All California Local Newsletters

Two plans to protect the ocean and its beaches—and the coolest marine-life webcams on the planet.

This Veterans Day, we pay tribute to those who have given parts of their lives to our armed services, and those who serve in our nation's army of government workers.

As white-hot rhetoric and threats of political violence bring many voters to the edge of madness, we offer a hopeful reminder.

Democratic institutions are at work statewide, dealing with local issues and big stuff including the California Delta.

An international network of business leaders are working to build local alliances and solve global problems.

Californians are being asked to approve two bond measures totaling $20 billion in the election now underway. What does that mean, and how does it work? Find out here.

As voters receive their ballots for the 2024 presidential election and important statewide and local races, we look at efforts to build democracy, and efforts to weaken it.

Volunteering and looking out for one another is central to community life.

A spectacular piece of land north of Santa Cruz shows what a determined group of people, with the help of a tenacious little media company, can do.

California's first big reservoir project in decades is underway, as the state finally gets rid of some old dams. Environmental responsibility meets aridification.

As some municipalities struggle to find people to run for elected offices and advisory boards, we look at the civic engagement pipeline.

In which we salute the hard workers who make California the fifth largest economy on the planet.

For one thing, "citizen," like "garden," can be used as a verb.

In the midst of charges that California, and its favorite daughter Kamala Harris, are soft on crime, lawmakers step up in the name of public safety.

Joe Biden visited the Santa Cruz County beach towns of Aptos and Capitola following bad storms a couple winters ago. Last week, his administration delivered a big pile of money to help these communities and their neighbors build resilience.

As July goes down in the history books as the hottest ever recorded, the 2024 California fire season has already burned more than 30 times as much acreage as in 2023.

This week: Two examples of ways people in and around government and politics worked behind the scenes, and in the state house, to make things better.

If you've ever wondered how your governments raise and spend your tax money, here's a primer.

The public process that determines who stays cool and who does not—and many more urgent issues. Plus a virtual escape to the high country.

Over the past week, citizens empowered as members of civil grand juries issued reports of their investigations of local governments. It's an honorable institution, and they found some dishonorable stuff.