California Dream

You became a Californian because someone in your family believed in a dream. A strong public education. The promise of a job. The weather. (Ahhh, the weather.) In its long history, the California Dream has meant different things to different people. Today, the state’s identity is in marked contrast to the rest of the country. The dream may still be alive, but it’s challenged at every corner.

What does it mean today?

KPBS and mission-driven media organizations around the state will explore the California Dream starting this year. Reporters and producers will tell the personal stories and discuss the ideas that make up the history, future and current state of the California Dream.

Roundtable: Blackouts Return To California Fire Zones

Oct. 25: By Bennett Lacy, Mark Sauer

Preemptive power outages return to California for the second time this month; Governor Gavin Newsom asks for an investigation into high gas prices; and critics accuse the San Diego City Council of election shopping in its move to place the hotel tax vote on the March primary ballot.

PG&E; Blasted For Not Being More Like SDG&E; In Managing Power Shutoffs, But Is The Comparison Fair?

Oct. 24: By Claire Trageser

A few weeks ago, PG&E cut power to more than 700,000 customers. At the time, politicians and pundits pointed to SDG&E, which shut off electricity to about 500 customers, as a better example of wildfire preparedness.

Amador County Builds Community College Pipeline For Mental Health Workers

Oct. 21: Sammy Caiola / Capital Public Radio

Amador is one of six California counties without a physical community college. It also struggles to recruit mental health providers. A small online learning program could offer a solution to both problems.

Income Experiment Offers Stockton Residents A Glimpse At The California Dream

Oct. 4: Sammy Caiola / Capital Public Radio

Stockton is halfway through an 18-month program that provides $500 a month to 125 people from low-income ZIP codes. Proponents say the program is a step toward economic equality, opponents say it’s unrealistic and enabling.

For Homeless Californians, The Doctor Is Often The ER — Street Medicine Aims To Change That

Sept. 30: Matt Tinoco / KPCC

Instead of trying to powerwash the problem away, California’s hospitals, public health departments, and homeless service organizations are increasingly sending trained health practitioners into homeless encampments in a quest to improve health outcomes for individual homeless people.

A College Education In Prison Opens Unexpected Path To Freedom

Sept. 23: Vanessa Rancaño / KEQD

Inside a maximum-security prison in the middle of California’s high desert, there’s an unusual educational experiment underway. It’s become something no one expected — a path to freedom.

A Bill To Fix Or Foul California’s Gig Economy

Sept. 10: Randol White / Capitol Public Radio

Independent contractors could become employees of companies such as Uber, Lyft and Doordash, changing their ability to earn a living and the businesses they work for forever.

Gig Worker Barely Scraping By In Imperial Valley

Sept. 9: By Amita Sharma

Amid high unemployment and hot weather, local workers are trying to patch together a living in the “gig” economy.

Paging More Doctors: California’s Worsening Physician Shortage

Sept. 3: Elizabeth Aguilera/CALmatters

In a northern California valley stretching under miles of bright blue sky between two snowy volcanic peaks, Mt. Lassen and Mt. Shasta, Daniel Dahle is known as a godsend, a friend, a lifesaver, a companion until the end.

Central Valley Radio Station Stands In As A Cultural ‘Town Hall’ For Local Hmong And Punjabi-Speaking Communities

Aug. 30: Julia Mitric /Capital Public Radio

Since the late ’80s, KBIF has slowly but steadily cultivated a niche for itself by serving as a cultural hub for Fresno’s Hmong and Punjabi communities.

KPBS Wants Your Help In Understanding The Gig Economy

Aug. 27: By Amita Sharma

The gig economy is transforming the workplace and fueling a debate about what kind of wages and benefits gig workers should get. We want to know your thoughts on the topic.

Nearly 40% Of Young Adult Californians Live With Their Parents. Here’s Everything To Know About Them

Aug. 27: Matt Levin/CALmatters

A data dive explores who they are, where they are and why they still live at home —and yes, how they manage to have sex.

Santa Monica To Ramp Up Rental Subsidies For Seniors

Aug. 23: By Amita Sharma

Over the last year, the city has experimented with sending rental checks to nearly two dozen seniors on the brink of homelessness. Now it plans to significantly expand the program.

Do You Speak Mam? Growth of Oakland’s Guatemalan Community Sparks Interest In Indigenous Language

Aug. 6: Farida Jhabvala Romero/KQED

A handful of adults at an Oakland community college practiced how to say “good afternoon” in Mam, a Mayan language spoken in the western highlands of Guatemala.

Health Spa Pioneer Recalls Her Early Years

Aug. 1: By Amita Sharma

Nearly 80 years ago, as World War II raged, immigration rules and a keen interest in health motivated Deborah and Edmond Szekely to get into the wellness business.

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