OSHER 845 - Great Salt Lake Field Studies Program

This four-week workshop will introduce participants to the natural and cultural history of the Great Salt Lake, as well as the current pressures facing the lake and its uncertain future. The program will involve two classroom sessions and two field trips. The first week will include a slide-illustrated lecture on the natural and cultural history of the Great Salt Lake. Weeks two and three will be field trips out to the lake, including stops at Antelope Island, Great Salt Lake State Park, the Saltair Pavilion, and Stansbury Island. The final week will be an in-class discussion on the existential issues facing the lake, including the extended drought, water diversions, habitat loss, and suburban development. Participants will come away with a broader understanding of the role the lake has played in the cultural history of the American West, its integral role in the ecology and the Great Basin, and the threats it faces today and in the future.