Thank you to everyone who participated. It was a very unique year–and (hopefully) the only fully virtual Forum we will ever offer. The speakers were great. And we had tremendous support from our partners; and due to their generous support we are making the session videos available to all below. (Unfortunately, the keynote interview with Anthony Foxx not available). The next time you see them, please thank: Southern California Edison, Replica, Mark Thomas, Amazon Web Services, LECET/Liuna!, Union Pacific, MIG, Best, Best & Krieger, Department of Housing and Community Development, Caltrans, Jacobs, Fehr & Peers, California Alliance for Jobs, Majestic Realty, Transportation Corridor Agencies, and the Mineta Institute.
Forum Sessions
1. Bringing Broadband to the South Bay. Jacki Bacharach, executive director of the South Bay Cities Council of Governments, tells an exciting story about bringing raw “dark fiber” to the cities of the South Bay (Los Angeles County). For more see: Ring of Fiber.
2. A Conversation with Liane Randolph. Ms. Randolph is the new Chair of the California Air Resources Board. In this session, Ms. Randolph discusses some priorities for the upcoming year, and comments about working to reduce transportation emissions going forward.
3. What is REAP Sowing? A progress report on the housing policies being implemented under the Regional Early Action Program, which is the first program to fund the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) process; a close look at innovations in the Bay Area, San Joaquin Valley, and Southern California.
4. Transportation Committee Transitions. After years of the “two Jims” (Beall & Frazier) chairing the Senate & Assembly Transportation Committees, new leadership will bring new priorities. Assembly Member Laura Friedman and Chief Consultant Randy Chinn discuss how this transition affects transportation policy.
5. EV Charging Ahead. California has set aggressive goals for electric vehicles. Many of the major car companies are on board. So how do we prepare for the EV revolution? Simon Horton from Southern California Edison and Linda Urata from Kern COG discuss the role of regions. For more, see EV Policy Tracker.
6. A Conversation About Equity. A key session at the conference was a discussion on equity and how regions were addressing the issue around the state. Before we broke into (unrecorded) small group discussions, Kome Ajise, Executive Director, Southern California Association of Governments, introduced the importance of authentically engaging on this issue. See more Equity Resources.
7. Big Data: A Conversation with Nick Bowden. Nick Bowden the CEO of Replica, discusses how Replica can provide data to government agencies through their company. He briefly explains the benefits of using data to thoroughly assess a city as a whole and provide insight on how government agencies can utilize their data.
8. Collaborating for Regional Resilience. Regions can play an important role in supporting resilience. This case study explores the partnerships and challenges in the San Diego region, featuring Darbi Berry from the San Diego Regional Climate Collaborative and Anna Lowe from SANDAG. Guest appearance by Hasan Ikhrata. Ably moderated by Michael McCormick of Farallon Strategies. For more, see our Resilience Resources.
9. State of the State-Regional Partnership. A conversation about how the state and regional governments can cooperate to achieve objectives around transportation, housing, climate, and equity. Includes Kate Gordon (Director, Governor’s Office of Planning and Research), Rosa de Leon Park (Executive Director, Stanislaus Council of Governments), and Hasan Ikhrata (Executive Director, San Diego Association of Governments).
10. New Federal Priorities: What Should California Be Doing? (for Pete’s sake!) Panelists: Anthony Foxx (17th Secretary of Transportation), Toks Omishakin (Director, Caltrans), Therese McMillan (Executive Director, MTC), and Phil Washington (CEO, LA Metro); and well-moderated by James Corless (SACOG).
