Panel #1 Unveiled: Register for SOTR2026 Today!
I am excited to share the lineup for the first plenary panel for this year’s State of the Region!
Just two weeks after this November’s pivotal election, we will gather regional leaders and advocates to examine the results and implications. Together, we will identify opportunities for taking back our region from the tech oligarchs. I hope you’ll join us.
Our first panel, “Reclaiming the Future: Building a Regionalism to Counter Elite Power and Growing Inequality,” will start with an overview of Urban Habitat’s upcoming brief, Reimagining Regionalism in a Time of Populism, by Tony Samara. The report explores the most effective ways to confront this era of rising authoritarianism, democratic crisis, and populist backlash.
Building on the report’s analysis, the panel will discuss the rising corporate influence on Bay Area politics and governance and the implications for how communities are building power to advance housing and transportation justice.
Chris Schildt, Urban Habitat’s Director of Housing Justice, will moderate the conversation featuring:
- Tony Samara, Director of Movement Strategy and Innovation, Movement Innovation Collaborative
- Carlos Romero, East Palo Alto City Councilmember
- Zach Lou, Coalition Director, California Green New Deal Coalition
With our Bay Area again at a crossroads, State of the Region 2026 presents a timely and strategic opportunity to begin charting a path toward the future we want to build together. See the full agenda.
We are grateful to our event sponsors for making this convening possible: Blue Shield of California Foundation, Common Counsel Foundation, Destination Home, and Sobrato Philanthropies.
Be sure to register for State of the Region 2026 today. I look forward to seeing you in Oakland on November 18th!