Ahhh, the new year… a fresh start.

Think back to that mindset of your first day of school: blank books, fresh pencils, and a little wonder about how to tackle the year ahead. That feeling of endless possibilities! A chance to build upon a clean slate. Professionally, these ideas are the same when a new project begins – a new team and endless possibilities. Relationships grow as the project progresses.

That is how I feel now, at the beginning of this new year: excited to contribute my best self to AIA Utah.

The goal of AIA Utah is to build connections and capture our local communities’ best interests. We have a wonderful board of directors donating their time, energy, and creativity despite the full load of work at the office. This group of professionals is dedicated and eager to work on action items: learning opportunities, networking events, legislative initiatives, member spotlights, legend tributes, and design recognition in the works. Now, we really need YOU.

At the AIA Utah conference last year, we discussed the inevitable changes ahead. Utah is growing FAST, and it is in our best interest to work together to plan for that growth and maintain a positive design environment.

The U of U’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute research tells us that our population will grow by over two million people by 2060, reaching 5,450,589. In 2010, our population was 2,772,667. That means in 50 years, our population will have doubled. That is exponential growth! If we work together to maintain space and growth standards, Salt Lake can maintain its history and beauty while welcoming new ideas and design elements that can enhance our future. AIA Utah can serve as a collaborative place to maintain standards and evaluate the best way for architects to engage in the community of growth with learning opportunities, legislative involvement, and collaborative connections.

AIA Utah exists to make us better architects. Your participation and feedback are critical to staying ahead of the real-time needs of our members. Certainly, we compete for the same clients (and sometimes the same projects). But what we have to offer each other goes well beyond our individual firms’ portfolios. We are talking about maintaining the industry’s integrity, generating greater respect for the profession, keeping the standard of care in the industry high and providing ubiquitous technology at affordable costs. We are talking about how our work impacts the health of our planet. And the inevitable byproduct of this work is that we develop professional relationships that last a career.

Any professional organization requires continuous learning to maintain professional relevancy – AIA Utah provides a venue for us to lift each other. Utah’s history is built upon a community that prides itself on being industrious and prepared. I am looking forward to maintaining that mindset and am proud to be a part of it.