When people talk about the challenges facing our mountain communities, the conversation often sounds familiar.
Wildfire prevention. Forest management. Affordable insurance. Rural healthcare. Broadband access. Reliable roads. Economic development.
Many of those same issues will take center stage this September when leaders from across California’s rural counties gather for the Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC) 2026 Annual Meeting in Santa Barbara County. But this isn’t just another government conference—it is one of the places where many of the conversations shaping the future of rural California begin…