Islands After the War: A Comparative Study of Landscapes across the Pacific

08/20/2025 – A comparative study examining World War II–scarred landscapes in Saipan, Tinian, and Okinawa, Japan, is now available as a free ebook and is expected to reach the CNMI’s public schools and the Joeten Kiyu Public Library this fall.

‘Islands After the War: A Comparative Study of Landscapes across the Pacific Theater’ was officially launched last Saturday at the JKPL library through a hybrid book launch which brought together scholars, educators, and community members to reflect on how the war continues to shape island life.

The book, authored by recent Harvard graduates Emily H. Kim, Gio Hur, Carlo Raimondo, and Hannah Hardenbergh, were present via Zoom. The team shared the book’s outline, its anthology-style format, and their methods of research and data collection. They also spoke about the similarities and differences they observed when comparing historic sites in Okinawa with those in Saipan and Tinian—particularly in how communities interact with remnants of war and grapple with its lingering effects.

During the Q&A session, Hardenbergh explained the group’s starting point “We essentially wanted to start the project in thinking about how coastal landscapes were still very visible, both literally, like being spatially visible on the landscape and also figuratively, culturally speaking, in terms of how people interact with them… So our hypothesis was that they're still there and people have very different relationships to these places and we wanted to investigate what exactly they were and how they related to each other and all of the nuances in between.”

Hur, who once lived on Saipan, reflected on how the project reshaped her own perspective “I definitely think through the study of landscape architecture at Berkeley, but also Harvard, that kind of made me realize how special and layered the history is in Saipan and Tinian and across the Pacific Islands that were part of the war… I will still keep asking questions and just trying to continue this important work to bring awareness to islands like Saipan and Tinian and home.”

For Raimondo, he admitted that his knowledge of the Marianas was limited before joining the project “I don't wanna speak for everyone but prior to meeting Gio, I didn't know where Saipan was, I wasn't aware of the history really that explicitly what had occurred in the Pacific following the war. And I think that like, as citizens of the United States, I think it was important to learn that history…”

For Kim, visiting the islands, was key to unlocking the team’s understanding further  “I think that actually being able to come to the Marianas, and to Okinawa Prefecture, really shaped our ability to dive into these spaces, and these ideas. They're really beautiful places, and we're really, really grateful for the opportunity to have gone and visited them, and met so many people who are willing to share their stories with us.”

Hardenbergh emphasized how the people of the Marianas made the work meaningful “My expectations surpassed, and I would have to say that that is because of the community, because of Gio's community in Saipan. First of all, this project would not have happened without them, and second of all, we were welcomed with open arms… I can really think that it's that personal connection that made the project come alive, you know, and so, for that, I'm really grateful, too.”

In attendance for the launch was 12-year-old Carlina Maras, a student at Saipan International School. She told Marianas Press “I thought it was very interesting. I was so invested, because it’s our islands in the CNMI. I think we should recognize that what happened in the past happened here, and it’s part of our culture and history so I think we’ve got to recognize it.”

Northern Marianas Humanities Council executive director Leo Pangelinan delivered opening remarks, recalling the authors’ early partnership with NMHC “So the team of authors that wrote this book, they came to the Northern Marianas Humanities Council around September, maybe a little earlier of last year. They applied for one of our grants…” he shared that when they had applied the group were already doing research. “We just sort of helped them over the finish line in terms of them wanting to get these stories and writing in some way that can be publicly accessible.”

He explained that the book was made possible through a grant and, as a result, will be freely distributed “They did present an exhibit at an event at Harvard to share their findings… but this was the next step, really putting it in a book and making it available to our community. So because of the book and the publication of the book was grant funded, they've agreed to make the book freely available in the form of an e-copy.”

Pangelinan said that they were expecting a bunch of the physical copies soon “They'll give us a bunch of books and we'll distribute that out to our libraries. Not just the Joeten Kiyu Public Library, but the school district and all the private schools, as well as all our repositories that you see on the archive. So it'll be accessible in print in that way. If they do create a second iteration of it, it will be made probably available for sale at that point. But right now, the book is not for sale.”

Pangelinan praised the team’s collaboration and dedication “I can't speak enough about how highly effective this project team has been… They've been an excellent partner for us as a council, as a grantee chair, and as a grantee… Always showing compassion and commitment to getting the project done.”

To Hur, Pangelinan shared“…we're really proud of you, Gio, for writing, sharing your story and sharing the stories of the places that are important to us.”

In a conversation with JKPL library director Erlinda Naputi, she expressed her appreciation for being a part of the launch “It's a great opportunity, you know, for the library to come together as a community to share the space that we have and to launch such an informative and prestigious work these scholars have done. Being the only public library, we are very fortunate to be hosting many of these group launches and so I want the community to know that we are here for them. The space is here for the public and we are here ready to serve our community in any aspects, in any way we can.”

She also thanked NMHC for linking the scholars with the library and looked ahead to October when physical copies arrive “We look forward to collaborating and receiving their books in October for our people to see.”

Get a copy of the e-book at https://www.nmhcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/Islands-After-the-War-Ebook.pdf

Report by Chrystal Marino