Significant Statistics | Growth Part III: How Utah is Addressing Growth Pressures

Written by: Christopher Collard

Growth and Transportation Infrastructure Utah has a history of robust investment in transportation infrastructure. Utah’s investment in transportation went to a new level after 2020; the state budget for transportation in 2022 is nearly twice that of its 2012-2020, even after accounting for inflation and population growth. While traffic decreased during the pandemic, it recovered by January 2021, and while Utah is among the top five states for remote workers, it is not clear to … Continued

Significant Statistics | Growth Part II: Priorities for Addressing Growth

Written by: Christopher Collard

Utah’s rapid growth means the state can expect to continue seeing a growing economy and increased national prominence. But it would be a mistake to assume that this growth can come without a price. Certainly, survey respondents to the Utah Foundation’s 2020 Utah Priorities Project have concerns. When thinking about population growth, most Utah voters were concerned about infrastructure for roads and water. Those that were more concerned with roads tended to be affiliated with … Continued

Significant Statistics | Growth Part I: The Nation’s Fastest Growing State

Written by: Christopher Collard

In the decade preceding 2020, Utah grew by 18.4%, making it the fastest-growing state in the nation. This news comes despite births in Utah continuing to decline in a trend beginning in 2008, meaning that although Utah still has one of the highest fertility rates in the nation, more and more of its population growth comes from migration. It is expected that by 2031 Utah will have added an additional half million people to its … Continued

Utah Thrives Podcast | Can Utah be Trusted?

Written by: Peter Reichard

Podcast Explores Measures of Social Trust   Successful social interactions depend on trust. Social trust has major implications for the prosperity of the economy, the health of a democracy, the strength of the social fabric, and the support of strong social capital. But how solid are the bonds of trust in the Beehive State? That’s the question we explore in a recent Utah Foundation report called The Kindness of Strangers: Social Trust in Utah. It’s … Continued

Video: Utahns’ Concerns by Political Party

Written by: Christopher Collard

The Utah Foundation’s newest video examines the differences between the political parties in Utah, looking at changes over time and top priorities. Check it out!  

Video: Utahns’ Top 5 Concerns

Written by: Christopher Collard

The Utah Foundation’s newest video examines Utahns’ top five priorities. Find out what they are — and the details behind them — in the video.

Op-ed: Our national fabric is tearing. Here’s how to fix it

Written by: Peter Reichard

There’s no use in pretending anymore. Our national fabric has been tearing for decades. Political polarization is widening. The economic divide keeps growing. Solidarity is slipping away. Social capital is in decline. Shaylyn Romney Garrett, co-author with Robert Putnam of “The Upswing: How America Came Together a Century Ago and How We Can do it Again,” illuminated the convergence of these challenges at the Utah Foundation’s recent 2021 annual luncheon. The situation is not good. … Continued

Utah Thrives Podcast | Narcissism and the Unraveling of Society

Written by: Peter Reichard

Are We Living Through a Second Gilded Age? On multiple measures — political polarization, economic inequality, social capital and cultural solidarity — America is heading decisively in the wrong direction. But have we been here before? And what can we learn from our past successes in coming together? Why are state and local-level solutions so important? In this installment of Utah Thrives, we hear insights from Shaylyn Romney Garrett, co-author with Robert Putnam of The … Continued

Utah Thrives Podcast | Civic Engagement

Written by: Peter Reichard

The measures of civic engagement in Utah reveal a mixed bag. That’s the conclusion of a new Utah Foundation report called The The Measure of a Citizen: Civic Engagement in Utah. It’s the first installment in our new Utah Social Capital Series. And the findings of the report raise a lot of questions. Utah Foundation Senior Analyst Christopher Collard and President Peter Reichard explore those questions in this edition of Utah Thrives, the Utah Foundation … Continued

When it comes to civic engagement in Utah, it’s a mixed bag

Written by: Peter Reichard

Going back 200 years, strong citizen engagement in the democratic process and in civic improvement has served as a barometer of the vitality of the American republic. It’s a matter of good government: At the state and local levels, civic engagement has significant implications for the effectiveness and efficiency of government, the quality of services and the responsiveness of public officials to citizen priorities. A decline in civic engagement can reduce the accountability of the … Continued