Document Actions

Regionalism in California- The Road So Far, and Further

by Alida Cantor — last modified June 20, 2008 10:15 AM

Conference Summary

The UC Davis Center for the Study of Regional Change held its first conference, “Regionalism in California: The Road So Far, and Further,” on May 5 and 6, 2008 at the UC Davis Buehler Alumni Center. The 60 invited participants were drawn from faculty and students across the campus, public agency leaders, and community-based organizations from throughout the Sacramento, Sierra Nevada and Central Valley regions.

Goals of conference

The goals of the conference were to assess regional approaches to problem-solving and policy change, deepen insight into the theory and practice of regionalism, and strategize on how to achieve the goals of sustainability, equity, health and vitality in California communities. Participants discussed a wide variety of topics related to regionalism, including housing, health, transportation, conservation, climate change, growth, social equity, labor, art, agriculture, youth development, and governance and policy. Participants had the opportunity to learn about the promises and challenges of regionalism through plenary panelists and keynote speakers and to engage in dialogue with each other in small breakout groups. The key points of the conference were that regions matter, regional equity is fundamental, and that regionalism presents unique governance challenges. These topics were addressed by plenary panelists as well as keynote speakers, and were discussed in more depth by participants during interactive breakout sessions.

Key points

Regions matter. Many of the speakers stressed the point that regionalism is an important concept that can inform better decision-making and governance. Regionalism involves working at a scale that makes sense, defined by biological and/or social systems and their natural boundaries, rather than relying on artificial political boundaries. It involves making decisions at appropriate scales, large enough to avoid fragmentation yet small enough to be grounded in local realities. Thinking in terms of regions and mega-regions instead of cities and states gives us a different scalar set of tools for decision making. Regionalism is also about integration across sectors, and requires recognizing the connections between areas such as transportation, housing, health, jobs, and education, as well as the connectedness between different geographical localities. Regionalism requires working together in order to span boundaries between disciplines, departments, agencies, and bureaucracies. Additionally, regionalism is a cultural value as well as a political structure, and can involve art and storytelling in order to foster a sense of place among residents.
Regional equity is fundamental. Regional equity was one of the topics given a great deal of time and thought at the conference. Regionalism has a great deal of potential for addressing issues of equity, because it involves integrating across sectors and topics that are inextricably connected and affect peoples’ lives (for example, the connections between transportation, air quality, environmental justice, and health). It is important to think about whether the benefits of regionalism are distributed equally, and if not, who is primarily receiving the benefits. Participation and access to decision-making structures make up another key part of regional equity. One issue that came up multiple times was the notion of ‘top down’ versus ‘bottom up’ regionalism, and the importance of local grassroots involvement in regional decision-making.
Challenges of regionalism.Despite the benefits and opportunities of working regionally, regionalism also presents a range of challenges and pitfalls which must be addressed. The issue of equity, discussed above, is one major challenge of regionalism. Regionalism also can face resistance from local governments who are reluctant to give up power to a larger authority, or those who see regionalism as just an excuse for extra layers of bureaucracy. Conversely, if regional governance has no ‘teeth,’ it can be reduced to a time-consuming bureaucracy without results. Another challenge is navigating the tandem issues of scale and boundaries; it can be difficult to determine what the appropriate scale and boundaries are for addressing any given issue.

Value of conference

The conference was successful in pulling a range of practitioners and academics together to learn about regionalism through stimulating panels and keynotes, and to engage in substantive dialogue and conversation through the breakout sessions. A high intellectual level of discourse and engagement pervaded throughout the discussions and panels; as one participant noted, the conference addressed “critical perspectives on regionalism, both as a term and as an organizing strategy. Challenging regionalism was key also.” Evaluations were positive; 100% of evaluations rated the overall conference as “good” or “very good.” Several participants noted that the conference allowed them to make new contacts and meet people doing similar work. As one conference-goer said, “I met a lot of people who were all very interesting. I have been thinking about the benefits and challenges of regionalism ever since the conference.” Another participant commented that “a lot of good ideas were raised for how the Center might be a resource for the region. It is great to connect with people from the University.”

Speakers

Keynote Speakers:

Carl Anthony, Ford Foundation Senior Fellow & Visiting Scholar, UC Berkeley Department of Geography
Mike Madison, Local Author and Farmer
jesikah maria ross, Co-Director, Saving the Sierra; Coordinator, Art of Regional Change
Manuel Pastor, Professor of Geography and American Studies & Ethnicity, USC; Director of the Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE) at USC’s Center for Sustainable Cities

Opening Remarks:

Lovel ‘Tu’ Jarvis, Associate Dean, UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
Jonathon London, Director, UC Davis Center for the Study of Regional Change
Mike McKeever, Director, Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG)

Plenary Panelists:

Chris Benner, Associate Professor, Human & Community Development, UC Davis
Mary Cadenasso, Assistant Professor, Plant Sciences, UC Davis
Dave Campbell, Director, California Communities Program, Human & Community Development, UC Davis
Debbie Davis, Environmental Justice Coalition for Water
Bonnie Ferreira, Executive Director, Healthy Kids Healthy Future
Sharon Huntsman, Executive Director, California EDGE campaign
Susan Handy, Professor, Department of Environmental Science & Policy, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis
Trish Kelly, California Center for Regional Leadership
Elisabeth Kersten, Clinical Professor, University of Southern California
Jonathan London, Director, UC Davis Center for the Study of Regional Change
Jeff Loux, Director, Land Use & Natural Resource Program, UC Davis Extension
Michael Rios, Assistant Professor, Landscape Architecture, UC Davis
Darryl Rutherford, California Coalition for Rural Housing
Fraser Shilling, Department of Environmental Science & Policy, UC Davis
Al Sokolow, CE Specialist Emeritus, Human & Community Development, UC Davis
Joan Sollenberger, Chief of Division of Transportation Planning, CalTrans
Rob Wiener, Director, California Coalition for Rural Housing
Stephen Wheeler, Assistant Professor, Landscape Architecture, UC Davis