In the past year, California has faced significant challenges from natural disasters to an uneven economic outlook and difficult housing market. CA Fwd and its partners in the California Economic Summit network are rallying ahead of the 2018 Summit in Sonoma to create a plan for resiliency that communities across the state can use in the face of challenges like these.
Check out our latest video, which also looks forward to the 2018 statewide gathering and the work ahead.
At last year's Summit in San Diego, leaders from across the state heard about devastation from recent fires in Northern California.
This year, the Summit and partners will be examining the response to the 2017 wildfires — and review lessons learned and look for opportunities to improve long-term recovery.
“These fire storms that came and took over not just Sonoma County, but the other four surrounding counties, showed us that our complacency and our desire to make marginal changes, to be a part of owning the future, was not enough,” said Sonoma County Supervisor James Gore, who attended the 2017 Summit in San Diego and is featured in the video above.
The goal of the work in the region will be to create a governance model for resiliency that could be deployed in communities and regions across the state.
“It also showed us that the jurisdiction doesn't matter whether you're talking about fires or the Summit priorities like workforce, housing and water and resources,” said Gore.
Also in the coming weeks, the Summit will release its 2018 Roadmap to Shared Prosperity, which will set the stage for creating tangible action in 2018 like setting tangible state metrics for upward mobility, refining strategies for rural economic development, and continuing the ongoing initiatives to close gaps in skilled workers, livable communities, and well-paying jobs.
“It should be a great year,” said Gore. “Number one, we have to use this shock to our system as a way to shock the system and how things work.”
Catch all of the coverage of the Summit and sign up to get updates and news about the work as we announce more about the 2018 Summit and events leading up to the statewide gathering next fall.
