
From Baker’s Stats to Stanzas: Jim Franks’ ‘Existential Bread’ Launches in Davis
Picking apart the stuff (seeds, stories, hoaxes) that go into what we think we know about bread
Baker and poet Jim Franks launched his experimental cookbook “Existential Bread” in Davis this week in collaboration with Student Collaborative Organic Plant Breeding Education, an interdisciplinary approach that offers a new way to consider our relationship with food and the complex processes and economics behind it.

Yan Can’t Quit: Why the Celebrity Chef Keeps Coming Back to the Capital Region
Martin Yan, host of long-running PBS cooking show, returns to his Davis alma mater to host a dumpling demonstration
With a career spanning over four decades, it’s safe to say Davis-trained celebrity chef Martin Yan continues to impress.

California’s Fund to Build Student Housing Runs Dry — Leaving Community Colleges in the Lurch
CalMatters: College presidents across the state say the new housing projects are a long-term solution to wildfire recovery and to the state’s enduring affordability crisis, which has hit community college students hard. In study after study, researchers have found that around 20% of California community college students experience homelessness at some point over the course of a year, and many more struggle to pay rent.

When Streetcars Roamed the Capital Region
The classic car system predated light rail by almost a century
While many of us believe that Sacramento’s light rail trains were innovative when they began tooting their way throughout the Capital Region in the 1980s, the current system is actually the reboot of a suburban trolley that slid, wended and awoke its way through the area many decades before.

Chefs, Growers and Citizen Scientists Are Embracing Mushroom Foraging and Its Culinary Potential
The farm-to-fork pipeline is well established in Sacramento — but what about forage-to-fork? We talked to some of the foragers, scientists, chefs and enthusiasts who want to see more foraging in the Capital Region.

Braving the ‘Dog Days’ of Retirement
How to retain purpose, passion and meaning in your life post-career
In my 30-plus years providing financial advice, I’ve worked with many people who have reframed retirement in order to make it work for them. Here’s what I’ve learned.

Dilemma of the Month: How Do I Give an Employee a Religious Accommodation?
I need to encourage a manager to accept a religious accommodation
request, as it is reasonable, in my opinion. The employee, who is
Balinese Hindu, has requested a 10-minute prayer break at noon as
part of her religion.

Stockton Is Behind in Flood Control
While Sacramento, another high-risk city, has invested billions into flood protection, Stockton has not
Stockton’s levees haven’t received a major overhaul since the 1990s, while Sacramento’s have received widespread upgrades in the last 20 years. “We think they’re in danger,” says Jane Dolan, chair of the Central Valley Flood Protection Board. “They’re behind on flood protection.”

Is Sacramento Ready for the Big One?
Levees and dams are being repaired and expanded to prepare for a future flood
Climate change is increasing the strength of Sacramento’s winter storms. Higher temperatures allow atmospheric rivers to carry more water, research shows. Climate change is also jacking up other flood risks, such as sea rise and snowmelt. All this is raising the chances of catastrophic flooding in Sacramento.

Startup of the Month: Alter Learning
STEAM games designed to make education fun for kids
As an Albanian immigrant who grew up poor, Aldi Agaj dreamed for his children to have the access and opportunities he didn’t have. When his daughter was 4, he had an idea to create an edtech company that gives kids free access to innovative games.