The Utah Foundation research report Flowing Toward 2050: Utah’s Water Outlook received one of the top awards for public policy research at the annual Government Research Association meeting in Denver on Tuesday, July 28th.
It was chosen for the Most Effective Education Award in recognition of its value and influence in the ongoing discussion of water policy in Utah and the West.
The report was written as part of a series by the Utah Foundation on what Utah should plan for as its population doubles by 2050. Its author was Research Analyst Mallory Bateman, who remarked after receiving the award, “We’re happy to see that our research has been recognized by our peers from across the U.S. as an effective tool for educating the public.”
Flowing Toward 2050: Utah’s Water Outlook has been the subject of at least 15 news articles and editorials in Utah’s news media. It has also been cited by other researchers studying how Utah will manage providing water for a population expected to double by 2050. Since its initial release on September 17, 2014, the report has been downloaded from the Utah Foundation website more than 700 times. The Utah Legislature’s Revenue and Taxation Interim Committee also invited Utah Foundation President Steve Kroes to testify at its meeting in June on the report’s recommendation that Utah re-examine the use of property taxes as a major source of funding for water agencies.
The Governmental Research Association has served individuals involved in studying public policy issues across the United States since 1914. It encourages the collection and analysis of factual data to assist citizens and policymakers and helps to coordinate the work of researchers nationwide, giving them a place to exchange ideas and experiences.
