Hawaii is at a crossroads. The pandemic highlighted the fragility of our tourism-based economy. Though tourism numbers have rebounded, many local families haven’t recovered from two years of economic hardship.

Meanwhile, our housing crisis grows worse by the day, with median home prices cresting $1 million. Our middle class struggles with the cost of living. A third of our population are “asset-limited, income-constrained and employed” — the so-called ALICE families. These families have no savings. They live paycheck to paycheck. They’re only one car accident or medical emergency away from poverty.

It’s easy to become cynical in the face of these problems. Many local families have given up hope, leaving to pursue opportunity elsewhere. I can’t blame them. Staying requires sacrifice, but it shouldn’t.

Sustainability is a buzzword these days. To me, sustainability means that our children and grandchildren can afford to stay in Hawaii nei. And to ensure sustainability tomorrow, we must work toward it today.

I joined Partners for Democracy because I believe that I have an obligation to serve the community that raised me. I’ve been privileged with opportunities both educational and professional. And I want to ensure that future generations have access to an even better life.

During my time with the program, I’ve learned more about land use, infrastructure and housing. I have furthered my understanding of public advocacy and what it takes to advance a cause.

As executive director of Housing Hawaii’s Future, I work alongside a movement of young locals who will create opportunities for Hawaii’s Gen Z and millennials by ending the workforce housing shortage. Our vision is that any local who works hard and wants quality housing will find it.

Housing Hawaii’s Future is building a broad, middle-class movement, advocating for the workforce housing that our community needs.

The other members of the Partners for Democracy cohort inspire me. They are civil servants, public advocates and candidates for office. They are capable and ethical. They care about our communities.

I am excited to see the next generation stepping forward to take on leadership roles. Ultimately, it’s the task of each generation to renew our democratic government. That government is a compact between the dead, the living and the unborn — a partnership between past, present and future.

Partners for Democracy has helped me to learn from the past, see the possibilities in the present, and help lead our community into the future. The future is not fixed; it is something that we determine together.

“Politics” has become a dirty word in recent years. Fair enough. It’s hard not to feel anger and shame with each successive corruption scandal. Campaign promises are followed by the harsh reality of governance. Hopes are raised and dashed. It’s easy to become cynical.

But politics is the way we make decisions about what we do together. If our most capable leaders shun politics, they leave the field to less capable, less ethical, less scrupulous people. In other words, to believe that politics is hopelessly corrupt is a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The leaders emerging from Partners for Democracy have the skills and knowledge necessary to revitalize government, but government can’t solve problems alone. As guest speaker Joe Kennedy III told our cohort, “the way we restore trust in democracy is making sure we engage our community.”

We need leaders from across the community to come together to address the systemic issues our state faces, especially the cost of living.

Our state is at a crossroads, and we choose which way we go from here. Let’s move forward, together.

Sterling Higa, executive director of Housing Hawaii’s Future, participated in Partners for Democracy, a civic leadership program that just graduated its inaugural cohort.