Amberly Pigao joined the Hawaiʻi Conservation Alliance as the Alliance Coordinator in February 2024. Amberly is born and raised on Kauaʻi and currently resides on Oʻahu. She specializes in native forest ecosystems and natural resource management. She earned her master’s of science degree in Tropical Conservation Biology & Environmental Science and a bachelor’s degree in Geography from The University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo. She also has certifications in Natural Resource Conservation Management and in Planning.
Amberly worked as a KUPU intern through Kauaʻi Natural Area Reserve systems (NARS) and Pacific Internship Program for Exploring Science (PIPES) with Mauna Kea Forest Restoration Project. She recently completed her masters thesis on Forest Restoration Techniques in a subalpine forest on Hawaiʻi island where she studied fog capture systems at Kanakaleonui Bird Corridor on Mauna Kea. Her thesis was partnered with USGS, Department of Hawaiʻi Homes, Mauna Kea Watershed Alliance, and UH-Hilo. Together they collaborated on new information about forests on Hawaiʻi’s prominent mountain, Mauna Kea.
Amberly has a passion for bridging the gap between local communities and westernized science. She hopes to obtain her goal by continuing her work to re-establish native forest and connect her community back to upland forest.