UC Irvine Professor Jay Famiglietti, director of the UC Center for Hydrologic Modeling, has been awarded the 2014 David Keith Todd Distinguished Lectureship by the Groundwater Resources Association. “This is a great surprise and a wonderful honor,” said Famiglietti.  “I will work hard to meet the high standards for communicating California water issues set by previous Keith Lecturers.” Famiglietti, a leader in the field of hydrology and known for his team’s work tracking freshwater availability and groundwater depletion, will lecture in at least five California locations. In the talk, entitled “Water in the Balance: Observing Groundwater Depletion from Space,” he will speak about the urgency of the state’s water situation, new perspectives on the global water crisis and the emerging importance of groundwater management.