WARNING: Kali Watson’s Geothermal Circus Is Coming to Town

Kali Watson’s geothermal circus is rolling across the pae ʻāina, and kānaka must see it for what it is: another sales pitch dressed up as an “opportunity.”

DHHL has scheduled geothermal informational briefings on May 22 in Waiohuli, Maui; May 23 in Hāna, Maui; May 27 in Keaukaha, Hawaiʻi Island; May 28 in Waimea, Hawaiʻi Island; May 29 in Nā‘ālehu, Hawaiʻi Island; June 12 in Kapolei, Oʻahu; June 15 in Waimānalo, Oʻahu; and June 19 in Kapaʻa, Kauaʻi. These meetings are not merely calendar items. They are warning signs.

Why does DHHL's Kali Watson keep looking at Native Hawaiian lands as something to monetize, lease, drill, and exploit?

The waitlist remains massive. 29,000 individuals and families are still waiting. Kūpuna are passing away without ever receiving their ʻāina. Children are growing up outside the promise Prince Kūhiō fought for. The $600 million remains unaccounted for. Yet instead of delivering homes with urgency, DHHL leadership keeps chasing “revenue,” “partnerships,” and now, more geothermal mining.

Watson, a developer and former DHHL chair, wants beneficiaries to believe geothermal will save the department. But many hear something else: trust us while we dig deeper into your ʻāina. Trust us while we turn sacred places into revenue streams. Trust us while the homes are still not built.

ʻAʻole. Enough!

DHHL's kuleana is not to become an energy developer. Its kuleana is to put Native Hawaiians back on the land with homes, infrastructure, water, roads, and dignity.



Native Hawaiians are right to push back. This is not anti-progress. This is aloha ʻāina. This is refusing to let the same system that failed beneficiaries now claim it needs more power, more money, and more control.

DHHL does not need another salesman. It needs a trustworthy, productive Chair who will stop exploiting the ʻāina and start delivering homes.

No more geothermal circus. No more drilling beyond what already exists. No more promises while families wait.

E kūʻē. Protect the ʻāina. House the people.