EP 69 Park Superintendent Rhonda Loh on how seeking knowledge of the land is a mind and heart endeavor
From Land and People by Melissa Chimera
December 23, 2025 · 58 min · Season 3 · Episode 69
About this episode
Dr. Rhonda Loh discusses her extensive experience at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park and the importance of understanding the land.
Dr. Rhonda Loh has over thirty years of experience at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, starting out as a volunteer and now in the top position as Superintendent. Rhonda explains how her graduate experiences in science (she holds both a Master’s biochemistry and a PhD in botany) were in tandem with her discovery of Hawaiian ecology and conservation. We get into careers within the National Park Service, her community challenges in fencing and removing feral ungulates, and her perpetual wonder and amazement that Kilauea volcano continues to instill in both staff and visitors.
People in this episode
Host: Melissa Chimera
Guest: Rhonda Loh
Topics covered
- Hawaiian ecology
- conservation
- National Park Service
- feral ungulates
- Kilauea volcano
Keywords
- Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park
- ecology
- conservation
- Kilauea
- National Park Service
- feral ungulates
- Rhonda Loh
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park
Places: Kilauea, Hawai’i
More episodes of Land and People
- EP 76 Biologist Sierra McDaniel on conserving the inheritance of Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park · May 30, 2026 · 55 min
- EP 75 Waikōloa Dry Forest biologists Jen Lawson and Rob Yagi on the interface between people and the rarest of the rare forests · April 3, 2026 · 1h 9m
- EP 74 Biologist Jim Jacobi on mapping and surveying Hawaii’s unique ecosystems across time and space · March 13, 2026 · 1h 18m
- EP 73 Pilot David Okita on the evolution of helicopters as an essential tool for conservation land management · February 26, 2026 · 51 min
- EP 72 Wildlife biologists Colleen and Ian Cole on making lasting alliances across diverse communities and geographies · February 13, 2026 · 1h 3m
- EP 71 Hawaiian storyteller and conservationist Hannah Kihalani Springer on how land care begins with aloha for one another · January 30, 2026 · 1h 21m
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Land and People podcast page.