How I learned to love Utah Winters I grew up nestled in the foothills of the Wasatch Front. While I enjoyed the snowy winters of my 90s childhood, the bad inversions and lack of sledding days in my early adulthood caused me to really hate winter here. I traveled a lot the past several years, largely driven by the urge to flee winter. Utah winters might seem mild compared … [Read more...]
Saving Great Salt Lake: 47-Day Vigil for Shrinking Great Salt Lake
The Great Salt Lake as a public health hazard There has been increasing media coverage in recent years resulting in growing awareness around the human health implications of the shrinking Great Salt Lake. It is becoming known among Utahns that the drying lakebed will soon become a public health hazard due to hazardous chemicals that have been recklessly discharged into the … [Read more...]
Utah Businesses to Shop for Unique Holiday Gifts
Many Utahns would like to support the local economy and at the same time, seek alternatives from big box stores to find meaningful gifts for their loved ones. Here is a roundup of 13 small businesses in Utah that you might consider shopping with this holiday season. We’re sure you’ll find something on this list for several of the local-loving Utahns in your life. Time … [Read more...]
Will Former Sugar House Sizzler Site Turn into a Gas Station? Sugar House Residents Kept in the Dark.
Gas Station proposed for corner property. In February earlier this year, Nathan Abbot, representing Galloway US, submitted a conditional use proposal to the SLC Planning Commission to build a Kum & Go convenience store and gas station on the parcel adjacent to the Sego Lily Plaza and the Draw at Sugar House Park (2111 South 1300 East). If the proposal is approved, it is … [Read more...]
Green Phoenix Farm Helps Homeless Women in Salt Lake Get Back on Their Feet through Gardening
“I have nothing but good things to say about this program. I have been homeless for five years. This is the first time I’ve received a housing voucher, and it’s thanks to this program.” — Kate, Green Team member “I still volunteer there once a week because I love it so much. I give back because I’ve received so much.” —Teressa, Green Team alumni “Being of service … [Read more...]
New Roots SLC, Organic Vegetable Farm Supports Refugee Families to Continue Tradition of Gardening and Farming
In the midst of West Valley urban sprawl is a somewhat unexpected sight: a diverse, organic vegetable farm called New Roots. The farm is a local program of the IRC (International Rescue Committee), an organization serving people whose lives have been upended by war and natural disasters. While the IRC has had offices in Salt Lake since the 90s, New Roots SLC was developed in … [Read more...]
The Other Side Academy: A Home for Recovering Addicts and Criminals in Salt Lake City
“We’re a family here. We’re all about connection. If addiction is disconnection, recovery is reconnection.” —Dave Derocher. I recently had the chance to meet with Dave Derocher, executive director of The Other Side Academy, a home for recovering addicts and criminals in Salt Lake City. I greeted him in their home-base building, a historic mansion located in east downtown. … [Read more...]
Affordable Housing Crisis: Utah Urbanites find solution in Cohousing Projects such as Wasatch Commons Cohousing
“I drive past the strip malls and big box stores, the parking lots and car dealerships, office buildings and sub-developments, each building a model of cost-efficiency, and I marvel: “After 5,000 years of architectural development, we’ve ended up with this?” We have maximised our production of the measurable—the square feet, the productivity per labour unit—at the expense of … [Read more...]
Krishna Food Forest & Farm—what is the permaculture concept?
Mimicking natural ecosystems The Krishna Food Forest & Farm , located behind the Sri Sri Radha Krishna temple in Millcreek, is a wonderfully accessible place for anyone in the area to learn about ecological food production while engaging with the Millcreek Permaculture Guild, a friendly community and leadership team. It is run by the Millcreek Permaculture Guild, which … [Read more...]
Forest bathing with Wasatch Forest Therapy
Wasatch Forest Therapy, run by Utah County resident Lissa Kennedy, wants to help people slow down by experiencing forest bathing, because many Utahns love spending time outdoors, but often spend that time whizzing through the landscape. Immerse yourself in nature with forest bathing Once a month, Kennedy takes up to 10 people into the woods for three hours. She conducts … [Read more...]