My Thoughts on Your Midterm Presentation

Dear Business Blog Team Members,
As I have done with the other blog teams, I thought my first post on your blog should be my reflections on your midterm presentation yesterday.
First, Brandon focused the group and framed the issue. Then,Bill got things off to a rocking start with an understanding of the local EID reservoirs, the amount of water they currently lack, and took a couple well-deserved shots at El Dorado Hills for not doing their part to conserve. J'accuse!
Then, Alvah did a remarkable job of showing the impact of the drought on California's agriculture, particularly in the Central Valley. The charts she used were extremely effective in explaining the very particular effect the drought will have on different crops, including almonds and walnuts.  This may seem like a micro-issue, but remember the Irish immigration of the 30s was caused by one thing -- the potato famine.
Deanna then talked persuasively about the impact of the drought on wildlife and on forest fires, pointing out that while mountain lions may benefit from their prey being closer, this is a safety hazard for the rest of us.

This is the best beer in the world and the only good thing to ever come out of Chico, California.
Just ask Alice Waters. Get it? WATERS?

Brandon's presentation on the beer industry was a fascinating vignette into how something as basic as water supply can derail a business like microbreweries, which depend on certain water supplies like the Russian River, and that mineral contents in water can have a devastating effect on their product. This seems so obvious, yet I had never considered it before. It was interesting to hear of businesses adapting to the different water supplies, even those in Chicago. It's a shame that Brandon has such an undeveloped palate that he thinks Sierra Nevada is a terrible beer.  Everything about his presentation then lost credibility. But here's hoping that continued tasting, over and over, will improve his taste buds. and he will see the error in his ways.
Wei Wei, the newest member of your group, did a wonderful job of explaining the issue of water supply in China with pollution being a major problem, and children having to lug large amounts of water over kilometers to get it home.
Vince finished up with an explanation of water law, including riparian rights and the idea that water use is tied to land ownership, but that water because it is movable is really about usage rights. He did a great job of explaining how complicated water law is, which is certainly true.
In closing, this was a remarkable presentation and set a very high bar for the other groups to follow. I learned a tremendous amount about something that is terribly important. Congratulations on such a terrific job!