Bakersfield, CA, Oct. 28, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The 2022 California Economic Summit concluded on Friday in Bakersfield. The most-attended in the Summit’s 11-year history, this year’s event attracted nearly 1,000 attendees from around the state to the Central Valley, where they focused on solutions to California’s most pressing issues.
Pointing out the gap in economic prosperity, labor leader and civil rights activist Dolores Huerta said, “Here in the San Joaquin Valley, from Bakersfield to Sacramento, there have been over 20 prisons that have been built since 1965 and only one university [University of California at Merced]. We see that this is where our tax dollars are going.” Huerta received a standing ovation before her remarks.
“Change is difficult, but we’re in the change business and California has long been in the future business,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. “The future happens here first. We’re America’s coming attraction. The world looks to us for leadership, entrepreneurial energy.”
“You already have the largest wind and solar facilities in the world in California,” the Governor continued. "We’re dominating in this area and that’s the great abundant opportunity–so I would say to folks, ‘keep doing what we’re doing.’ Be mindful that we have the backs of those through transition.”
A replay of the Governor’s remarks can be found here.
This energy evolution was a key focus of this year's Summit, with discussion about CA FWD’s Building A Sustainable Energy Future: A Call to Action. This energy call to action includes five recommendations that set the compass for California to meet its 2045 goal of zero-carbon electricity generation, recommending an “all-of-the-above” approach that takes into account all industries and options, including oil and gas, nuclear, biomass and more.
Equitable economic growth was another key issue during the Summit.
“The State of California has decided that this issue of infrastructure is critical to moving our economy forward, to putting more people to work in good, middle-class jobs,” said Californa’s Infrastructure Advisor Antonio Villaraigosa. Over the past several months, CA FWD has been working with Villariagosa on regions-focused input sessions on California’s infrastructure priorities.
The Summit also featured nine working sessions, where attendees collaborated on real solutions to California’s most critical issues. Working sessions this year included Building a Sustainable Energy Future, Housing and Homeownership, Economic Prosperity in a Changing Climate, Advancing Inclusive Regional Economies, the Creative Economy and more.
“The impact of this year’s Summit reminds us of the importance of bringing all regions to the table,” said CA FWD CEO Micah Weinberg. “All of California’s regions are unique, with different workforces and different industries–our focus on a regions-up approach to achieving shared prosperity for all only strengthens each of California’s communities and the state as a whole.”
Next year, the Summit will gather within the Imperial and Coachella Valleys in November 2023. The annual event has previously been held in Santa Clara, Los Angeles, Sacramento, Ontario, San Diego, Santa Rosa, Fresno, Monterey and Bakersfield.
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ABOUT CA FWD
California Forward (CA FWD) leads a statewide movement, bringing people together across communities, regions and interests to improve government and create inclusive, sustainable growth for everyone. A 501(c)(3) organization, CA FWD drives collective action to identify solutions that can be taken to scale to meet the challenges the state is facing. CA FWD serves as the backbone for the California Stewardship Network, an alliance of regional economic development leaders, and is home to the California Economic Summit and the California Dream Index. To view our work product from last year’s Summit, which informs our agenda for the year and will be built upon at this year’s Summit, see the 2022 Roadmap to Shared Prosperity.
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