A son of American Samoa, Aaron Sala, has been appointed as the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau’s new President and CEO.
Sala, who was Executive Director of the 13th Pacific Arts Festival in Hawaii, begins his new appointment on September 1st. A statement from Mufi Hannemann, Board Chair and Interim President & CEO Daniel Nahoopii said, “Aaron’s steadfast commitment to our communities on each island will be vital in ensuring that visitors benefit our people, places and living cultures, supporting our collective effort toward Hawaii’s regenerative tourism future.”
Sala is a business entrepreneur and educator. As president and CEO of Gravitas Pasifika, he led a boutique firm dedicated to advancing Native Hawaiian talent through innovative and creative production.
He also established the Foundation for an Engaged Pacific, a nonprofit focused on educating, engaging and elevating Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities through leadership and professional development.
Sala received a PhD in ethnomusicology from the University of Hawaii at Manoa.
Sala said of his appointment, “The responsibility is ours, there no one else to blame. These are some of the wants that we have articulated and these boards have responded. The community has responded and now we are in these positions of leadership and authority and now we have a responsibility to follow through in this work.”
Sala is the son of Chief Associate Judge Mamea Sala Jr.
