Demographic, economic, and social trends were examined in order to assist the 2005 Task Force of the Chancellor's Consultation Council develop strategies to address expected changes California will undergo between 1997 and 2005. Arranged by five categories, the trends most important to community colleges appeared to be: (1) demographic: emerging 'baby-boomer echo' of 18-24 year olds, increasing cultural and learning diversity of students, and the elderly education market; (2) technological: advances in new interactive communications and fused systems, increasing use of computers and the need for higher skills in most jobs, and increasing "virtuality"; (3) economic: trends, longer and shallower cycles, increased outsourcing, career changes, and globalization; (4) societal: the advent of a multicultural, mosaic society, increased cocooning and living alone and the changing structure of the family; and (5) public policy: decreasing federal/increasing state control, continued inadequate funding, and an emerging gap between existing practices and new paradigms of college organization and delivery. Highlighting these trends are the increase in student diversity that colleges face, the increasingly pervasive influence of technology, continued expansion in the perceived mission of the colleges, and the substantial differences between the current practice and that advocated by planners. Contains 63 references. (YKH)