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Hawaiʻi Sea Grant TV series wins Emmy

Left to right, Thor Seraphin, Kanesa Duncan Seraphin and Andrew Sullivan-Haskins

Photo by PMDP photojournalist Andrew Sullivan-Haskins

Photo by PMDP photojournalist Andrew Sullivan-Haskins

(Credit: ������Ƶ Hawaiʻi Sea Grant)

Most people will never visit Papahānaumokuākea. But an Emmy-winning episode of the University of Hawaiʻi’s Voice of the Sea takes viewers to the remote Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, where crews tackle massive amounts of plastic pollution.

That story earned the series, produced by the University of Hawaiʻi Sea Grant College Program, a regional Emmy Award. The episode, “,” won in the category Environment/Science - News / Long Form Content.

The episode follows people caring for a place sacred to Hawaiian communities. Through photography and video, viewers encounter its wildlife, learn about its cultural importance and see the demanding work of removing plastic from its waters and islands.

“At its heart, it is a story about mālama ʻāina—people in Hawaiʻi caring for the places that sustain us,” said host and producer Kanesa Duncan Seraphin.

Duncan Seraphin, producer Thor Seraphin and project photojournalist Andrew Sullivan-Haskins recently received their Emmy statuettes. The award came from the San Francisco/Northern California chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, which includes Hawaiʻi and Guam.

“It’s a privilege to document the extraordinary wildlife, cultural significance, and conservation work of Papahānaumokuākea, and help share a place that few people will ever experience firsthand,” Sullivan-Haskins said.

For Thor Seraphin, the images and the people behind them made the episode stand out.

“This is a story about hard work and sacrifice. Everyone involved in this episode worked as hard as they could, for something bigger than themselves. I think the voters felt that,” he said.

The series has more than 70 award-winning episodes, with honors including Emmys and Tellys.

airs on KFVE Saturdays and Sundays at 6 p.m. Episodes are also available on the series’ website. 

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