A new $2.8 million partnership is good news for forest conservation across Hawaii and the wider Pacific.

• The University of Hawaii and the U.S. Forest Service are teaming up to fund five new extension agent positions focused on forest protection.
• The agents will work across American Samoa, Palau, the Marshall Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Micronesia.
• Applications for the jobs open soon, with agents expected to start work by 2027.

Outlook: The program is expected to ramp up forest protection efforts across the Pacific Islands once agents are hired and in place.