On April 22, the Hawai‘i Institute of Marine Biology community gathered at Windward Community College’s Hale ʻĀkoakoa for the 2026 HIMB Scholarship Symposium. Coinciding with Earth Day, the event served as a premier showcase of academic excellence, featuring 41 graduate students who shared their latest findings with a full house of colleagues and community members. From the opening protocol to the final pau hana poster session, the day highlighted the ingenuity and rigorous research defining the next generation of marine scientists.

Reflecting on the significance of the day, HIMB Director Megan Donahue shares: “HIMB is growing the next generation of marine scientists and stewards, and we are in good hands. The presentations demonstrated our students’ commitment to research excellence and their dedication to the communities where they work. The HIMB symposium is a celebration of our students and the generous donors who support their incredible success.”The HIMB Scholarship Committee is pleased to extend special recognition to the following students for their outstanding contributions:

  • Best Talk: Sefa Muñoz – “Finding the Feast: Mapping critical foraging grounds of Mariana Islands green turtles”
  • Best Talk (Runner-up): Shelbie Ishimaru – “Advancing abundance estimation for the Hawaiian green sea turtle”
  • Best Poster: Maya Olin – “Using AI Computer Vision to Estimate NMax from Video Surveys of Coral Reef Fishes in Kaneohe Bay”
  • Best Poster (Runner-up): Callie Stephenson – “Shell We Share? How Rebounding Honu Populations Shift the Herbivore Guild”

The success of the symposium was a collective effort. We extend our gratitude to HIMB Academic Support Program Specialist Danica Castillo for leading the organization of the event, and to our fantastic HIMB faculty emcees, Ford Drury, Shimi Rii, and Daniel Schar, for guiding us through the day. We also thank the HIMB Scholarship Committee, our generous donors, and Windward Community College, whose ongoing support made this effort possible. Finally, mahalo to our administrative team and the volunteers who handled the essential setup and breakdown—and, of course, to our student presenters who were the heart of this impactful gathering!