m. Thursday in the Council Chamber and online, according to Maui County councilmember and committee chair Gabe Johnson.

The presenters will include Charles Fletcher, dean of the School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, as well as the Geos Institute’s Tonya Graham, Darla Palmer-Ellingson of 360 Green Living and Jennifer VanderVeur, grants specialist for the state Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Commission.

“The committee looks forward to hearing from these experts in the field of climate change,” Johnson said in a statement. “Their knowledge is a reality check that climate change is real, our communities are already feeling its impacts, and climate-change trends will continue to worsen as federal and international targets and solutions are ignored and disregarded.”

Graham and Palmer-Ellingson will present on Geos Institute’s work on the county’s climate vulnerabilities. That work helped shape the resiliency strategies and actions in the county’s Climate Action and Resiliency Plan. VanderVeur is scheduled to discuss the Climate Commission’s work on the Draft Hawaii Climate Action Pathways document.

“As our communities become less livable due to a changing climate, impacts ranging from more frequent natural disasters, disruption to food systems, declines in fishery stocks, and loss of ecosystems, biodiversity and cultural resources will become more deeply felt, making existing systemic inequities even starker,” Johnson said. “Our presenters will show how climate change is a ‘polycrisis’ with many interconnected dimensions that disproportionately affect vulnerable populations like young children, the elderly, Pacific Islanders, people with existing health conditions and the majority of our residents who are just barely getting by making unsustainable wages.”

The meeting will be livestreamed on Akakū Channel 53, at MauiCounty.us and on the council’s Facebook and YouTube pages. For more, call the Office of Council Services at (808) 270-7664.