California Spotlight: Wealth & Poverty

California is one of the wealthiest states in the country, yet it also faces persistent poverty, stark economic inequality, and some of the highest costs of living in the nation. These tensions raise fundamental questions about who benefits from California's economic growth and why so many residents struggle to achieve economic security.

Recorded on October 7, 2026, this panel brought together leading scholars to examine the forces shaping wealth and poverty across the state. Drawing on research spanning inequality, affordability, economic mobility, and social policy, the discussion explored the roots of California's economic divides, how they are reproduced across generations, and what is at stake for families, communities, and the future of the state.

The panel featured David Grusky, Edward Ames Edmonds Professor in the School of Humanities and Sciences, and Professor of Sociology at Stanford, and Samuel Trachtman, Senior Researcher at the Berkeley Economy and Society Initiative at UC Berkeley. Evan White, Executive Director of the California Policy Lab at UC Berkeley, moderated.

The Social Science Matrix California Spotlight series focuses on important issues that are directly relevant to the people of California, in support of the University of California's mission as a public research institution.

This event was co-sponsored by the Goldman School of Public Policy, the Institute for Research on Labor and Employment, the Berkeley Economy and Society Initiative, and the Opportunity Lab.

A transcript of this recording is available at https://matrix.berkeley.edu/research-article/wealth-and-poverty.