Why Should U Care About the Gondola is an event put on by the University of Utah Honors Class: Art, Action, & the Environment taught by Associate Professor Wendy Wischer. This event is meant to bring awareness to the critical issues surrounding the proposed gondola that would travel from the mouth of Little Cottonwood Canyon up to Snowbird Ski Resort. Our project focuses on the effects of this proposed gondola on the wildlife, natural landscape, and watershed of the canyon as well as the community in the Salt Lake Valley as a whole. We want to remind the community that there are other possibilities besides the gondola and widening the roads in the canyon and to show them why they should care about what solution is ultimately chosen. Learn more at our website.

This diverse team of students- with disciplines including Archaeology, Biology, Business, Chemical Engineering, and Geography- have been exploring the intersection between the arts and environmental action, learning how to bring awareness to their campus community about the Little Cottonwood Canyon Gondola Project in an engaging and creative way.

This socially engaged art project will focus on protesting the funding and construction of the gondola, the negative impact it would have on the environment, and the wrongful use of tax dollars while also suggesting healthier alternatives for both the community and the canyon. The project will consist of multiple activities in front of the J. Willard Marriott Library on the University of Utah campus that passers-by can choose to participate in. The event will have food and interactive components with stickers that serve as both information and prizes for participating. There will be a photo booth, trivia game and a special investigative performance.

Enjoy chips and cookies while you learn what you can do to help protect and keep the environmental beauty of Little Cottonwood Canyon!

When: April 19, 2023 from 11:50 am to 1:50 pm
Where: J. Willard Marriott Library Plaza