{"product_id":"the-atlas-of-california-mapping-the-challenge-of-a-new-era-9780520272026","title":"The Atlas of California  Mapping the Challenge of","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBrings together the research and statistics in a graphic form that gives shape and meaning to these numbers. This title shows a new California in the making, as it maps the economic, social, and political trends of a state struggling to maintain its leadership and to continue to offer its citizens the promise of prosperity.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTable of Contents\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIntroduction\u003cbr\u003e Acknowledgments\u003cbr\u003e Photo Credits\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter One Land \u0026amp; People\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Land \u0026amp; Nature\u003cbr\u003e California’s geography sets it apart from the rest of North America. Its natural blessings have\u003cbr\u003e been a source of wonder and wealth, its frequent earthquakes a challenge.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Public Lands \u0026amp; Parks\u003cbr\u003e Half of California’s land is in public ownership, and much of that is protected in the most extensive system of\u003cbr\u003e national, state, and local parks in the United States.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Colonialism \u0026amp; Native Californians\u003cbr\u003e California was part of the Spanish Empire, then Mexico, before being annexed to the United States. Native\u003cbr\u003e peoples were annihilated by Spaniards, Mexicans, and Americans alike, through forced removal, slave labor,\u003cbr\u003e disease and massacres, and are still struggling to regain their rightful place in state life.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Population\u003cbr\u003e California is the most populous state in the United States and for decades was among the fastest growing, due\u003cbr\u003e to high immigration and birth rates.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Migration\u003cbr\u003e For centuries, California has been a magnet for migrants, both domestic and foreign. They have come from\u003cbr\u003e many places in search of a better life, escaping poverty, war, famine, and persecution—but often facing\u003cbr\u003e hostility on arrival.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Unauthorized Immigration\u003cbr\u003e California has the highest number of unauthorized immigrants of any state. Although their presence is\u003cbr\u003e controversial, several industries depend on them to fill low-wage, low-skill jobs.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter Two Politics, Governance, \u0026amp; Power\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Government \u0026amp; Politics\u003cbr\u003e Democracy in California has long suffered from unequal representation, a weak party system, and the power\u003cbr\u003e of money in elections. But voting patterns are solidly Democratic have become more so in recent elections.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Budget \u0026amp; Taxation\u003cbr\u003e California has the largest budget after the federal government but has suffered budget shortfalls, revenue\u003cbr\u003e volatility, and reduced taxation, resulting in huge cuts during the recession and making planning difficult.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Government Finances\u003cbr\u003e Tax revenues constitute roughly half of the general revenue of California state and local governments. Twothirds\u003cbr\u003e of expenditure goes to education, health, welfare, and safety.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Military Power\u003cbr\u003e California is the most militarized of states. It has been a strategic intellectual and technological center for the\u003cbr\u003e military, and served as the Pacific base of operations in several major wars.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Crime \u0026amp; Incarceration\u003cbr\u003e California’s prison population and funding for corrections have soared in the last 30 years, even though\u003cbr\u003e violent crime rates have dropped. The US Supreme Court has ordered a reduction in the state’s prison\u003cbr\u003e population to reduce overcrowding.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter Three Economy \u0026amp; Industry\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Economic Growth\u003cbr\u003e California’s economic growth has long outpaced the rest of the country. With its vibrant and diverse industrial\u003cbr\u003e tapestry, it is a model of economic innovation and prosperity.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Workforce\u003cbr\u003e California’s prosperity has been built on its workforce, both in numbers and quality. Labor demand and\u003cbr\u003e supply, skills, and wages have long exceeded the national average, feeding the state’s remarkable growth.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Business \u0026amp; Finance\u003cbr\u003e California is home not only to globestraddling corporations with large management teams, but also to\u003cbr\u003e thriving small businesses and start-ups. It has long been the second-largest center of finance in the country.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Agribusiness\u003cbr\u003e California’s agribusiness is one of the agricultural wonders of the world, leading the country in the variety and\u003cbr\u003e quantity of output, and setting the pace for modern farming and food production in the United States.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Technology\u003cbr\u003e California is known around the world as a leader in technology and innovation. It has offered highly\u003cbr\u003e favorable conditions for innovators to flourish and put new ideas into play.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter Four Urban Areas\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Cities \u0026amp; Metro Areas\u003cbr\u003e California is highly urban, and the state’s cities and metro areas are among the nation’s largest, densest, and\u003cbr\u003e most economically significant.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e The Bay Area\u003cbr\u003e San Francisco has long been world famous but is today part of a large, complex urban region: the Bay Area—\u003cbr\u003e high-tech capital of the world and richest big city in the country.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Greater Los Angeles\u003cbr\u003e Los Angeles is California’s largest city and the country’s second largest metropolis. It is popularly known\u003cbr\u003e for its remarkable growth, sprawling landscape, and mixture of peoples, but is equally a manufacturing and\u003cbr\u003e transportation powerhouse.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Real Estate\u003cbr\u003e California runs on real-estate development. The scale of building is huge and property values high. After the\u003cbr\u003e greatest real-estate bubble in history in the 2000s, the state suffered a devastating crash.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Highways \u0026amp; Transportation\u003cbr\u003e California has one of the most advanced transportation systems in the world, including highways, airports,\u003cbr\u003e seaports, and railroads. The challenges of city commuting are great, as are those of handling an immense flow\u003cbr\u003e of goods, within and beyond state borders.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter Five Water \u0026amp; Energy\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Water Supply\u003cbr\u003e Northern California has abundant rainfall and the Sierra a large snowpack; excess runoff is stored and moved\u003cbr\u003e south to supply agriculture and cities in the southern half of the state.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Water Use\u003cbr\u003e Water use exceeds natural supply in many parts of California, especially in drought years. Water conservation\u003cbr\u003e has checked the growth of consumption, and it must continue.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Energy: Fossil Fuels\u003cbr\u003e California has one of the lowest rates of energy consumption in the United States. Fossil fuels, mostly foreign\u003cbr\u003e and domestic imports, dominate energy supply, despite efforts to develop alternative sources.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Energy: Electricity\u003cbr\u003e Total electricity demand has been rising in California due to overall growth plus inland migration. Yet higher\u003cbr\u003e prices, government policies, and technical change have kept per capita electricity consumption flat over the last\u003cbr\u003e two decades.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Renewable Energy\u003cbr\u003e California is a leading producer of renewable energy, but the goal of significantly increasing the share of\u003cbr\u003e electricity generated by renewables faces many obstacles.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter Six Environment\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Climate Change\u003cbr\u003e Global climate change is being felt in California in the form of rising average temperatures and sea level,\u003cbr\u003e weather extremes, and more wildfires. The implications for water supply, flooding, and ecosystems are\u003cbr\u003e potentially grave.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Carbon Emissions\u003cbr\u003e California is a national leader in reducing carbon emissions through transportation planning, industrial\u003cbr\u003e controls, and the use of renewable energy, making it one of the lowest emitters per capita of greenhouse gases\u003cbr\u003e in the United States.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Air Pollution\u003cbr\u003e Although California has made dramatic progress in reducing air pollution, a majority of the population\u003cbr\u003e continues to breathe air that poses significant health risks.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Water Pollution\u003cbr\u003e California’s surface, ground, and coastal waters suffer serious contamination from farms, cities, and industry,\u003cbr\u003e jeopardizing health, recreation, and wildlife. Toxic chemicals pose risks to the public and the environment.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter Seven Health \u0026amp; Education\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Healthcare: Quality \u0026amp; Outcomes\u003cbr\u003e Good health depends greatly on access to and quality of healthcare, on health behaviors, socioeconomic\u003cbr\u003e conditions, and physical environment, which vary widely across California and create persistent disparities\u003cbr\u003e between places and racial\/ethnic groups.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Healthcare: Cost \u0026amp; Access\u003cbr\u003e Healthcare costs have been rising rapidly, burdening families, employers, and governments. Yet California\u003cbr\u003e ranks towards the bottom in per capita health spending, as well as in state Medicaid support, employer-based\u003cbr\u003e coverage, and percentage of uninsured.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Pre-K Education\u003cbr\u003e Despite its leadership in introducing a variety of early childhood education and support programs, California\u003cbr\u003e provides preschool access to only half of its three and four year olds, and quality access to even fewer.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e K–12 Education\u003cbr\u003e California’s once-heralded K–12 public education system today ranks near the bottom in student achievement,\u003cbr\u003e graduation rates, student–teacher ratio, and per-pupil funding. Greatly increased investment and commitment\u003cbr\u003e are needed to put public schooling back on a sound footing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Higher Education\u003cbr\u003e California’s public universities, vital engines of economic and civic life, are in danger of failing to provide\u003cbr\u003e affordable access to quality higher education. Can California rediscover its former commitment to public higher\u003cbr\u003e education?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter Eight Inequality \u0026amp; Social Divides\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Income, Wealth, \u0026amp; Poverty\u003cbr\u003e Income and wealth inequality have grown significantly in the last 30 years, fueled by stagnant wages, rising\u003cbr\u003e assets values and corporate pay, as well as federal tax relief for the rich. Poverty is rampant in California\u003cbr\u003e despite its wealth and prosperity.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Hunger \u0026amp; Homelessness\u003cbr\u003e Millions of Californians go hungry every day and tens of thousands are homeless. This is one of the worst\u003cbr\u003e records in the nation. Government food assistance programs that help mitigate hunger need to be strengthened.\u003cbr\u003e Homeless people have little institutional support and often face hostility.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Race \u0026amp; Ethnicity\u003cbr\u003e California enjoys a rich mix of people of different races and national origins, just one of four states where\u003cbr\u003e minorities are the majority. Yet the participation of people of color in politics and business is much less than that\u003cbr\u003e of Whites, and almost all suffer disproportionately from low incomes, poor health, and less education.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Gender \u0026amp; Sexual Orientation\u003cbr\u003e California’s record of gender equity is good in education, moderate in wages and political representation, and\u003cbr\u003e poor in business. The state has been a pioneer in the struggle for gay rights, but has suffered setbacks on the\u003cbr\u003e question of equal rights to marriage.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Youth \u0026amp; Old Age\u003cbr\u003e California’s young and old suffer disproportionately from deprivation, and many are ineligible for government\u003cbr\u003e benefits because of inadequate measures of cost of living and need.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter Nine C hallenges Ahead: A Glimpse into the Future\u003cbr\u003e California’s glory resides in its prosperity but, in the face of multiple challenges, it needs to forge a new identity.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chapter Ten Data Challenges\u003cbr\u003e Data must be selected and interpreted with caution because of the challenges presented by inconsistency,\u003cbr\u003e omissions, imperfections, and underlying assumptions.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Definition of Key Terms\u003cbr\u003e Sources\u003cbr\u003e Index","brand":"University of California Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51359050727767,"sku":"9780520272026","price":18.9,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780520272026.jpg?v=1754123379","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/the-atlas-of-california-mapping-the-challenge-of-a-new-era-9780520272026","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}