Green appoints Big Island native Ryan Kanaka‘ole to lead DLNR

Hawaii Island residents who follow hunting access, shoreline use, water policy and Mauna Kea governance now have a new face at the top of the state agency that helps decide all of them. Gov. Josh Green has appointed Ryan Kanaka‘ole of Wai‘ohinu in Ka‘u to lead the Department of Land and Natural Resources and the Board of Land and Natural Resources, a move that puts one of the state’s broadest land-management jobs in the hands of a Big Island native.

The change comes as Dawn Chang prepares to retire as chairperson and director, effective July 1, with David Day set to become first deputy effective July 7. Both appointments still need Hawaii State Senate confirmation. Green first named Kanaka‘ole acting chair and director on Dec. 29, 2025, and the governor’s office said the written designation was filed to preserve continuity and legal authority during the transition.

For Big Island communities, the immediate significance is practical. DLNR controls public lands, water resources, ocean waters, navigable streams, coastal areas except commercial harbors, minerals and related interests. That means its decisions can shape everything from conservation enforcement and public access to shoreline management and the protection of culturally sensitive lands. On Hawaii Island, where debates over land use often touch hunting grounds, fishing areas, water diversions and Mauna Kea, the next six to 12 months could show whether Kanaka‘ole’s local roots change how those issues are handled.

Kanaka‘ole arrives with deep administrative experience. The governor’s office said he most recently served as deputy attorney general, representing the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corp. and the Mauna Kea Stewardship Oversight Authority. He also served as deputy attorney general for the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands from 2017 to 2023, and Senate confirmation materials said he had been interim deputy director since January 2024. Committee reports noted that he reviewed hundreds of bills affecting DLNR in a legislative-coordinator role.

His background also reaches into state oversight, with work on performance audits involving DLNR, the University of Hawaii, the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, the Department of Transportation, the Department of the Attorney General, the Hawaii Energy Office and the Department of Human Services. For Big Island residents, that combination of local ties and statewide policy experience makes Kanaka‘ole’s appointment more than a personnel change. It places a Hawaii Island voice at the center of decisions that will shape access, conservation and development across the island in the months ahead.