About Us - Ola Design Group

— our story —

Cultivating Resilient, Multi-Purpose Landscapes Across Hawaiʻi Nei

Ola Design Group was created to give back to the Hawaiian Islands—the place where founder Zach Mermel was born and raised. In the face of interwoven environmental and social challenges, our mission is to help people reconnect with ʻāina—the land that feeds us—so we can live more grounded, meaningful lives.

Our work is rooted in long-term stewardship, cultivating designs that nurture ecological integrity while supporting people’s relationships with the places they call home. The result is more than just beautiful outdoor spaces. Our clients enjoy lower upkeep costs, stronger connections to their home environment, increased biodiversity, and greater food self-reliance.

OUR DESIGN PROCESS

— rooted in purpose —

OUR MISSION

Our mission is to enhance local self-reliance at the household, village, and regional scale while restoring the health of both humans and ecosystems.

— what guides us —

OUR VALUES

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The Land Comes First

We treat the land as our primary client, ensuring its needs are honored. When the ʻāina thrives, the people who care for it thrive too.

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Life-Enhancing Design

We go beyond landscaping to repair sites, foster biodiversity, and create systems where ecosystems can flourish.



Giving More Than We Take

Every project is designed as a legacy—restoring abundance, resilience, and stewardship for future generations.

— who we are —

OUR TEAM

Zach Mermel

Founder & Design Director

Zach is the founder of Ola Design Group and his varied skillset spans the disciplines of ecology, horticulture, and land planning. As a resident who was born and grew in up Hawaiʻi, Zach is intimately familiar with the various microclimates, flora and fauna of the islands. He holds a Master’s in ecological design from the Conway School. His work and education in ecological design have taken him across the Hawaiian archipelago, the Americas, and beyond. Zach resides in the tropical highlands of Volcano Village, where he was born and raised with three generations of his family.

Brad Kurokawa

Landscape Architect (ASLA, LEED AP)

Brad is a registered landscape architect with more than 30 years of experience in diverse and complex projects including transit stations for commuter and light rail, urban planning and design, health care facilities, parks, campus planning, zoological exhibits, and neighborhood design. His local experience includes neighborhood planning and design while working for PBR Hawaiʻi and three years as Hawaiʻi County Deputy Planning Director.

Blake Watson

Senior Field Projects Specialist

Blake is an experienced ecological land specialist who develops low-impact systems to control many of the exotic, opportunistic species that now inhabit Hawaiʻi. His university training in organic agriculture is complemented by extensive hands-on experience in agro-ecology, tree care, design, ethnobotany, and land use policy. Blake installs residential landscape construction projects that emphasize minimal impact, native ecosystem stewardship, and organic landscaping practices.

Keni Holani

Owner, Holani Masrony (CT-18951)

Keni is a Tonga native who has refined his masonry skills for the better part of three decades. Holani Masonry excels at integrating traditional Tongan stonecraft with modern day technologies.

Allen Isoshima

Field Project Specialist

Allen is an integrated systems thinker and doer. His skillset involves on-the-ground installation and maintenance at every scale of project implemented by Ola Design Group. Born and raised on Kauaʻi, Allen is an avid outdoorsman who enjoys fishing, diving, and getting his hands in the soil daily.

Jana Bogs, Ph.D.

Soil Scientist, Horticulturist, Nutritionist

Dr. Jana Bogs is a nutritionist (BSci) turned horticulturist (PhD) with the aim of growing the best quality and most nutritious food possible. As a researcher and consultant, she is on the cutting edge of maximizing nutritional quality in foods from the soil up using environmentally-friendly, sustainable methods that minimize pests and diseases. Dr. Bogs works with farmers, gardeners and food producers to improve health and longevity of people and their environments.

— who we work with —

OUR PARTNERS

EcoSolutions

Civil/Environmental Engineering (PE-12834)

EcoSolutions LLC is an engineering, consulting, design, and construction company that specializes in integrating innovative ecological design principles into stormwater, wastewater, and site planning projects. With projects spanning the globe, EcoSolutions’ services include low-impact development, wastewater treatment, stormwater treatment, grey water reuse, natural swimming pools, pond systems, and water features.

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Land Acknowledgment

We respectfully acknowledge that the ‘āina on which we reside and conduct business is the ancestral homeland of the Kānaka Maoli.