Hawaii has a deep cultural heritage, strong family bonds and a long tradition of caring for the collective good. It’s also home to over 30,000 babies under the age of 3, each with unlimited potential. But while Hawaii’s youngest residents are surrounded by a community that values connection, too many still face challenges that affect their health and development.
According to the last State of Babies Yearbook:
While Hawaii leads in areas like maternal mental health and prenatal care, family systems often fail to recognize the significance of identity, culture and intergenerational strength.
Navigating child welfare is often overwhelming, especially for parents facing legal complexity, trauma,and separation. Parent peer support offers a lifeline, helping families understand their rights, access services and stay engaged in their case. This leads to stronger participation and better outcomes for children.
In 2024, SB 3094 created a working group to build a statewide framework for peer support specialists. The law recognizes their vital role across systems like child welfare and aims to make peer support a sustainable, funded service, aligned with Hawai‘i’s cultural value of ohana, or family, as an extended, inclusive circle.
ZERO TO THREE’s Safe Babies approach honors this belief, working with families and communities to:
Outcomes show real change:
Safe Babies is proud to support Hawai‘i’s vision: a system where families are not separated but strengthened, where law and culture work hand in hand, and where parents help lead the way.
Kim, Parent Partner and Makua Ally, Family WRAP Department, EPIC ʻOhana.
In Kim’s role as a parent partner, she assists parents involved in Hawaii’s child welfare system (CWS) in navigating support so they can reunite with their children and close their CWS case.
Hawaii is part of a growing movement across the country to build stronger Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health (IECMH) systems. Through ZERO TO THREE’s Financing Policy Project (FPP), a learning collaborative of 36 states, Hawaii has been working to improve how assessment, diagnosis and treatment are delivered and funded.
State leaders are:
This work, supported by cross-sector collaboration, reflects Hawaii’s commitment to building a more accessible, culturally responsive IECMH system and mirrors efforts that many states are working toward. Hawaii’s experience will be shared during a session at the ZERO TO THREE LEARN Conference titled “It’s a Kākou Thing – A Systems Development Approach,” offering lessons for others looking to strengthen their own systems of care.
ZERO TO THREE is committed to helping early childhood professionals deepen their understanding of diversity-informed practice and cultural competence. We know that respectful, responsive relationships begin with recognizing the unique identities, values and experiences each family brings.
Through various training opportunities, including our LEARN Conference, we support professionals in:
Reflecting on their own biases
Honoring family culture, language and traditions
Creating inclusive, equitable environments
Using frameworks like the Diversity-Informed Tenets for Work with Infants, Children, and Families
This work is especially important in Hawaii, where families reflect a rich mix of Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, immigrant and multiethnic backgrounds. Supporting cultural competence helps providers build trust and deliver care that truly meets families where they are.
Explore Hawaii-based organizations that support healthy babies and families.
HealthySteps, a ZERO TO THREE program embedded in pediatric primary care, plays a key role in reaching military families stationed in Hawaii through our partnership with the Department of Defense. Military families often face frequent moves, isolation from extended family, and stress that can impact their child’s development.
Department of Defense HealthySteps sites:
HealthySteps plays an important role in supporting and buffering young children from stressors by focusing on supporting family strengths and healthy relationships. For families with young children who are navigating the unique demands of military life, HealthySteps strengthens their support system and helps ensure continuity of care.
ZERO TO THREE’s mission is to ensure every baby has a strong start. In Hawaii, that means working alongside community partners to build systems that reflect local knowledge, shared responsibility, and cultural wisdom.
Whether through family-centered child welfare reforms, military support programs like HealthySteps, or innovative IECMH partnerships, we’re committed to standing with Hawaii’s babies and families — and doing so with humility, respect, and a deep appreciation for the culture that shapes their world.
Our state policy team works to ensure policymakers consider young children in the decision-making process.
