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Included In This Toolkit
In collaboration and celebration with Governor Cox declaring April 2023 Utah’s third official Dark Sky Month, the Utah Office of Tourism has updated its toolkit with dark sky-related resources and assets for our tourism industry partners to utilize and share throughout this month and beyond.
The Dark Skies Edition Toolkit includes the following resources:
Utah Dark Sky Month Declaration – From the Office of Governor Spencer J. Cox
Governor Cox declared the month of April as Utah Dark Sky Month for the third consecutive year. The declaration encourages residents and visitors alike to celebrate this month by visiting one of Utah’s 24 accredited International Dark Sky Places – including all of the Mighty 5® national parks, 10 state parks, and two communities.
Celebrate International Dark Sky Week – April 15-22, 2023
Every year, the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) hosts International Dark Sky Week during the month of April in order to create greater awareness about light pollution and its negative consequences, the solutions, and simultaneously celebrate the night. This year, IDA is inviting everyone to discover the night during the week of April 15-22, 2023. This is an exciting opportunity to create interest and bring new people into the dark sky movement.
Utah State Parks – Dark Sky Events and Programming
Justina Parsons-Bernstein, Dark Sky Initiative Coordinator for Utah State Parks, has compiled a list of dark sky events and programming that occurs across the state throughout the year. Keep up to date with each park’s website and social media pages, linked in the document, for current scheduling.
Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism – Collaboration of the Dark Sky Cooperatives
In January 2022, the Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism at Utah State University became the home base for the Colorado Plateau and Basin and Range Dark Sky Cooperatives. Through this partnership, informational and educational resources of both organizations have been collated into the Gateway & Natural Amenity Region Initiative’s GNAR Dark Skies Toolkit. These tools can be used by individuals, communities, and planners to promote and protect natural night skies.
Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism – Dark Sky Passport Program
The Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism at Utah State University has developed a fun, new way to experience Utah’s dark skies with the Dark Sky Passport. Order your passport then visit a Dark Sky Place where you can see the stars, enjoy the great outdoors at night, and connect with the cosmos. Complete the activities in the passport, get your passport stamped, and share your experience. You’ll then receive an official Dark Sky Passport Certificate you can proudly display. And make sure you visit the organization’s More Dark Sky Activities webpage for additional information and activities.
Resorts Can Now Become Dark-Sky Certified
Under Canvas Lake Powell-Grand Staircase was recently recognized as the first DarkSky Approved Lodging location for its distinguished sky quality. Developed in partnership with Under Canvas, the DarkSky Lodging certification program sets a new standard in the travel industry, encouraging hospitality companies to join in DarkSky’s efforts to protect the night sky from light pollution. Read more about the program here.
The Utah Tourism Hall of Fame is presented by the Utah Tourism Industry Association and the Utah Office of Tourism. Recipients are nominated by their peers and selected annually for contributions made to Utah’s tourism industry at the state, regional, or local levels. The Hall of Fame was first introduced in 1985 and has annually recognized individuals who have elevated life in Utah through their leadership in tourism marketing, stewardship, and destination management. |
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All nominations are due by Friday, April 22, 2023 |
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Nominations will be reviewed and a final selection will be made by July 1st. Nominees will be recognized at the 2023 Utah Tourism Conference in St George at the Dixie Conference Center during an award breakfast on Friday, September 29th. You can view prior year’s nominees here. |
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Included In This Toolkit
The Utah Office of Tourism has partnered with Leave No Trace to encourage responsible recreation practices. For over 25 years, the Leave No Trace organization has been working to educate and inform everyone who spends time outside about key practices for responsible recreation. Leave No Trace is most widely known for its Seven Principles, which have been customized to address Utah’s unique recreational challenges and adapted to complement the Forever Mighty® campaign.
This toolkit was created with a variety of marketing elements that will help you share this important message with visitors and residents. It includes printed materials, social media posts, video and photo series and online educational courses.
Click each of the boxes below to access the toolkit content!
Terms of Use Agreement
By accessing and downloading the content included in the Utah Office of Tourism’s Leave No Trace Toolkit, you are agreeing to the terms and conditions of the sublicense agreement.
Leave No Trace Online Courses
Industry Courses
Leave No Trace: Hospitality, Retail and Stewardship in Utah
Provides hospitality, retail, restaurants, breweries and similar industries with a better understanding of Utah’s recreation-related impacts and the Forever Mighty and Leave No Trace resources. Staff at all levels will learn effective ways that your businesses can promote Utah’s stewardship messaging to visitors, guests, and customers. All those who complete the course will receive a professional certificate of completion.
Leave No Trace: Visitor Centers and Responsible Recreation in Utah
Provides Utah Visitor Center staff and volunteers training on sharing Forever Mighty and Leave No Trace’s educational message with visitors and travelers, many of whom are unaware of the negative impacts that can result from outdoor recreation. All those who complete the course will receive a professional certificate of completion.
Consumer Course
Leave No Trace: Take Action to Protect Utah’s Outdoors
Utah is known for its vast, open landscapes where all types of outdoor recreation are welcomed. Learn about Utah’s Leave No Trace principles and how responsible recreation can help us all protect the outdoor places we love. If you’re planning to spend time outdoors during your trip to Utah, this short online course is for you!
Social Media Assets
The Utah Office of Tourism has partnered with Sparkloft Media to create social media assets featuring the Utah Leave No Trace Seven Principles for our tourism industry stakeholders to customize and use.
Assets include:
To get started, we recommend you watch the linked pre-recorded workshop on how to customize and share these social media assets on your own channels.
Included In This Toolkit
In collaboration and celebration with Governor Cox declaring April 2022 Utah’s second official Dark Sky Month, the Utah Office of Tourism is redistributing its toolkit with dark sky-related resources and assets for our tourism industry partners to utilize and share throughout this month and beyond.
The Dark Skies Edition Toolkit includes the following resources:
Click the buttons below to access the resources!
Utah Dark Sky Month Declaration
From the Office of Governor Spencer J. Cox
On April 1st, 2022, Governor Cox declared the month of April as Utah Dark Sky Month for the second consecutive year. The declaration encourages residents and visitors alike to celebrate this month by visiting one of Utah’s 24 accredited International Dark Sky Places – including all of the Mighty 5® national parks, 10 state parks, and two towns.
Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism
Collaboration of the Dark Sky Cooperatives
In January 2022, the Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism at Utah State University became the home base for the Colorado Plateau and Basin and Range Dark Sky Cooperatives. Through this partnership, informational and educational resources of both organizations have been collated into the Gateway & Natural Amenity Region Initiative’s GNAR Dark Skies Toolkit. These tools can be used by individuals, communities, and planners to promote and protect natural night skies.
Celebrate International Dark Sky Week
April 22 – 30, 2022
Every year, the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) hosts International Dark Sky Week during the month of April in order to create greater awareness about light pollution and its negative consequences, the solutions, and simultaneously celebrate the night. This year, IDA is inviting everyone to discover the night during the week of April 22-30. This is an exciting opportunity to create interest and bring new people into the dark sky movement.
Check out IDA’s Outreach Toolkit to learn more about how to participate in International Dark Sky Week 2022!
Utah State Parks
Dark Sky Events and Programming
Justina Parsons-Bernstein, Dark Sky Initiative Coordinator for Utah State Parks, has compiled a list of dark sky events and programming that occurs across the state throughout the year. Keep up to date with each park’s website and social media pages, linked in the document, for current scheduling.
Included In This Toolkit
Today, March 22nd, is National Agriculture Day. The Utah Office of Tourism is celebrating by releasing our Utah Agritourism Toolkit! This toolkit, developed in partnership with Utah’s Own, includes agritourism-related resources and assets for our industry partners to utilize and share.
The Agritourism Edition Toolkit includes the following resources:
The Utah Agritourism Toolkit includes the following resources
A Table for All’ Receives Tourism Marketing Award
The Utah Office of Tourism has illustrated a successful approach to community-minded agritourism content with their 3-part video series “A Table for All: Feeding Utah’s Culture.” This series earned a Gold Adrian Award for “Digital Marketing Series” from Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International, and is being evaluated for “Platinum” and “Best in Show” recognition. This series spotlights the International Rescue Committee’s New Roots refugee-focused farm program, as well as farm-to-table dining practices at local restaurants in Ogden and Salt Lake City.
Utah’s Own 20th Anniversary
This year, Utah’s Own celebrates its 20th anniversary of connecting consumers with local producers and farmers. To stay engaged with Utah’s Own and its 20th anniversary, follow them on social media or sign up for their email newsletter at utahsown.org.
Utah Farmers Market Network
The Utah Farmers Market Network at Utah State University supports local agriculture in Utah by promoting farmers markets and providing resources to increase capacity through communication, collaboration, technical assistance and professional development. To find a local farmer’s market in your destination, click here.
Calling on industry partners to join in submitting nominations for the 2022 Utah Tourism Hall of Fame!
The Utah Tourism Hall of Fame is presented by the Utah Tourism Industry Association and Utah Office of Tourism. Hall of Fame recipients are nominated by their peers and selected for contributions made to Utah’s tourism industry at the state, regional, or local levels. The Hall of Fame was first introduced in 1985 and has recognized 122 individuals who have elevated life in Utah through their leadership in tourism marketing, stewardship, and destination management.
The nominees will be reviewed, and a final selection will be made by a joint UOT and UTIA selection committee. The committee will make the selection based on a ranking matrix that follows the questions in this nomination form. As such, it is recommended that time is taken to submit thoughtful responses and highly recommended submissions include supporting documents (ie letters of support, imagery, articles, etc) to build a more complete nomination.
Please submit nominations HERE by Friday, APRIL 29. The presentation will take place at the annual Utah Tourism Conference, September 27-30, 2022, in Vernal, Utah, at the Uintah Conference Center.
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Through earned media coverage, the UOT PR team aims to increase high-level destination awareness, influence perceptions and inspire travelers to connect with Utah’s unique offerings, personalities and more. The PR team generates earned coverage through hosted media familiarization tours, media events and proactive media pitching.
How can you work with the UOT Public Relations Team?
Story Idea Submissions
The PR team is always looking for unique, inspiring story angles and destination news to share with national, regional and in-state media. We are now accepting partner story idea submissions that meet the current headline criteria.
Media Hosting
In addition, the UOT PR team hosts several top-tier journalists each year for in-market experiences. We call these media familiarization tours (FAM) or individual media visits (IMV). While the UOT typically covers transportation costs for these journalists, we rely heavily on industry partners to assist with lodging, experiences, meals and itinerary planning. The benefit is story coverage in target media outlets.
Public Relations Contact:
Anna Loughridge, Public Relations Manager
385-212-9325 | aloughridge@utah.gov
The Utah Office of Tourism Forever Mighty® Marketing Co-Op Program is an additional co-op opportunity (above and beyond its traditional program) for Utah destinations and organizations to support responsible travel campaigns and initiatives. The purpose of this program is to leverage state and partner funding to elevate Forever Mighty messages to travelers and encourage thoughtful behaviors that preserve our natural wonders and enrich our communities.
The Forever Mighty Co-Op program is a pilot program for FY 2022, utilizing approximately $200,000 in returned co-op dollars from FY 21 and will match partner dollars 2 to 1 (a $1,000 minimum UOT match, $50,000 maximum UOT match per application) to support these projects. This would be a competitive grant process and will support the projects that best meet the program goals until funds are exhausted.
What is Forever Mighty?
The Utah Office of Tourism developed the Red Emerald Strategic Plan to attract quality visitation and to encourage thoughtful, responsible and safe travel to the state. Forever Mighty is the public facing initiative to accomplish these goals.
The Forever Mighty initiative encourages travelers to explore Utah thoughtfully and safely by being well prepared, aware of our delicate ecosystems, and engaged with the local communities they are visiting.
Forever Mighty also aims to inspire residents, visitors, businesses and stakeholders to take an active role in preserving and enriching Utah through advocacy, ambassadorship and stewardship opportunities.
Why do we need Forever Mighty messaging?
As Utah grows as a destination and visitation to the state rises, it is increasingly important to manage and protect Utah’s tourism assets, communities and cultures. Ensuring that visitors and residents are aware of and educated in proper ways to engage in responsible visitation, respect Utah’s communities and minimize their impact on the state’s natural and cultural resources is an important step in managing the destination. Increasing education and awareness on the proper treatment of Utah’s tourism product will help maintain and sustain Utah’s experience for generations to come — for residents and visitors alike.
We call this effort “Forever Mighty,” and encourage consumer-facing use of this brand, and are building out content at visitutah.com/forever for education and inspiration surrounding this travel ethic.
Who May Apply for Forever Mighty Co-Op?
Similar to the traditional co-op, eligible organizations for the Forever Mighty Co-Op must be one of the following:
What guidelines would organizations follow and what projects would FM Co-Op support?
All projects funded by the Forever Mighty Co-Op would need to clearly promote one or more of the Forever Mighty travel ethics. Applicants must demonstrate how the project will promote Forever Mighty travel ethics beyond the applicants’ normal/traditional marketing efforts. Final project deliverables must include UOT’s Forever Mighty logo. Projects may target in-state visitors, out-of-state visitors, or a combination of both. Forever Mighty Guidelines
Examples of Eligible Forever Mighty Marketing Co-Op Programs include:
Ineligible Projects:
Project Scoring and Committee/Approval Process
UOT staff will initially evaluate all applications to determine if they meet the Forever Mighty Co-Op Guidelines. Co-Op Committee will then evaluate all applications $10,000 or above based on the FM guidelines and make recommendations of funded Forever Mighty co-op projects to UOT staff and ultimately to the full UOT board.
Scoring for the projects will be based on 1) project design, 2) community impact and 3) the incorporation of Forever Mighty travel ethics.
Award Information
Funding for the 2022 Forever Mighty Marketing Co-Op in its pilot phase would be a 2 to 1 match, with a minimum of $1,000 and a maximum of $50,000 UOT match ($75,000 total project cost) per application. Half of the UOT match will be provided to the applicant up front, with the remaining half provided upon completion of the project.
To receive the second half of funding, applicants must demonstrate traditional KPIs and metrics of campaigns and initiatives. Secondly, the applicant must show a measurable community impact related to the project, demonstrated by visitor/resident survey results, qualitative feedback from land managers, or reduction in negative impacts such as EMS calls, etc.
Funding for these projects must be to be used by August 31, 2023. Forever Mighty Awards – Pilot
How to Apply
The Forever Mighty Co-Op grants use the same application system as the traditional co-op marketing program and requires applicants to be registered in the system. If you have never applied to the traditional co-op marketing program, please contact Kelly Day kday@utah.gov 801-538-1727.
Forever Mighty Co-Op Grant Application
Forever Mighty Co-Op Project Budget 2021
Please Note
There is no guarantee that all applicants will be awarded funds. Even though a project may qualify, limited funds may not allow all projects to receive assistance. Any and all decisions regarding awarding of funds are at the discretion of the Co‐Op Committee, Board of Tourism Development, and the Utah Office of Tourism and are final.
The Co‐Op Committee reserves the right to adjust funding parameters in accordance with the number of proposals received and available funds. Greater consideration will be given to projects that demonstrate the highest potential for the community impact of the project.
Projects submitted to the Forever Mighty Co-Op Marketing Program cannot also be submitted under the Traditional Co-Op Marketing Program. Duplications will be assigned to a single program at the discretion of the Co-Op Committee.
Timeline
Applications open – May 17, 2021
Application deadline – June 30, 2021
Oral Interviews – July 26 and 27, 2021
Awards Announced – August 11, 2021
Awards