Cliff Kapono
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cliff Kapono is a Native Hawaiian professional surfer, journalist, and marine conservation scientist. He is known for his research that combines his interests.
Kapono earned his PhD at the University of California, San Diego[1][2][3] at the Skaggs School of Pharmacy.[4]
Career
As a surfer, a scientist, and a Native Hawaiian, Kapono's work focuses on ocean conservation and sustainability. He says that research is part of both his career and his identity. “Science is very powerful in that way to me, as an indigenous person, because it can help to communicate an idea that we have spent thousands of years trying to formulate...For me, the two spaces are completely connected, completely intertwined," he told The Surfer's Journal.[1] Kapono says that surfing has been in his family for 90 generations.[5]
One of his best-known projects is the Surfer Biome Project, where he studied the microbiome of surfers around the world.[1][2][3][5] Kapono currently studies coral health at the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo.[6]
Kapono is an ambassador for the Save the Waves Coalition and several other ocean conservation non-profit organizations, as well as for-profit surfing brands.[7][8] He has been profiled in several surfing outlets, including Surfer Magazine and The Surfer's Journal.[1][9] Kapono also has a YouTube channel, where he posts videos about scientists and surfers alike.
In 2019, he was featured in a national commercial advertising Hawaii as a travel destination.[10]
In their 2024 TED talk in Vancouver, BC, Kapono and Dr. Keolu Fox explored using plant DNA as a storage medium, envisioning eco-friendly systems replacing data centers. Drawing on Indigenous knowledge and biotechnology, they proposed a sustainable approach to managing global data demands. The talk blended scientific innovation with ecological responsibility, offering a glimpse of nature-powered data infrastructure.[11]
Selected honors and awards
- Native Hawaiian Scholar, University of Hawaii at Manoa[1]
- ChangeMaker, University of California, San Diego, 2018[12]
- Wave Saver of the Year, Save the Waves Coalition, 2018[13]
- John Kelly Awards (Surfer/Waterperson), Surfrider O'ahu, 2018[14]
- Featured Speaker, Society for the Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science, 2019[15]
- Island Ambassador, 2019[16][17]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 Flemister, Beau (2018-10-15). "Hard Science / Native Son". The Surfers Journal. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- 1 2 Smith, Peter Andrey (2017-04-03). "Do Seas Make Us Sick? Surfers May Have the Answer". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- 1 2 "Cliff Kapono | Look Deeper | Sciences at UC San Diego". Look Deeper. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ Yu, Madeleine (22 May 2018). "Solving The Microbe Mystery: An Interview With UCSD Researcher Cliff Kapono". Saltman Quarterly Online. Archived from the original on 2019-10-29. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- 1 2 "Featured Advocate: Cliff Kapono". The Ecology Center. Archived from the original on 2019-10-29. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ "THE MEGA LAB". THE MEGA LAB. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ "Ambassadors". Save The Waves. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ "Support and Collaboratoration". Cliff Kapono. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ "No Man is an Island: The Cliff Kapono Profile". SURFER Magazine. 2019-04-25. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ "The Hawaiian Islands TV Commercial, 'The Corral' Featuring Cliff Kapono". iSpot.tv. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ Kapono, Cliff; Fox, Keolu (May 6, 2024). "Could We Replace Data Centers with Plant DNA?". TED. TED Conferences. Retrieved October 21, 2024.
- ↑ "Out to Change the World". ucsdnews.ucsd.edu. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ "And the 2018 Wave Savers are..." Surfertoday. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ "2018 Winners". Surfrider O‘ahu Presents: The John Kelly Awards. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ "Keynote Speakers – SACNAS". Archived from the original on 2019-10-29. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ "5 HAWAII AMBASSADORS DOING AMAZING THINGS RIGHT NOW - HVCB Media". media.gohawaii.com. Archived from the original on 2019-10-29. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
- ↑ "Hawaii Ambassadors | News, Sports, Jobs - Maui News". Retrieved 2019-10-29.