Matthew Nagato

About Matthew Nagato

Matthew Nagato is a storyteller, strategist, and systems tinkerer whose work challenges the way we approach equity, power, and community transformation. As Deputy Communications Director at the Stupski Foundation, he develops strategies that move beyond rhetoric, ensuring that storytelling and engagement lead to meaningful change rather than the performative variety that sometimes accompanies philanthropy. His work is grounded in the belief that true transformation requires acknowledging the inconvenient truths about power and resources, and then having the courage to choose and act differently.Matthew’s experience extends across more than 30 years in communications, strategic planning, and public policy, including leadership roles at the Hawai‘i Primary Care Association and the Hawai‘i Medical Service Association. His work has redefined how public health and social services communicate with the people they serve, moving beyond institutional messaging to narratives that engage and mobilize communities. He has worked on award-winning campaigns, redesigned public health engagement strategies, and exposed the structural fictions that keep communities in cycles of scarcity while resources remain concentrated in the hands of a few.He is the writer, producer, and director of the documentary Ola – Health Is Everything, which sparked a movement around public health that reached far beyond the healthcare sector. The film, screened nearly 400 times nationwide, demonstrated that solutions to systemic inequities already exist within communities, but they are too often dismissed as impractical or naïve by those in power. Ola and its sequel, ‘Ike – Knowledge Is Everywhere, challenged those assumptions and demonstrated that genuine progress happens when individuals within community lead the way.A sought-after speaker on systems change, collective action, and the intersection of policy and community, Matthew has challenged audiences to think beyond traditional frameworks for philanthropy and public service. His TEDx talk explored how people, not institutions, drive meaningful and replicable change. He continues to push for a shift away from incremental solutions toward a fundamental rethinking of how we invest in community well-being.

Experience

1. Founder

   Lumos Media Llc

   May 2015 — Present · Honolulu, HI, US

   Principal creative and founder of Hawai‘i-based documentary and short-film media company focused on social issue projects that enlighten the world, one story at a

Skills

• Fundraising
• Marketing Strategy
• Product Development
• Analysis
• Program Management
• Administration
• Community Outreach
• Community Development
• Public Policy
• Public Health
• Health
• Government
• Nonprofits
• Project Planning
• Leadership Development
• Healthcare
• Policy
• Process Improvement
• Non-Profits
• Social Documentary
• Strategic Planning
• Budgeting
• System Administration
• Documentaries
• Event Planning
• Strategic Communications
• Marketing
• Change Management
• Program Evaluation
• Volunteer Management
• Training
• Business Planning
• Policy Analysis
• Healthcare Information Technology
• Management
• Program Development
• Grant Writing
• Public Relations
• Media Relations
• Writing