2025: March 6 // Abundance Accelerator Summit
Special thanks to everyone who joined us on March 6 in Sacramento for Beyond Scarcity: The Summit to Advance an Abundant California! We appreciated the valuable insights from our keynote speakers: Senator Scott Wiener, California Forward CEO Kate Gordon, and former Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf. We also thank our Abundance Policy Research Consortium for their thoughtful presentations that sparked important conversations about what an abundance agenda might look like in California. And thanks to everyone who attended the event!
Panel 1
Paving the Way to Abundance: Infrastructure and Connectivity
Moderator: Darwin Moosavi, Deputy Secretary, Environmental Policy and Housing Coordination, California State Transportation Agency
Panelists:
Juan Matute, Deputy Director, UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies
Aaron Barrall, Housing Data Analyst, Randall Lewis Housing Initiative, UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Edward Helderop, Systems Analyst and Associate Director, Center for Geospatial Sciences, UC Riverside
Panel 2
Foundations for Flourishing: Work, Wellness, and Care for All Ages
Moderator: Kim McCoy Wade, Senior Advisor on Aging, Disability, and Alzheimer’s, Office of California Governor
Panelists:
Anibel Ferus-Comelo, Director of Community-Engaged Academic Initiatives, UC Berkeley Labor Center
Mireille Jacobson, Associate Professor of Gerontology and Assistant Dean of Academic Initiatives, USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology; Co-Director, Aging and Cognition Program, USC Schaeffer Center
Leif Wellington Haase, President, LWH Consulting
Panel 3
Abundant Lives, Equitable Futures: Supporting Opportunities for Abundant Outcomes
Moderator: Torie Weiston-Serdan, Education Equity Officer, Inland Empire Community Foundation
Panelists:
Anna Powell, Senior Research and Policy Associate, Center for the Study of Child Care Employment (CSCCE), UC Berkeley
Carrie Hahnel, Senior Associate Partner for Policy, Bellwether Education Partners
Mikaela Rabinowitz, Director of Data and Research, National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (NICJR)
Panel 4
Sustaining Abundance: Ensuring Essential Resources for A Healthier Future
Moderator: Sean Kennedy, Deputy Director of Energy Investments, Strategic Growth Council
Panelists:
Nicola Ulibarri, Associate Professor of Urban Planning & Public Policy, UC Irvine
Anastasia Telesetsky, Professor, Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Keith Taylor, Associate Professor of Cooperative Extension & Community Economic Development, UC Davis
About the Abundance Accelerator
The Possibility Lab’s Abundance Accelerator is an ambitious initiative to expand California’s capacity to sustainably supply essential resources, goods, and services. While California is home to great economic abundance, far too many in the state still struggle with economic insecurity and a lack of access to basic goods and services, including shelter, food, and water. Together with a growing network of partners, the Abundance Accelerator will leverage research, innovation, and collaboration to advance policy solutions that promote abundance and help build an ecosystem that can design, pilot, and scale a “fundamentals-first” policy agenda. Click here to learn more.
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Further Reading
Reimagining Economic Opportunity as a Public Good
The Possibility Lab Releases its Abundance Policy Research Consortium’s Next Three Reports Focused on Basic Needs: Water, Food, and Public Safety
