Managing Director, Janet Quinney Lawson Institute for Land, Water, and Air
Utah State University
Bio:
Anna McEntire is the managing director of the Janet Quinney Lawson Institute for Land, Water, and Air at Utah State University. The mission of the institute is to help guide Utah land, water, and air policy by connecting decision-makers with high-quality research. Anna is currently overseeing projects on Great Salt Lake, Bear Lake, Colorado River, renewable energy, and business engagement. Anna was previously executive director of Research Communications at USU. She received a bachelor’s degree in journalism and political science and a master’s degree in corporate communication and is currently pursuing a PhD in natural resource policy at USU, with a research focus on Great Salt Lake.
Title: Values in the Brine: Utahns’ Attitudes and Values on Great Salt Lake
Abstract: When it comes to Great Salt Lake, are we talking past each other? The Future of Great Salt Lake Survey polled a statewide sample of Utah citizens on their attitudes about the Lake and how they expect local government, state government—and themselves—to address challenges related to the Lake and other water concerns. Survey results show how Great Salt Lake is a focusing point for broader discussions on managing water to help secure Utah’s future. At the same time, there are significant differences in how citizens think about and talk about the Lake. A lack of shared understanding can stymie efforts to create beneficial policies, but identifying and speaking to our shared values can assist in creating a unified approach to Great Salt Lake policy. Learn about Utahns’ awareness and attitudes of waterwise policies and how citizen values affect those opinions through this analysis of responses that survey participants gave to open-ended questions contained in the survey, which expands on analysis contained in Future of the Great Salt Lake Survey – A 2023 USU Research Report, which can be accessed here.
Co-authors of the presentation and the research report are Drs. Lisa W. Welsh, Joanna Endter-Wada, and Karin M. Kettenring.