The Your Utah, Your Future Podcast

Utah will need 840,000 new homes in the next 30 years.  The future of the Great Salt Lake hangs in the balance.  And education remains central to long-term opportunity.  In this special episode, Amy Upchurch interviews Envision Utah’s newly appointed CEO, Jason Brown. After more than a decade leading key initiatives, Jason shares his journey, the philosophy behind the “Envision Utah process,” and...

In this episode, we're joined by Alysia Ducuara, Executive Director of Get Healthy Utah , to explore the organization’s mission and the statewide partnerships that make their work so impactful. Together, they dive into how Get Healthy Utah is helping families, schools, workplaces, and communities integrate healthier choices into everyday life — and why this matters for Utah’s future. From rur...

In this episode of Common Good Awards Spotlights , host Amy Upchurch sits down with James Yapias , Senior Director of the Salt Lake Education Foundation, and Dr. Kim Hansen , Assistant Professor of General Pediatrics at University of Utah Health and Medical Director of the West High School Clinic —one of this year’s Common Good Award recipients. Together, they share the story of how an old footbal...

In this season-opening episode of Common Good Awards Spotlights , host Amy Upchurch sits down with representatives of the Great Salt Lake Collaborative —one of this year’s Common Good Award recipients—to explore their work documenting and protecting one of Utah’s most critical natural resources. Heather May, Ben Winslow , and Anna McEntire share insights from more than 1,000 journalist stories on...

The first five years of a child’s life shape the foundation for a lifetime of learning. In the final episode of our four-part education series, we explore the science of early brain development and why simple, everyday interactions—like talking, reading, and playing—are so powerful. Join experts Dr. Quang-Tuyen Nguyen, Dr. Neal Davis, Maria Soter, and Kelly Noorda as we uncover how brain-building...

In this episode of Common Good Award Spotlights , we sit down with Zach, a dedicated "Friend" (mentor) from Friends of the Children–Utah, to explore the incredible impact of this groundbreaking mentoring program. Friends of the Children is reshaping the future by pairing youth facing the greatest challenges with professional mentors who stick by their from the preschool years to high sch...

In this episode of Common Good Award Spotlights , we’re honored to feature the Stella H. Oaks Foundation, recipient of the 2024 Common Good Award!  Discover how this incredible organization is empowering single mothers to overcome challenges, achieve their educational dreams, and create lasting change for their families and communities. Through scholarships and support, the Stella H. Oaks Foundati...

Welcome to our newest podcast series, Common Good Award Spotlights , where we celebrate the remarkable individuals and organizations honored at our annual Common Good Award ceremony. In this inaugural episode, host Amy Upchurch sits down with members of the Utah Shakespeare Festival to explore their impactful work. From innovative community engagement initiatives to making Shakespeare resonate in...

Tune in for Part 3 in our series on education in Utah, which is all about higher education! In today's episode, we're exploring the top challenges facing high school graduates who are contemplating whether or not to pursue higher education. We sit down with Utah’s higher ed leaders and others at the forefront of helping high schoolers pursue higher education. They share valuable insights...

Tune in for Part 2 in our series on education in Utah, which is all about teachers! In today's episode, we're doing a deep dive into one of the top challenges facing the teaching profession today— Utah’s teacher shortage . We sit down with the experts to talk about what the teacher shortage actually looks like, its' impacts across the profession, and a few of the other top challenge...

Tune in for part one of our series on education in Utah! In this series we’re looking at the importance of education, the challenges our education system is facing, and what the future of education can look like in Utah.  In our first episode, we sit down with the experts to lay the groundwork for everything a Utahn needs to know about our state’s education system and the impacts it has on our com...

Tune in for the final installment in our series on the future of housing in Utah! In this episode, we dive into some of the strategies we can pursue — including those already in place — to make sure there is affordable and stable housing for all Utahns, even those with incomes that can’t keep up with the housing market. We also talk with the experts about what happens when we don't have enoug...

Tune in to part two of our series on the future of housing in Utah. In this episode, we look at what it will take to ensure that every Utahn — regardless of background or stage of life — can find affordable housing in communities they want to be a part of.  We talk with experts about the two most important principles we can follow to address our housing crisis: the how and where of what we build....

Tune in to part one of our three-part series on the future of housing in Utah . In this episode, we dive into the factors that have led to our current housing shortage and affordability crisis. We’ll look at the historic trends that have led to our housing deficit, the natural constraints facing housing development, the impact of resident opposition, labor and supply shortage as a result of Covid-...

Tune in for the final installment in our series on disaster resilience in Utah! In this episode, we’re looking at the most common natural hazards in our state— wildfires, flooding, and drought. We look at how Utah’s geography and climate put us at naturally high risk for each hazard, and how they compound one another. We also talk with the experts about how our changing climate, specifically warmi...

Tune in for part three of our series on disaster resilience in Utah! In this episode, we wrap up our conversation on earthquakes with the final recommendations about how to increase our state-wide resiliency by improving our buildings. We’ll look at how we can strengthen our most vulnerable buildings, URMs (unreinforced masonry buildings) which include critical facilities like schools and hospital...

Tune in for part two in our series on disaster resilience. In this episode, we talk with the experts about the important difference between resiliency  and preparedness when it comes to earthquakes. We'll look at the concrete steps we can take as a state to become more resilient, including strengthening our water infrastructure and investing in an early earthquake warning system. As always, w...

Utah is due for “the Big One”—a magnitude 6.75 or greater earthquake somewhere along the Wasatch Front. In fact, seismic experts predict we have a 43 percent chance of experiencing “the Big One” in the next 50 years. Chances are you've heard this statistic before. But have you ever wondered why our risk is so high?  In the newest installment of the Your Utah, Your Future podcast series, we se...

Tune in for the final installment in our three-part series on water. In this episode, we’re talking about the State Water Strategy : a fifty-year plan that outlines the strategies and steps we can take to ensure we have enough clean and affordable water to sustain our thriving communities and a healthy and resilient natural environment, even as our state continues to grow. We focus on both state-w...

Tune in for part two of our three-part series on the future of water in Utah! In this episode we dive into the who, what, when, and how of water rights and use in Utah. What is a water right? Who gets to use water and when? How were water rights decided in the West and managed today? We also look at the Colorado Compact and how much water we use here in Utah. We’d like to extend a special thanks t...

This is Part One of our three-part series on water! In this episode, we dive into the science of Utah's hydrologic cycle, our built and natural water storage systems—including watersheds and aquifers, the significance of the Great Salt Lake, and the impact of climate change on our water systems. We'd like to extend a special thanks to our expert guests for joining us in this episode: Bri...

This is the final episode in our three-part series on air quality. In this episode we take a deep dive into everything you should know about on-road mobile sources and the cars that we drive. We'll talk about the classifications of vehicles on the road today, smog ratings, Tier 3 Fuel, upstream emissions, and the number one way you can help clean the air. We'd like to extend a special th...

This is part two in our three-part series on air quality in Utah. In this episode we move from the science of our air quality to the action. We’re talking about the top sources of emissions in our state and the actions individuals can take in their home and their day-to-day lives to help improve our air quality. Think clean travel, clean buildings, and clean tools! We'd like to extend a speci...

This is part one of our three-part series on air quality in Utah. In this episode, we dive into the science behind why our air quality can get bad, what pollution is, what it does to your health, and why Utahns should care.  We'd like to extend a special thanks to our guests: Dr. Kevin Perry, Department of Atmospheric Sciences, University of Utah Dr. Liz Joy, Senior Medical Director for Welln...