The burden of grief related to extinction and invasive species in Hawaiʻi is a heavy one for conservation professionals. Some are learning how to handle it.

The annual Hawaiʻi Conservation Convention typically covers all things climate- and environment-related in the islands, with sessions modeling varieties of animal trapping technology or discussions of invasive species research.

This year, participants who walked into the Hawaiʻi Convention Center’s Room 312 after lunch on the second day were greeted by a woman behind a table with markers, colored pencils and pieces of scrap paper.

“Are you in the right session?” she asked some of them. “Grief?”

As deep anxiety over climate change and the future grips the general public, this summer’s conference featured a first-of-its-kind grief se

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