A Future Beyond Bases: Imagining Military Conversion in Hawaiʻi
The potential for military base conversion in Hawaiʻi
3 Jun 2026
3 June 2026
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The Case for Military Base Conversion
The US military currently occupies 222,000 acres of Hawaiian land. Of this, 169,000 acres are reported as “fee or ceded”(owned by the military) with an additional 53,000 acres occupied through leases, permits and other forms of temporary use. 1
In August 2029, military leases of more than 40,000 acres of land across the islands are set to expire. This is an opportunity for Hawaiʻi’s residents to reconsider the scope of the US military presence and imagine alternative uses for the land currently occupied by bases; uses that centre the local population, especially Native Hawaiians. 2
Transition Security Project joins ʻĀina Aloha Economic Futures,‘Īlio‘ulaokalani Coalition, Institute for Policy Studies, Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi and the Costs of War Project to endorse the report The True Cost of the U.S. Military in Hawaiʻi: A Comprehensive Analysis of the Economic, Environmental, Strategic, and Social Impacts of the U.S. Military Presence in Hawaiʻi.
To celebrate the launch of the report, Transition Security Project has collaborated with research groups in Hawaiʻi to produce a visual analysis of the potential for conversion of military sites towards civilian infrastructure.
Visualising the potential for military base conversion in Hawaiʻi
Combining archival material, historical research, cartographic techniques and community consultation , Transition Security Project produced a video model of the potential for base conversion in Hawaiʻi. In the short video, published alongside the report, mapping of base sites is overlayed with demands from local communities and organisers for reparative justice and the return of their lands. Civilian base conversion has a long precedent, both across the world and specifically in Hawaiʻi.
Content Type
Theme
Video: A Future Beyond Bases
Acknowledgements
Transition Security Project would like to thank Jon Osorio, Kyle Kajihiro, Wayne Tanaka, Christine Ahn, Laurel Mei-Singh, Malia Osorio, Mikey Inouye, and the Mālama Mākua documentary.
The feedback offered by Amelia Horgan, Kevin Cashman, Khem Rogaly, Kishan San, Leela Jadhav, Lorah Steichen and Sarah Nankivell was essential to the production of this video.
Credits
Video: Pinelopi Gardika, Davis Price and David Vine
Narration: Jon Osorio
Editorial: Amelia Horgan and Khem Rogaly
Report: ʻĀina Aloha Economic Futures, ‘Īlio‘ulaokalani Coalition, Institute for Policy Studies, Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi, The Costs of War Project and Transition Security Project
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1.
“Hawai‘i Military Land Use Master Plan (HMLUMP)”, US Indo-Pacific Command, 2021.
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2.
Christine Ahn, Neta Crawford, and Davis Price, “The True Cost of the U.S. Military in Hawaiʻi: A Comprehensive Analysis of the Economic, Environmental, Strategic, and Social Impacts of the U.S. Military Presence in Hawaiʻi”, Institute for Policy Studies, 2026, Available here.