History
Utah Transit Authority (UTA) is a unique entity. While it is not a government agency, it performs a service and it receives tax dollars to perform that service—public transportation—for Utah citizens who live along the Wasatch Front. Another unique characteristic of UTA is that its Board of Trustees and executive staff are often asked by various constituents to provide more or different services. These requests are valid but often in conflict with other’s requests. As a result, UTA often finds itself in the awkward position of trying to meet everyone’s expectations with limited funding, while at the same time trying to maintain good customer service, a high level of service and good community relations.
These very conditions made UTA a classic candidate for a Future Search Conference. The principle of Future Search requires that all parties who have a stake in a particular project, event, or issue gather together in the same room. Understandably however, these individuals and groups do not usually share the same point of view.
In December 2000, Utah Transit Authority's Executive Team and its Board of Trustees decided to invite Wasatch Front stakeholders to participate in a Future Search Conference. It was left to each Council of Governments to chose a representative to be part of the Future Search Planning Committee. This process began by going to each Council of Governments (COG) meeting to explain the project and asking for a person to represent the COG.
When the planning committee was selected, the first meeting was held to decide the theme for the conference that would embody the ideals and desired outcomes of the planning committee. The Planning Committee decided on the theme “Community Partners for Urban Mobility: Come Join the Revolution.”
Stakeholder Groups
The most important and daunting task for the Planning Committee was the selection of the appropriate stakeholder groups—and the proper people to invite from those groups. Two critical principles of Future Search are to:
- Invite people who have the power to act on the plans that are developed during the conference
- Have a diversity of voices
During the conference, participants worked in two types of groups, Mixed Groups or Stakeholder Groups. The Planning Committee created the following Stakeholder Groups:
- City and Local Government
- Other Government
- Business
- Transportation
- Destination Centers
- Community Developers and Planners
- Users
- Oversight
When the lists were complied, approximately 150 people were invited. The Planning Committee chose the people who would bring various urban mobility perspectives to the conference.