DLNR Names Ryan Kanakaʻole Acting Chair During Medical Leave

On Jan. 1, 2026, the Hawaiʻi Department of Land and Natural Resources announced that Deputy Director Ryan Kanakaʻole will serve as acting chair and director during Chair Dawn Chang’s medical leave. The governor issued the acting-leadership designation and DLNR emphasized that daily operations and the agency’s statutory responsibilities would continue without interruption.

DLNR said leadership, boards and commissions, including the Board of Land and Natural Resources and the Commission on Water Resource Management, will proceed with scheduled meetings and hearings. For residents of Big Island County, that continuity means ongoing permitting reviews, water resource deliberations and land management decisions will remain on their planned timetables rather than be deferred.

Ryan Kanakaʻole is from Waiohinu in the Kaʻū district of Hawaiʻi Island and previously served as a deputy attorney general. His legal work included representing state entities such as the Hawaiʻi Housing Finance and Development Corp. and the Mauna Kea Stewardship and Oversight Authority. Those roles give him experience with the legal and administrative issues that fall within DLNR’s portfolio, from housing-related land matters to stewardship questions tied to Mauna Kea.

The department’s announcement expressed support for Chair Chang’s recovery and confidence in Kanakaʻole’s stewardship in the interim. The governor’s formal designation underscores executive involvement in ensuring leadership continuity within a cabinet-level agency that manages state lands, public trust resources and key regulatory boards.

Institutionally, the transition to an acting director keeps statutory timelines in place. Scheduled public hearings and regulatory votes will proceed under established rules, preserving opportunities for public testimony and civic engagement. For community groups and individual residents who track land use, water allocation or conservation measures, the message is one of procedural steadiness: pending items will be handled according to DLNR’s calendar rather than stalled by the chair’s temporary absence.

Local stakeholders should monitor DLNR agendas and notices for any changes to hearing schedules or agenda items and continue to participate in public meetings. The interim appointment raises typical governance questions about how an acting director balances ongoing administration with the limitations of temporary authority, but the department’s immediate priority, as stated, was to maintain operational continuity while supporting Chang’s recovery.