Brittany Kamai, Ph.D.

As an astrophysicist, I am driven to understand what Dark Energy is. This is an entity that makes up over 70% of the universe. Yet our field has yet to describe truly what it is. I specialize in gravitational wave instrumentation, cosmology, and metamaterials research as a way of understanding the foundations of physics yet being open to what changes may need to take place.

As an Indigenous Pacific Islander, I am activated by my ancestors to perpetuate our cultural practice of voyaging. Our people connected the largest continent on the planet, the Pacific Ocean, with cutting-edge technology and a sophisticated knowledge system that utilized all the clues nature provides. My work is to learn this practice deeper, empower our people to know their history and share this story with the world. 

As the Indigenous people of the Sea, we have an intimate link with the deep-ocean at the surface but also what lies in the depths. Our origin story as Hawaiians and navigators directly links us with the life and power at the bottom of the sea. My work is to be a voice of the ocean for the global community to hear these stories. I hope that everyone will understand how precious our ocean is to all of us.