Students Take on the Hill to Advocate for the Great Salt Lake

Last week, a passionate group of students from the School of Environment, Society & Sustainability made their voices heard at the Utah State Capitol in support of the Great Salt Lake. As part of Dr. Matt Fry’s ENVST 5557 Teaching Sustainability Capstone course, they organized a Student Lobbying Day to raise awareness about the importance of restoring the lake. They also launched a University of Utah student chapter of Grow the Flow, a statewide organization dedicated to preserving Utah’s most iconic water body.

The event kicked off with a lobbying training session, where students honed their talking points and learned common practices for meeting with elected officials. Equipped with fact-filled handouts, they headed to the Capitol eager to educate lawmakers about key bills that could impact the future of the Great Salt Lake.

Several ESS students shared their experiences and reflected on the day's impact.

Addison Treadman was impressed by the turnout: “It was really cool to see how many people were at the Capitol. It was Student Lobbying Day, but there was also research going on… It was reassuring to see people braving the bad weather to come out. A lot of people were there independently, too!”

For Ben Timm, advocating for the Great Salt Lake carries great significance. “It’s our snowpack, it’s our air, it’s our health,” he said. “It’s a wetland full of birds, it’s wilderness right on our doorstep. If that’s something we’re going to disregard, that’s really sad.”

Ceci Eubanks added, “We have an obligation as community members to advocate for our natural resources.”

While some students met with legislators, others engaged with interns. Ben reflected on the importance of their advocacy: “It’s hard enough to get people to show up and represent their own opinion. I wonder if the messages people bring are being listened to. What does it mean for us to go there? Does it matter? That’s what I walked away with.”

In the midst of a jam-packed 45-day legislative session filled with hundreds of bills, ESS students made their voices heard and actively participated in the legislative process. Student advocacy is one example of community engagement that is featured as part of the ENVST curriculum.