THE BEST LAID PLANS OF MICE AND MEN

    In Pahala we met with Bob Williams and Albert Ledergerber, two retirees who had been very involved in various projects before MIRA. In fact, most of the people we met had a history of civic involvement. Nobody we talked with cited MIRA as his or her first community project. Bob and Albert lived in Ka'u and had retired from positions in computing and engineering. Pahala is still suffering from the closure of the sugar mill in 1995; some wish the old plantation system were still vital, while others are looking to the benefits of technology and tourism to revitalize their area. Huliau'O Ka'u is the non-profit set up in Pahala to promote economic development within the community. There are about 1500 people here and a hospital, school, bank, and post office but no filling station or restaurant. The group in Pahala linked up with Na'alehu Main Street, a non-profit and MIRA community support organization (CSO) about 14 miles away. The plan was to have a spread spectrum wireless link between the two towns that would connect up the local organizations in both communities. There were disagreements over technology, over general goals between Huliau'O Ka'u, Ka'u Learning Center and Na'alehu Main Street. Two men from the last group, Matt Cooper and John Derry, have totally disengaged from civic involvement as a result of these conflicts, and while Williams and Ledergerber are still interested in both technology and the hydroponic projects, Williams has left the organization, which has a lawsuit pending with a former volunteer. In spite of this turmoil, they planned and started a computer center situated in a beautiful old building with a wide veranda overlooking the Pacific. There was plenty of room inside, but the machines were turned off and some were covered. A bulletin board advertised a class from years past. They both hope the activities will be revived.

Though there were some problems with equipment and connectivity, most of the problems seem to be in staffing the center. This seemed to also be a problem in other MIRA centers around the island. What begins as an exciting opportunity for volunteers to share their expertise with beginners may become a routine. When the public has expectations about services at a tech center, it may be hard to meet them as volunteers burn out and fewer people are left keep the doors open. Finding an income source for the centers is usually a problem. At the Volcano general store the computer center began with free service, and later began to charge 25 cents for fifteen minutes. Patricia Kam, who had started a very successful online art gallery as a result of MIRA, helped organize the center and said one local complained to her that a dollar an hour was too much. "I saw him walking out of the store with a six-pack in his arm. If he can afford beer, he can afford 25 cents for fifteen minutes." The MIRA centers were not the first on the island. In 1995, Verifone opened a telework center in Laupahoehoe. It was languishing when the MIRA team decided to work with it and upgraded the electical system and computers. When we visited the center, Chad Cacerers, the new manager was fixing up the place, installing newer equipment for a welfare-to-work program called "Right Track" which will have public access during part of the day for $5.00 per hour. Other centers that had been started with MIRA team help included Ocean View, Na`alehu, Honoka`a, Honomu, and Rural South Hilo. Many of these centers might benefit from joining the national CTCNet, which provides some support and an annual conference for people running these tech centers. However, a group of former MIRA participants and other people had formed the Hilo Hamakua High Tech Task Force that held meetings to share news, problems, and ideas. These face-to-face meetings can only be augmented by email lists, and so-called virtual communities, some of which were set up on free web services.