Ka mea nāna i hoʻokumuThe founder
Misty Carter
For Misty Carter, resilience has never meant simply enduring. It is the ability to heal, reconnect, rebuild, and move forward with a deeper understanding of who we are and what we carry with us.
"The measure of leadership is not simply what we accomplish ourselves, but what we make possible for others and what remains strong enough for the next generation to carry forward."
Wahine Wellness Resilient Hawaiʻi began with a vision to support women transitioning home after incarceration by creating pathways for psychological, spiritual, physical, and emotional healing grounded in Native Hawaiian culture and practice. At its heart was a simple belief: every person deserves the opportunity to heal, rebuild, and reconnect, to self, family, culture, community, and purpose.
That belief was shaped by Misty's own life journey and by years of working alongside communities navigating hardship, recovery, change, and opportunity. She came to understand that wellness cannot be addressed in pieces. Healing is not one-dimensional, and resilience cannot be sustained without also considering identity, relationships, leadership, culture, education, and economic wellbeing.
As Misty's work expanded, so did the vision for Wahine Wellness.
What began with a focus on women grew into a broader commitment to strengthening women, youth, families, and emerging community leaders. Today, Wahine Wellness Resilient Hawaiʻi advances cultural, social, and economic self-sufficiency through education, leadership development, community connection, and culturally grounded opportunities that allow people to recognize and build upon the strengths already within themselves and their communities.
Hoʻoponopono remains a guiding principle of that evolution.
For Misty, Hoʻoponopono is more than a practice for resolving conflict. It offers a way of understanding relationship, responsibility, balance, accountability, and the continual work of making things right. Those principles influence how Wahine Wellness gathers people, builds partnerships, develops leaders, supports community initiatives, and creates spaces where healing and growth can occur together.
Misty's leadership is also rooted in the understanding that culture and economic opportunity are not separate conversations. Communities become stronger when people have access to knowledge, relationships, resources, leadership opportunities, and the ability to build sustainable futures for themselves and future generations.
Background and education
Her professional journey spans disaster recovery and resilience, Indigenous advocacy, community engagement, leadership development, economic development, grant strategy, Psychological First Aid, and culturally grounded facilitation. She holds a Master of Legal Studies in Indigenous Peoples Law from the University of Oklahoma and a bachelor's degree in Gender and Women's Studies and Communication from the University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo.
As a Native Hawaiian woman with Apsáalooke roots, Misty's work is deeply informed by Indigenous ways of knowing, ancestral wisdom, reciprocity, and her responsibility to generations both before and after her. She is also the mother of four children, a role that continues to shape her understanding of leadership and legacy.
Wahine Wellness Resilient Hawaiʻi continues to evolve from that understanding.
It is no longer simply a vision for wellness. It is a growing community of people, relationships, ideas, and opportunities rooted in the belief that healing can lead to leadership, leadership can create opportunity, and opportunity, when grounded in culture and collective responsibility, can strengthen an entire community.
This is the work of resilience: remembering who we are, restoring what needs healing, and creating pathways for those who come next.
E pili mauContinued connection
Join the work Misty started.
Become a member of Ka Lokomaikaʻi Collective™, partner with the organization, or explore the programs.