Our Partnership with the University of Hawaii

We are honored to announce a very special program that exemplifies our advocacy and our core mission. In Honolulu, Hawaii in January 16, 2024, The University of Hawaiʻi (UH) and the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance (MDAA) entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to foster cooperation on space studies. This collaboration will focus on the development of space technologies specifically looking over the Pacific Ocean for scientific research purposes. Using the world class facilities at the University of Hawaii in combination with MDAA’s breadth of over 40 years of knowledge and relationships across multiple domains and multiple sectors both national and global. This program aims at creating a leading institution for space studies and development.

The agreement was signed between myself, the chairman and founder of MDAA, and UH Mānoa Provost Michael Bruno. This agreement continues MDAA’s mission is to make the world and our nation safer. This marks the third collaboration between MDAA and higher Academic education, following the USC SHIELD and University of Arizona AETOS programs.

“This program is one important step toward making Hawaiʻi the nation’s center for space-based observation of the Pacific… There is a real need to better understand what’s going on in the Pacific. It’s this vast domain that is impossible to monitor, especially from the ground. You really have to begin to monitor from space… I think a critical need is to connect our leading-edge research to education, and that is a big part of what this program is going to seek to do… At its heart” the partnership will be a workforce development program to range from undergraduate to graduate students and others… The way you go about developing a modern workforce in an area as sophisticated as space, in my view, you have to begin with a base of knowledge and research that can provide that technical expertise to young people.”

Michael Bruno, UH Mānoa Provost

“Instead of looking up, it’s going to look down with sensors to pick up the ability to see the entire Pacific, which we have not done in the history of mankind… This will be the first time that we will be able to see everything around us in the Pacific, whether it’s movements of fish, ships, planes, agriculture, everything… And the other thing is that, being the center of the Pacific, to have our other Pacific nations send their students to (UH) is in the best interests for the security of our world and for keeping the status quo… Right now we’ve got a vast Pacific that’s uncharted and unknown.”

Mr. Riki Ellison, Chairman and Founder of MDAA

“Our work with MDAA is going to be primarily about education, in particular the development and delivery of executive education programs aimed at professionals as well as advanced students in the broad industry that we have defined as space sciences.. These education programs will be designed to connect the leading-edge research at UH Manoa with student instruction.

Our goal will be to educate professionals and aspiring professionals about the latest understanding of astrophysics and space sensor technologies.. The program will not be developing military technology. That could be anything from wildfires to the volcano erupting, to long-period things like climate change impacts.”