IMPERIAL: EPICENTER OF THE RECESSION. California’s Imperial County is being called “the capital of the recession.” Heavily hit by the highest unemployment, foreclosure and bankruptcy rates, this border area is considered the most stressed county in the nation. To get a close look, Línea Abierta is going on the road again to broadcast live from El Centro. In this program, we’ll hear from a worker who lost income and health insurance, and went into bankruptcy and divorce. We’ll also hear from a mortgage counselor who saved this worker’s home from foreclosure. Part of the series “Facing the Crisis,” this program looks into how Latino unemployed workers and their families manage to survive and the challenges they face to access the safety net and pay for food, housing and medicines.

CAPITAL OF RENEWABLE ENERGY. Leaders from Imperial County are vowing to turn this economically-devastated area into a booming new economy. The dry, sun-drenched lands of the Sonora desert that are known for their dust storms and scorching heat, may now become the source of an endless fuel supply: solar energy. Local leaders are busy traveling around the world to sell their vision of a valley that will go beyond being a winter vegetable capital to become “the renewable energy capital of the world.” This two-hour live broadcast originates from KUBO, Radio Bilingüe, in downtown El Centro, CA.

Guests: Marcela Piedra, Director of Economic Development, City of El Centro, CA; Efrain Silva, El Centro City Councilman and Dean of Imperial Valley College, El Centro, CA; Daniel Fitzgerald, Enterprise Zone Manager, Imperial County, Calexico CA.

CAPITAL OF RENEWABLE ENERGY: A REPEAT. Leaders from Imperial County are vowing to turn this economically-devastated area into a booming new economy. The dry, sun-drenched lands of the Sonora desert that are known for their dust storms and scorching heat, may now become the source of an endless fuel supply: solar energy. Local leaders are busy traveling around the world to sell their vision of a valley that will go beyond being a winter vegetable capital to become “the renewable energy capital of the world.” This broadcast originated from KUBO, Radio Bilingüe, in downtown El Centro, CA as part of the series "Facing the Crisis."

Guests: Marcela Piedra, Director of Economic Development, City of El Centro, CA; Efrain Silva, El Centro City Councilman and Dean of Imperial Valley College, El Centro, CA; Daniel Fitzgerald, Enterprise Zone Manager, Imperial County, Calexico CA.