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Explainer

Is College Worth It?

By Marisol Cuellar Mejia, Cesar Alesi Perez, Vicki Hsieh, Hans Johnson

Rising college costs and a reluctance to take on debt lead many students and families to wonder if college will actually yield a brighter future with higher earnings and better jobs. In this explainer, we explore whether the benefits of a college degree outweigh the costs.

blog post

Essential Workers and COVID-19

By Sarah Bohn, Marisol Cuellar Mejia, Julien Lafortune

Many essential workers in health care, transportation, and other sectors are not well equipped to weather the economic challenges of the COVID-19 crisis.

blog post

California’s Water and Energy Systems Are Inextricably Linked

By Alvar Escriva-Bou, Gokce Sencan, Andrew Ayres

Water and energy are intimately connected in California: the water system is a major energy user, and our energy sector relies heavily on water for power generation. Population growth and climate change will likely increase pressure on both systems, but a few key actions could make them more resilient.

event

Stewarding California’s Wet Years

California has made great strides in preparing for a drier, hotter future, but it remains a challenge to harness the bounty of wet years while also reducing flood risk. How did California’s water sector manage the unusually wet conditions of the 2023 water year—and what lessons can we glean for the future? We speak with three panels of experts to find out.

Report

Policies for Creating and Keeping Jobs in California

By David Neumark, Emma Wohl

State efforts to spur job creation include 21 programs ranging from tax credits to worker training. Three policies offer strong evidence indicating they create jobs or increase employment in California. New programs—and programs with weak evidence—need to have built-in features that allow deeper evaluation.

Report

Advancing Ecosystem Restoration with Smarter Permitting

By Letitia Grenier, Stephanie Panlasigui, Crissy Pickett, Gokce Sencan

California’s ecosystems are vital to the state’s economy and wellbeing, yet they’re in dire health. Large-scale restoration is needed, and implementing smarter permitting can help.

Fact Sheet

Self-Employment in California

By Marisol Cuellar Mejia, Jenny Duan, Sarah Bohn

Self-employment is an important contributor to California’s economy; the self-employed make up 11% of workers statewide and the jobs they create account for 23% of total employment. Rates of self-employment vary across regions and demographic groups.

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