Three years ago we set out to keep a close eye on how government in Hawaiʻi is serving the public. Our “Let The Sunshine In” project has been primarily focused on accountability, transparency and ethical issues and especially whether the public is being included in the debate over issues and events that very much affect their everyday lives.

Holding government and political leaders to account often comes across as negative — someone doing something wrong, a flawed or failed program, public information being withheld unnecessarily.

But accountability doesn’t always have to be bad news. That’s why we’re launching a new feature of the Sunshine project we’re calling “Bright Spots.” In this occasional series we want to shine a light on people and programs that are working well. They’re not broken and they don’t need to be fixed, they function without a fuss.

In some columns, we’ll spotlight people who are quietly going about the public’s business, some inside government, some on the outside, but who all have an interest in making government operate as effectively as possible. Their endgame is to make Hawaiʻi a better place.

Bright Spots

A column about people and programs that are helping make Hawaiʻi a better place. Send suggestions to sunshine@civilbeat.org.

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We’re kicking off the series with a feature about a longtime organization of prominent citizens called the Social Science Association that has been operating for more than 140 years. The group’s goal is to stay informed on current events while doing its own deep thinking on issues the members — who are spread among various business and civic sectors — believe are important enough to warrant substantial discussion and, through their written essays, become part of the historical record.

The Social Science Association is one interesting civic group working in Hawaiʻi’s best interest that has been largely out of public sight. And there are no doubt many more Bright Spots right under our noses that we just never think about.

More: The Oldest Group Of Influential Hawaiʻi Citizens You’ve Never Heard Of

This is an evolving idea for sure and we’d love your help as we develop it. For starters, think about your daily lives and the government services you use. What’s working for you? Is there a particular service or program that people should know about? How about that person who has helped you through a particularly complicated problem or showed you the ropes?

We’re interested in non-government people and programs too if they get public money, are somehow connected to a government function or have a significant involvement in public or community affairs.

Please send your thoughts on this idea and any suggestions about who we might include to sunshine@civilbeat.org and mention Bright Spots in the subject line.