3 months later...

It's been three months since my last post. Since then the RLA has visited SCAG and Orange County (I didn't attend the LA tour). I walked away from SCAG with a stronger understanding of the connection between region/geography, environmental considerations, transformation, and demography. For instance, San Diego is not part of the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG). I learned that environmental quality has a lot to do with this exception. That is, all other major counties in Southern California are part of SCAG and one of their common denominators is the challenge of environmental quality (e.g., air quality). On the other hand, the Orange County visit demonstrated what is possible in the Inland Empire. Orange County is full of industry clusters and lots of skilled talent that is often imported from other regions of the U.S. or other countries. We heard about the connection between a skilled labor force and quality schooling. I walked away with the impression that a strong, educated work force will demand a high quality school system. And of course its never that simple. Economics, politics, policy, and leadership always play a vital role. I also wondered about the pockets that are struggling especially low-income communities of color, especially when the County will be majority-minority by 2025. I wonder what it would take to inspire an influx of industry clusters in our region?