The UC Food Observer chooses a handful of important stories for you to read as you end your work week. (And we hope it’s been a good one).

On the menu, in no particular order:

What if the drought continues? Peter H. King (@peterhking) reports on a study released by the Public Policy Institute of California. A quick assessment: California’s cities and agricultural industry will manage, but the state’s small rural communities – and wildlife – will be hard hit. King covers California and the West for the Los Angeles Times. Also appearing in the Los Angeles Times: one of the best write-ups we’ve read about the impacts of groundwater over-pumping, particularly in California’s San Joaquin Valley. Land subsidence rates are accelerating…and the implications are significant. Written by Bettina Boxall (@boxall).

Will food waste and beef fat make planes soar? Some airlines are betting on it. A variety of agricultural feedstocks are used in renewable fuels. But using organic waste has additional benefits. Could manure and decomposing food – which are liabilities for producers – be turned into value-added products? Abbie Fentress Swanson writes an interesting piece for NPR’s The Salt.

Food as a vehicle for change. Andrew Amelinckx (@TheAmelinckx) interviews chef Michel Nischan (@michelnischan) for Modern Farmer. Nischan, a three-time James Beard Foundation award winner, is a good food advocate. Nischan is also the founder of Wholesome Wave, an organization whose mission is to  provide “affordable, healthy, local food for all.” BTW, for Twitter users: If you post a picture holding a vegetable or fruit using , @nakedjuice will donate 10 pounds of produce to Wholesome Wave.

A little over a year ago, University of California President Janet Napolitano launched an institution-wide Global Food Initiative. The purpose? To harness UC’s resources to address one of the most compelling issues of our time: how to sustainably and nutritiously feed the world’s growing population. Now, a subcommittee working on #GlobalFood has issued a report entitled Leveraging Research for Food and Agriculture Policy: Lessons Learned from the University of California. Important case studies are provided. This is a resource that will add value to any organization seeking to translate research to policy.

ICYMI … a UC Food Observer interview with Food Forward, a Southern California nonprofit that “rescues” fresh local produce to accomplish its mission to “harvest food, fight hunger and build community.” Founder Rick Nahmias says this: “Everyone eats and everyone should eat with dignity. Food Forward helps that happen … We ALL have something to share – money, time, clothing, etc. – at Food Forward our currency is food. We’d like to reframe how people see abundance in their own lives – and what they can do with it to help others.”

Have a great day … we’ll see you on Monday!