Board of
Directors
We are pleased to introduce you to our Board of Directors, a group of dedicated individuals who guide Hanalei Initiative’s mission through their diverse expertise and deep commitment to the North Shore community. We invite you to explore and learn more about the amazing people behind our work.
Mikayla Hart
President
Mikayla is from the North Shore of Kaua’i and attended Hanalei Elementary and Kapa’a High schools. After building a career in the mainland focused on social and environmental impact, she returned home to Kaua’i to leverage her expertise in support of local impact-oriented organizations.
Mikayla’s career has centered on building impact strategies that demonstrate how serving society responsibly is good business. Working at the intersection of corporate sustainability consulting and finance, Mikayla’s spent the last decade advising Fortune100 companies as a Managing Director at Accenture, leading a team of 200 consultants focused on corporate sustainability, launching an impact investing fund, leading nonprofit Boards such as the Hanalei Initiative and Climate Action Pathways for Schools (where she currently serves as Board President for both), and building sustainable economic business models in support of community. Locally her focus has included community economic resiliency, affordable housing, land reclamation, sustainable visitor management, environmental impact, and education.
Mikayla has published various reports on sustainability and impact in partnership with organizations such as the United Nations and the World Economic Forum, and was recognized as a top global female executive by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Mikayla began her career with foundations in corporate finance and mergers and acquisitions, and received executive certificates from Yale University and INSEAD, an MBA from the University of Rochester’s Simon Business School, and a BBA from the University of Hawaii in Finance and International Business. Mikayla lives in Princeville with her son, Leo Kanoa.
Mina Morita
Vice President
Mina Morita has called Hanalei Valley home since 1977, where she and her husband raised their two daughters. She now has five grandchildren and Mina, like all families on the island, worries about her children and grandchildren’s’ future here on Kauai. After retiring from close to twenty years in State government as a legislator, commissioner and administrator, she hopes to use that experience to preserve the beauty, history, and culture of Kauai's northshore and work towards solutions to make its communities more sustainable and resilient.
Polly Phillips
Secretary
Polly Phillips brings more than 40 years of experience in public service, education, and renewable energy to her role as a board member of The Hanalei Initiative. A longtime resident of Wainiha on Kauaʻi’s North Shore, Polly is deeply rooted in the local community and has dedicated her career to advancing initiatives that strengthen Kauaʻi’s resilience, sustainability, and quality of life.
In 2018, following the historic North Shore flooding, Polly was appointed to Mayor Derek Kawakami’s administration as North Shore Community Liaison, where she helped coordinate recovery efforts and strengthen communication between government agencies and the community. She also serves as a liaison on state and government affairs, helping coordinate advocacy efforts and build partnerships that benefit Kauaʻi.
In addition to her public service, Polly is Vice President of Solar Plus, a Hanalei-based renewable energy company specializing in off-grid energy systems and microgrid automation. Through her leadership, the company has expanded innovative clean energy solutions that improve energy resilience across the island.
A passionate educator, Polly devoted more than 25 years to Hawaiʻi’s schools. Her career included teaching science at Kapaʻa High and Intermediate School, serving as Principal, Science Teacher, and College Counselor at Kula High and Intermediate School for more than a decade, and later teaching at Hawaiʻi Technology Academy while also providing private tutoring. She holds a Master of Science in Education and a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture from the University of Florida.
Polly’s commitment to community extends well beyond her professional career. She has served on the boards of Aloha School, the Hanalei School Community Council, the Hanalei to Hāʻena Community Association, and the District 15 Democratic Council. She also volunteers with St. William Church and supports numerous community initiatives dedicated to strengthening Kauaʻi.
Alanna Souza
Treasurer
Born and raised on Kaua'i, Alanna received her Master of Science in Quantitative Economics from California Lutheran University in 2019. After five and a half years on the mainland, Hawaii called her home, and she worked as a Legislative Aide for Representative Nakamura during the 2020 Legislative Session. The COVID-19 pandemic brought her back to Kaua'i, and over the past few years, she began working part-time at various nonprofits, including The Kaua'i Independent Food Bank, Leadership Kaua'i, Kaunalewa, and led a Financial Forecasting course through L.E.l. of Kaua'ï's Community Innovation Grant for Career Technical Education.
In July of 2022, Alanna started at Kaua'ï Planning & Action Alliance as the Early Childhood Education (ECE) System Coordinator in partnership with Kamehameha Schools. Professional designations include a Certificate in Forecasting from the International Institute of Forecasters (IIF) and The Leadership Challenge Certification completed in 2022.
Dr. Richard March Goodale, MD
Dr. Richard “Doc” Goodale is a lifelong Kauaʻi resident whose family has deep roots on the island. Born in Līhuʻe and raised in part in Hā‘ena, he and his wife, Karen, now call Kalihiwai home.
Doc graduated from Johns Hopkins University in 1977, where he was a six-time All-American swimmer. He earned his medical degree from the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaiʻi in 1982 and completed his surgical internship through the University of Hawaiʻi Integrated Surgical Residency Program. Following service as a General Medical Officer in the U.S. Army, he returned home to Kauaʻi, where he spent more than three decades caring for generations of island families as a physician with Kauaʻi Medical Clinic until his retirement in 2018.
Today, Doc manages Little Britain Holdings, a family real estate holding company, and remains deeply involved in community service. He serves as President of the Kauaʻi Museum Board of Trustees, Treasurer of the Līhuʻe Cemetery Association, and has served on numerous nonprofit and charitable boards, including the Wilcox Hospital Foundation.
A dedicated volunteer with Kauaʻi Ocean Recreation Experience (KORE), Doc helps people with disabilities experience surfing and other ocean adventures. Whether surfing, fishing, or supporting local organizations, he remains committed to giving back and continuing his family’s longstanding legacy of service to Kauaʻi through healthcare, education, and historic preservation.
Paul Haraguchi
Paul Haraguchi is a lifelong Hanalei resident with roots six generations deep in the valley’s kalo farming and fishing traditions. A graduate of Hanalei Elementary, Paul’s commitment to the school reflects a family legacy of service started by his great-grandmother, Agnes Chung, and continued by his mother, Tammie Haraguchi. As a firefighter with the Kaua‘i Fire Department, currently stationed at Hanalei Station, Paul protects the land and people he knows so well. Today, he and his wife, Ashlee, live in Kīlauea, raising their two children with a deep respect for the history and ‘ohana that define the North Shore.
Michael Mitchell
Mike brings more than 25 years of experience in wildlife conservation, public land management, and community partnership to The Hanalei Initiative’s Board of Directors. After joining the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 1994, he held leadership roles at national wildlife refuges across the country before serving as Deputy Project Leader for the Kauaʻi National Wildlife Refuge Complex from 2005 until his retirement in 2020.
During his tenure, he helped oversee Kīlauea Point, Hanalei, and Huleia National Wildlife Refuges, with a particular focus on Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge. He worked closely with local kalo farmers to strengthen relationships between the refuge and the farming community while advancing wetland restoration, habitat management, and the recovery of endangered Hawaiian waterbirds.
A U.S. Navy veteran and graduate of the University of California, San Diego with a Bachelor of Science in Biology, he and his wife have called Kauaʻi home for more than two decades. Their family has long supported the Waipā Foundation through volunteer service, reflecting their shared commitment to the island’s people and places.
