Aggies envision Utah’s future
Utah State University students walking past the TSC patio on Wednesday, were asked to play a video game that may help predict what Utah will be like in the year 2050.
This video game, produced by the Envision Utah initiative is part Governor Gary Herbert’s plan to prepare for Utah’s future. According to the organization, Utah is projected to grow by 2.5 million people in the next three decades.
“We’ve developed an online web app that we’ll be showcasing outside with a bunch of iPads for the folks, where they can take really cool interactive surveys that help build 2050 Utah,” said Nate Currey, Envision Utah’s public relations director.
Currey said Envision Utah is an initiative sponsored through government, business and foundations to help direct conversations across the state related to sustainability.
“Utah’s growing quickly and we need to start thinking about that now,” Currey said. “It’s going to happen, whether we like it or not.”
Currey said the purpose of Wednesday’s events on the USU campus were to promote the survey and to get word out about this project.
According to a statement from the Envision Utah organization, their goal is to get 50,000 Utahn voices to give input on which resources are most important to them.
“Envision Utah is making history again with the ‘Your Utah Your Future’ project, a statewide process that invited the public to get involved and decide how Utah will grow,” the statement said.
Envision Utah lists 11 key issues that Utah citizens need to be considering with the expected growth in the next few decades. These issues include air quality, education, energy, housing and cost of living, jobs and economy, natural lands, recreation, agriculture, transportation and communities, water and disaster resilience.
Currey said Envision Utah has worked on many programs to help prepare the state for the future. He said they worked to help create the TRAX systems in Salt Lake City and the Frontrunner going from Ogden to Provo. They also worked on the Daybreak and City Creek developments.
However, Currey said this program is helping cities and communities across the state.
“We need to start thinking about this on a more regional level,” Currey said. “We worked on a project called Envision Cache, right here in Cache Valley.”
Currey said Logan was the kick-off city for Envision Utah’s tour around the state. He said they hope to get more voices for their goal of 50,000 people.
“We listen to the folks of Utah and we note that without their voices, these processes tend to wither and die out,” Currey said. “It’s important to provide a vehicle for all voices across Utah to be heard, regardless of religion, sex, or any type of demographic information that may not traditionally be heard and that’s what we’re good at.”
Currey said Envision Utah will be back in Logan sometime next month with their project showcase. In the meantime, he said students should take the survey, which can be found at envisionutah.org.