Aiko Yamashiro is the executive director of Hawai'i Council for the Humanities, a
nonprofit that connects people with ideas that enrich lives, broaden perspectives, and
strengthen communities. She taught literature and creative writing at UH Mānoa and coedited
The Value of Hawai'i 2: Ancestral Roots, Oceanic Visions. Aiko was raised in
powerful Kāneʻohe.