{"nodes":[{"node":{"nid":"78051","title":"How Does the Central Valley Harness Its Power?","campus":"Off campus, California","locations":"Arte Am\u00e9ricas ","college_unit":"ASU Media Enterprise","department":"Z\u00f3calo Public Square","field_cost_value":"Free","event_price_level":"Free","asu_events_price_desc":"Free","body_summary":"\u003Ch2\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECo-presented by Z\u00f3calo Public Square, Fresnoland, and Arte Am\u00e9ricas, with generous suppo\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h2\u003E","full_body":"\u003Ch2\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ECo-presented by Z\u00f3calo Public Square, Fresnoland, and Arte Am\u00e9ricas, with generous support from The James B. McClatchy Foundation, Central Valley Community Foundation, and The James Irvine Foundation\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EModerated by Danielle Bergstrom, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, Fresnoland\u003C\/span\u003E\u003Cbr\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u003Cbr\u003EAs an economic powerhouse, California charges forward. The benefits, though, are distributed and felt unequally, especially in places like the Central Valley. Here, thousands of farmworkers feed the nation while facing food insecurity themselves, rural communities struggle to access adequate health care, the housing market is in an affordability crisis, and neighborhood inequality persists. But the region is changing: with steady population growth, reformed labor union legislation, the promise of California High-Speed Rail, and burgeoning arts and culture scenes. And it\u2019s shifting California power dynamics with it, away from the coastal cities and into the Valley\u2019s major cities like Fresno, Bakersfield, Merced, and Stockton.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHow are leaders in Fresno harnessing these changes to transform their region for the better? And what does it mean for the Central Valley and for California?\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis panel conversation during Arte Am\u00e9rica\u2019s \u201cArte, Pero Later\u201d evening hours will be moderated by Fresnoland founder and editor-in-chief \u003Cstrong\u003EDanielle Bergstrom\u003C\/strong\u003E and will feature affordable housing developer \u003Cstrong\u003EBetsy McGovern-Garcia\u003C\/strong\u003E, Fresno County Public Health Director \u003Cstrong\u003EJoe Prado\u003C\/strong\u003E, and \u201cShaan Punjab Di\u201d radio host and City of Fresno planning commissioner \u003Cstrong\u003EGurdeep Shergill\u003C\/strong\u003E.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EStick around for a reception with light bites and beverages to continue the conversation with one another.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis program is part of \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.zocalopublicsquare.org\/california-175\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003ECalifornia 175 \u2014 What Connects California?\u003C\/a\u003E, a suite of free Z\u00f3calo events and essays, bringing together leaders and thinkers from all walks of life to envision California\u2019s next 175 years.\u003C\/p\u003E","phone":"8186450066","contactname":"Anna Gasparyan","email":"anna@zocalopublicsquare.org","delta":"0","alias":"https:\/\/asuevents.asu.edu\/event\/how-does-central-valley-harness-its-power?id=0","ticketing_rsvp_txt":"Join In-Person or Online!","ticketing_rsvp_txt2":"https:\/\/www.eventbrite.com\/e\/how-does-the-central-valley-harness-its-power-tickets-1987150695222?aff=newsletter","ticketing_rsvp_url":"","ticketing_rsvp_url2":"","website":"https:\/\/www.zocalopublicsquare.org\/","image_url":"https:\/\/asuevents.asu.edu\/sites\/g\/files\/litvpz3506\/files\/2026-04\/06.11.26_How%20Does%20the%20Central%20Valley%20Harness%20Its%20Power_Eventbrite%20%284%29.png","image_alt":"","image_title":"","start_date":"Jun 11 2026 - 7:00pm","end_date":"Jun 11 2026 - 9:00pm","time_description":"","very_start_date":"2026-06-11T19:00:00Z","very_end_date":"2026-06-11T21:00:00Z","event_types":"Alumni - California, Lecture, Panel, Reception","interests":"Community|Events|Lectures|Speaking engagement","audiences":"For the community|Northern California (San Francisco)","event_units":"ASU Media Enterprise","event_topics":"Family friendly|Free|Open to the public","download":"\/sites\/g\/files\/litvpz3506\/files\/2026-04\/06.11.26_How%20Does%20the%20Central%20Valley%20Harness%20Its%20Power_Flyer%20%282%29.png","event_map_url":"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/dir\/\/Arte+Am%C3%A9ricas,+1630+Van+Ness+Ave,+Fresno,+CA+93721\/@34.1549469,-118.2643563,15z\/data=!4m8!4m7!1m0!1m5!1m1!1s0x809460a43a0a63a9:0x9be26ab85a8fe962!2m2!1d-119.7957501!2d36.7410735?entry=tts\u0026amp;g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDQwNy4wIPu8ASoA","event_map_title":"","event_video":"","location_term":"Off campus, California","venue_address":"1630 Van Ness Ave","venue_city":"Fresno","venue_state":"California","venue_zip":"93721","alias-indexed":"https:\/\/asuevents.asu.edu\/event\/how-does-central-valley-harness-its-power?id=0","sport_tag":"","game_type":"","subtitle":"","season":"","athletic_conference":"","tv_network":"","radio_station":"","wear_color":"","game_theme":"","history":"","history_text":"","related_stories":"","related_stories_text":"","game_notes":"","game_notes_text":"","recap_link":"","recap_link_text":"","live_stats":"","live_stats_text":"","game_time_tba":"No","sda_all_day":"No","opponent_logo":"","related_videos":"","related_videos_text":"","recurring":"no"}}]}