Economic Challenges

Part One of Producer Angela Shelley’s video diary - Big Sadness in the Big Easy. We ride along with Angela as she explores devastated New Orleans neighborhoods, including the Ninth Ward and Lakeview.

California’s real estate market is now leveling off or even dropping after years of growth. Buyers may be left with homes they can’t afford. Homebuilders, contractors, and many others also depend on a strong real estate market. The weakening real estate market may even have the potential to push the whole economy south.

Families are moving out of the cities and suburbs into ranch-style homes in the Central Valley. Critics say the trend is consuming our state’s irreplaceable farmlands. Others say it is helping farmers financially. In any case, it is creating a battle ground between the newcomers and the farmers.

A giant on-going rockslide has cut off the tiny town of Mariposa from its economic lifeblood - Yosemite National Park. Will it survive or become another ghost town?

In a community where overnight street parking is illegal, a unique Santa Barbara program helps people living in their cars find places to spend the night. In this extended scene from “Half-Homeless,” we follow the daily lives of Frank and Gary.

In a community where overnight street parking is illegal, a unique Santa Barbara program helps people living in their cars find places to spend the night.

Our producers discuss the story behind the story of “Troubled Waters.”

In the coastal community of Santa Barbara, the median home cost - more than $1.2 million - has forced local police, fire fighters and nurses further and further inland for affordable middle class housing. What happens when first-responders live outside the community they are protecting?

We sit down with Kai Ryssdal, host of public radio’s “Marketplace,” to find out his down-to-earth reasons why not to overinvest in your home.

We spoke with Angela Alioto, who was appointed by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom to write the 10-year plan to take 3,000 chronic homeless people off the street.

Executive Producer Bret Marcus joins Producer Joseph Angier, Story Editor Randa Cardwell, and Reseacher Jessica Garcia to discuss Undocumented Life.

Executive Producer Bret Marcus joins Producer Joseph Angier and Associate Producer Matthew Chin to discuss Who’s Minding Our Ports?

The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach together comprise the busiest port complex in the United States. Just a single attack on this port complex could send our economy into a tailspin.

What is it actually like to live in America as an undocumented immigrant? Meet three immigrants who share their experiences “getting by” on the fringes of California society.

We sit down with Chris Bertelli, deputy director of the California Office of Homeland Security, for a “reality check” on California’s state security challenges.

Since 2001, the federal government has more than tripled spending on non-military, homeland security. How quickly is that money being spent?

The California population now stands at around 37 million. How many are Latino?

Aaron Robinson, technical editor at Car & Driver Magazine, discusses the U.S. fuel economy.

Katherine Perez is the Executive Director of the Transportation & Land Use Collaborative of Southern California. She discusses the connection between land use and transportation, as well as the state’s alternative growth choices.

Anthony Pico, chairman of the Viejas Band of the Kumeyaay Indians in San Diego county, discusses the significance, past and future, of Indian Gaming.

Peter Lehman of Humboldt State University discusses the history and future of renewable energy research and development in California.

Los Angeles Times reporter Duke Helfand takes a closer look at the state’s controversial dropout rate by following the diverging paths of 15 high school students from Birmingham High School.

The Hoover Institution’s Eric Hanushek argues that smaller classrooms are not nearly as effective as excellent — and better-paid — teachers, while noting that Sacramento has too much power over local schools.

Dr. Dana Goldman looks ahead to a time when a pill can add 15 years to your life and billions annually to the state’s health care expenditures.

A wide-ranging and far-reaching discussion on California’s future with the state’s premier pollster Mark Baldassare.

Just how bad is California’s own version of the national health insurance crisis? We asked Dr. Mark Smith of the California HealthCare Foundation for his sobering yet not at all fatalistic prognosis.

Carol Whiteside, former mayor of Modesto and current President of the Great Valley Center, explains why and how the Central Valley is quickly becoming California’s destiny.

Michael Nacht, Dean of the Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley, discusses how California is preparing for — and working to prevent — a terrorist attack.

Herrmann Spetzler, whose work focuses on alleviating the lack of health care services in rural communities, discusses both the depth of the problem and some surprising solutions.

Former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich discusses the unequal future of California if current economic and educational trends continue.

Few Californians will soon forget the rolling blackouts of 2000 or the market manipulation later shown to be at the heart of those uncertain times. But are a majority of state voters ready to roll back the de-regulation which proponents of Prop. 80 argue set the stage for those systemic failures.

We asked Dan Weintraub from the Sacramento Bee and Bob Stern from the Center for Governmental Studies to comment on Prop. 75, which would cripple the public employee unions’ ability to play a critical role in state politics.

California’s Central Valley is the country’s heartland but it also has a poverty rate nearly double that of the rest of the state. In this final installment in our Kids For Real series, 10 year-old Ramiro gives us a first-hand look at how his family copes with hunger.

In the spirit of a popular detective series, we asked three intrepid voters to take a close look at the more perplexing details of propositions 78 and 79, aka, the discount prescription meds initiatives.

Tom Campbell, State Director of Finance, and, Robin Swanson, spokesperson for the Alliance for a Better California, vocal advocates for and against Proposition 76, respectively, state their arguments — and a few surprises — for the record.

Californians are traveling in record numbers to Baja California, Mexico, for health care. The news is that they’re doing it through their own HMOs.

In a recurring feature, we ask a group of high school students to pick apart and take a stand on the proposed funding changes laid out by Prop. 76, the Governor’s hand-picked constitutional amendment initiative.

America is likely to import more and more Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) each coming year but plans to build two receiving terminals in California are meeting fierce opposition from environmental and “government waste” watchdogs.

Nearly one million children in California are without health insurance. Each has a family and a story. This one is Alex’s.

What happens to a community when its streets and schools become crime scenes and what, if anything, can be done to reverse a violent tide?

“My name is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Junior. One reality. The other? I am an African-American male living in Los Angeles.”

What happens to the nearly 80 million tons of stuff that Californians toss out each year?

An interview with Timothy P. Duane of UC Berkeley on waste, growth and California’s future.

While some continue to speculate as to whether or not there is a housing bubble in California, others are blowing it up.

In hospitals and doctors’ offices across the state, children are often asked to translate complex and sometimes embarrassing medical information to their parents or family members. Two siblings, ages 10 and 12, describe their experience interpreting for their mother.

California Connected visits Sonora and San Francisco to get a firsthand look at the challenges facing today’s Army recruiters.

No more s%*t! That’s what some residents of Kern County are saying to Southern California’s sanitation districts. The Central Valley region generates 2% of the state’s “biosolids” or sludge — but receives 30% of California’s human and industrial waste each year. Now the rural community wants to ban the transfer of their urban neighbors’ waste.

What do sheep, libertarians, spam and global warming have in common? The tragedy of the commons.

Over the last two decades California’s vineyards have become world class. Now they could also become cutting-edge: by relying entirely on solar electricity.

It is estimated that as many as nine out of every ten minors in California’s detention system have a mental disorder. In the past, few have received the care they need. But an innovative program in Eureka could change all that by combining the efforts of the probation department, county mental health, and local schools.

Two decades after losing much of its timber industry, Humboldt County is reckoning with the results of a burgeoning drug trade.

What do junk bonds have to do with junk food in inner-city communities?

California’s system of funding schools is based on a set of bizarre outdated formulas that result in serious, calcified inequities: some schools receive around $4,000 a student, and other schools receive more than $8,000 a student.

Food security. That’s how academics describe access to healthy and affordable food, especially in low-income neighborhoods. Meet one non-profit group in San Francisco that’s turning to teenagers and talking fruit to tackle this problem head-on.

The border fence between California and Mexico has its own repairmen. Meet U.S. Border Patrol technician Albert Garcia.

Will California retain the lead in the global race to create a Silicon Valley-like hub for the emerging biotech industry? With numbers like these…

Dr. Victoria Hale dares dream the impossible dream: making life-saving medicines affordable to people in the developing world. What’s more: she’s making that dream come true.

The Schatz Energy Lab at Humboldt State University has successfully used a solar-hydrogen fuel system to power an entire marine laboratory for more than a decade. But what do the lab’s directors think it will take for the rest of the state to follow suit?

Coast Seafoods is harvesting oysters in a more environmentally friendly fashion. But will the long-term benefits outweigh the short-term costs for this Eureka outfit?

In the latest installment of an ongoing saga, the lumber giant claims it may go bankrupt as a result of state regulations. The state disagrees while environmentalists charge PALCO is responsible for increased flooding.

There’s gold in them there waves. At least, that’s what a Minnesota renewable energy company is betting with its test program off the coast of Humboldt County.

A look at six machines that could convert the ocean’s power into electricity.

Ships docked in the LA-Long Beach port complex churn out more pollution each day than one million cars. Environmental activists say a “green” terminal is only a good start to mitigating a growing problem.

California was recently tested for “effective government management.” The results? We tied for last place–with Alabama.

Our second annual meeting with former California Governors Brown, Deukmejian, Wilson and Davis yields a candid and vigorous discussion.

There’s more to this often cited figure than meets the eye at first glance.

What percentage of California’s K-12 students are learning English in the classroom?

Communities throughout California pound the pavement and work the phones to keep nearby military bases open.

A rare tax amnesty campaign has produced an unexpected high return in state taxes this year.

Have you ever wondered why horse racing and the lottery are legal, but casinos are only legal on Indian land?

The popular vote on SB-2 which would have required businesses of a certain size to provide health insurance to all employees.

An online discussion on the role of government in the pharmaceuticals market with Merrill Goozner and Jack Calfee.

An online discussion of growing tensions between agriculture and real estate interests in the Central Valley with Alan Deutschman, Deborah Gonzalez and Carol Whiteside.

Growth in the Central Valley is increasingly pitting farmers against residents as in the case of pesticide drift.

What comes next for those men and women wrongly incarcerated once they are exonerated?

An online discussion of America’s employer-subsidized health-care system with Tom Rice, Dr. Henry Aaron and Daniel J.B. Mitchell.

A provocative and emotional documentary explores the lives of teen-agers sentenced as adults to life in prison.

Can a mythical creature resurrect a dying logging community? Did a talking mouse help Orlando, Florida?

LA Times columnist Patt Morrison explains why taxes might be a better deal than a fully privatized society.

When it comes to tax-funded public services, is the whole greater than the sum?

An online discussion on the future of prisons in California with Richard Steffen, Margot Bach, Prof. Craig Haney and Lenore Anderson.

Why are so many mentally ill Californians treated merely with incarceration?

Tag along with a promiscuous RFID chip as it travels from factory floor to supermarket checkout counter.

An online discussion of the privacy implications of RFID technology with Prof. Shyam Sunder, Chris Hoofnagle, Lee Tien, Xeni Jardin, and Dr. Daniel Engels.

Four panelists discuss the merits and possible privacy pitfalls associated with RFID technologies.

A new state prison program tries to foster cohesive families by allowing inmate mothers to remain with their children in an alternative facility.

Connect the dots between oil wells, refineries and your local gas station.

Two anti-immigration advocates square off against two anti-anti-immigration advocates.

Why are gas prices so high in California compared to other parts of the U.S.?

See how capital, services, goods and people circulate in and out of the Golden State.

An online discussion regarding the myths and realities of immigration in California with Prof. Michael P. Smith and Belinda Reyes.

A shortage of nurses in the First World has prompted many doctors from the Third to immigrate for a pay raise and a professional downgrade.

Most of us have heard about the challenges farm workers face, but what about the people who recruit these workers? Meet a licensed farm labor contractor who can’t find enough legal workers to fill his crews each day.

A pilot program launched by the Mexican government matches remittances sent home by workers abroad to foster economic development.

From brownfields to infill, new approaches to urban development may help California ease into the next century.

A wide-ranging and in-depth online discussion of “smart growth” with Dan Silver, Nick Bollman, Andy McCue and Gabriel Metcalf.

How some Central Valley communites are actually planning for “smart” growth.

What happens to kids in foster care when they turn 18? Many become homeless.

Marriage counseling for returning soldiers provided en masse in auditoriums.

Guess which occupations will have the largest job growth in the next 10 years. The answers will surprise you.

An online discussion of the state’s economic outlook featuring Jack Kyser and Stephen Levy.

Four prominent business leaders discuss their fears and hopes for the Golden State.

A look at the challenges confronting the newly appointed head of the state’s prison system.

An online discussion of California’s workers’ compensation system with Prof. John Burton, Prof. Les Boden, Prof. Peter Barth and Prof. Robert Reville.

Reforming California’s beleaguered workers’ compensation system by standardizing the evaluation of disabilities.

James Franklin, locksmith, hurt on the job and running out of money despite workers’ comp. benefits.

A remarkable 11-member panel discuss possible reforms for the state’s troubled workers’ comp system.

How the LA MTA curbed its workers’ comp. costs.

A lighthearted look at the complex issues surrounding workers’ compensation reform in California.

High schoolers tackle the merits of Prop. 56 which would make it possible for a simple legislative majority to pass the budget.

What does it mean when the state of California issues a bond?

Governor Schwarzenegger is not the first governor to deal with a looming budget deficit. See how the last three governors faced their “rainy days.”

How did a town without street lights, sidewalks or even police officers manage to revitalize their Central Valley community?

Teen counseling gets a radical make-over for the year 2003 at SF’s Balboa High School.

Quietly, California’s community colleges train the state’s work force — and must now rally against severe budget cuts.

What do you want out of California’s health care system? Take a few minutes to vote in our instant election.

As the cost of staying alive increases for California’s aging residents, some seniors are crossing the border into Mexico to buy low-cost prescription drugs.

In the hopes of moving forward, we take a step back and ask the big questions: What is it, what cause it and what can be done to solve it?

Why is Santa Monica getting a bad rap for its treatment of the homeless after decades as a haven for California’s dispossed? Hear from more than both sides of this hotly contested issue.

What happens to the neighborhood when an Indian casino moves next door? A visit to the River Rock Casino in Sonoma County and the conflicting reactions it has inspired among local residents.

Cris Franco spoofs affirmative action.

Over the last month, more than half of you have voted to cut the Corrections budget first in our unscientific budget poll. Find out how that would — or would not — affect the state’s $35 billion deficit.

Oakland High School teacher Paul August keeps a list of students who will never return to his classroom — because they have been killed in violent crimes. Find out how his students cope with their grim reality.

The Enemy of the State holds a yardsale to raise money for the state’s debt-ridden budget.

The Humboldt County DA has filed a complaint against Pacific Lumber and now his constituents are torn between praising the lawsuit and recalling him from office.

Would having a personal driver improve your daily commute? What if your car could drive itself? Take a peek at the hard science behind this seemingly sci-fi scenario.

From workers to employers, from doctors to an insurance company executive, take a journey through California’s vast and complex health care system, exploring both its flaws and and their potential solutions.

Why are thousands of Californians putting their own lives at risk by buying prescription medicine from illicit vendors? A look at the roots of this growing concern and what Los Angeles County is doing to prevent its spread.

A team of doctors arrives at a remote landing strip at the foot of a tall mountain range. Within hours, they will operate on nearly 80 patients. Afghanistan? Iraq? Africa? Try Northern California.

Ride along with Long Beach paramedics.

The city of Twentynine Palms hosts the largest live-fire military base in the world. While Marines from the base are in on the frontlines of the war in Iraq, the community is trying to keep its economy out of the red.

A campaign to alter the requirements for obtaining a driver’s license by undocumented immigrants is being hotly debated by public safety advocates.

Fishermen, Native Americans, energy companies and farmers were each promised a piece of the Klamath River. Unfortunately, there’s not enough of it to go around.

California leads the nation in truck related fatalities and has the country’s most dangerous trucking corridor. Is commerce making our roads more dangerous?

On all sides of the Klamath River, farmers, fishermen and Native Americans stake their claim in the continuing struggle for water rights.

As residents, workers and tourists wait to cross the U.S./Mexico border, high and low tech innovators are coming up with ways for speeding up the process.

A simple idea—using a car when you need it, without having to own it - could have an extensive impact on the Bay Area by reducing the number of vehicles on the road and saving users money and time.

A unique school in Stockton and the federal mandate that promises every child an education.

An ex-con who rescues parolees from the mean streets.

Is rural California, the fastest-growing part of the state, headed for a healthcare crisis?

The chronic lack of housing for Napa Valley’s migrant farm workers brings a harvest of shame to California’s prestigious wine country.

Indian gaming is bigger than ever in the state of California. How did it get to be such a booming business and, amidst growing criticism from its competitors and detractors alike, what does the future hold for Indian Casinos?

The unprecedented growth of Indian casinos is attracting customers and controversy. California Connected explores the issues in California.

Emergency Rooms throughout California are closing doors and turning people away. When the ER is in crisis, where do people go?

Born in the aftermath of the worst power crisis in the state’s history, the California Power Authority has been charged with the responsibility of managing the state’s energy future. Enter S. David Freeman: a controversial figure and the power broker behind California’s Power Authority.

Have you heard about the “Safe Haven” Law? What many don’t know could continue a tragic legacy for abandoned newborns.