Making Regions Work: Conflict, Collaboration, and the Common Good in California

Manuel Pastor, Professor of Geography and American Studies and Ethnicity at the University of Southern California, speaks frequently on issues of demographic change, economic inequality, and community empowerment. Founding director of the Center for Justice, Tolerance, and Community at the University of California, Santa Cruz, Pastor currently directs the Program for Environmental and Regional Equity at USC’s Center for Sustainable Cities. His research has generally focused on issues of environmental justice, regional inclusion, and the economic and social conditions facing low-income urban communities.

Pastor has contributed opinion pieces to major publications and is co-author of several books. Regions That Work: How Cities and Suburbs Can Grow Together, co-authored with Peter Dreier, Eugene Grigsby and Marta Lopez-Garza and published in 2000, has become a standard reference for those looking to link neighborhoods and regions. This Could Be the Start of Something Big: How Social Movements for Regional Equity are Transforming Metropolitan America will be published early next year. Co-authored with Chris Benner and Martha Matsuoka, the volume suggests a new path for progressive politics and policies in America’s urban areas.

Admission is free. The Alma and Clifford Pearson Distinguished Speakers Series is presented by the Center for Leadership and Values in the School of Business.