Lani Cran-Petrie

HCC, President

Nicole Galase

Managing Director

Gene Copenhaver

NCBA President

Kali Watson

Kali Watson was appointed chairperson of the Hawaiian Homes Commission by Governor Josh Green, M.D. and confirmed by the Hawai'i State Senate on March 23, 2023. Watson previously served as chairperson from 1995 to 1998 under then Governor Ben Cayetano where he was responsible for coordinating the development of over 3,100 residential lots on Hawaiian homelands, and implementation of the $600 million state settlement, including the transfer of 16,518 acres of state lands to make the trust whole. Watson was also instrumental in the passage and transfer of over 900 acres of federal lands into the trust under the Hawaiian Home Lands Recovery Act of 1995. As the President and CEO of the native Hawaiian non-profit, Hawaiian Community Development Board (HCDB), he worked with Nānākuli Hawaiian Homestead Community Association and oversaw the development of the Nānākuli Village Center, which includes a commercial center, several medical clinics, the Kalanihoʻikaha Cope Hawaiian Cultural Learning Center and a 48-unit Hale Makana O Nānākuli affordable housing project. Over the last 10 years. to expand HCDBʻs reach into the private non-homesteading areas, Watson established successful HCDB partnerships with various private developers of low-income housing tax credit projects primarily located on Oʻahu, Maui, and Kauaʻi. Projects include single-family residential, townhouses, mid-rise and high-rise buildings. Watson is a graduate of University of Hawaiʻi Law School, Business School, and Kamehameha Schools. Wife Judith Pavey and three sons, Kala, Kealiʻi, and Nainoa. 

Dr. Tracy Johnson

Dr. Tracy Johnson is a USDA Forest Service research entomologist based at the Institute of Pacific Island Forestry in Hilo and Volcano since 2000. He specializes in biological control of invasive plants, developing and monitoring insect agents from regions such as South America and Southern Asia to protect Hawaiian ecosystems. His work focuses on delivering effective host-specific biocontrol to improve pest management outcomes across Hawaiʻiʻs native forests and grasslands. Johnson plays a key role in projects targeting priority species such as strawberry guava, miconia, albizia, fountain grass, and others that threaten Hawaiʻiʻs unique ecosystems.