The mission at Circles Salt Lake is “building community to end poverty in Salt Lake County.” They do this by building bridges of friendship and community that support individuals and families on their journey from surviving to thriving, ensuring that everyone they work with has enough money, meaning, and friends to thrive.

Leading this critical mission is Executive Director Michelle Crawford. Starting out as a volunteer in 2017 and working her way up to run the organization, Michelle is a passionate and kind member of our community, working fiercely to help those with less.

In this episode of the Eccles Business Buzz host, Frances Johnson sits down with Michelle to discuss eradicating poverty through community building, intentional friendships, personal transformation, and systemic change.

Michelle shares insights on the challenges faced by people living in poverty, the role of social capital, and the importance of community support in achieving financial independence. The episode also highlights the significance of volunteers, the impact of economic instability on the community, and practical steps for fostering economic empowerment.

Eccles Business Buzz is a production of the David Eccles School of Business and is produced by University FM.

• Michelle Crawford | LinkedIn
• Circles Salt Lake
• Team - Circles Salt Lake
• Utah Department of Workforce Services

Being in the Circles program empowers participants to dream and forge their own path.

07:35: Once somebody starts their Circles journey, they're going to start with the 12-week training. So, we do this as an introduction to what Circles is and to provide some training around just the understanding of poverty. So, they may be living it, but there's a lot that comes along with that, the social norms of the different income classes. And then they learn the things that we all want to learn, right? Budgeting, goal setting. We teach them to dream and pursue those dreams. And one of our sections of that 12-week training is dream boards. So, we're not here to tell them what their life looks like on the other side of poverty or how to get there. We're here to empower them, to support them, to say, what do you think life looks like for you on the other side of poverty? And then we build that social capital and the resources and the support around them to help them pursue those goals that they've set.

Persistent poverty can perpetuate cycles of intergenerational poverty.

18:37: When part of our population struggles with persistent financial instability, you can imagine the cost is significant. Financial instability leads to increased demand for those social services, higher health care costs, and even reduced productivity. All of these things strain our public resources.When individuals are unable to fully participate in the economy, it stifles our local business growth and reduces the overall economic activity. Persistent poverty can also perpetuate these cycles of intergenerational poverty, leading the long-term economic challenges for our community. And so, another area that Utah is unique, I mean, in a lot of great ways, and one of those is that our state's poverty level is lower than the average national poverty level. But we have a pretty unique high number of intergenerational poverty, which means this cycle that continues. So, for us, we know that investing in financial stability for all members of our community not only improves individual lives, but it strengthens the overall economic health and vitality of the community.

Hope and dignity are deeply intertwined with financial independence.

26:38: When individuals have hope, they believe in the possibility of a better future, and then they're motivated to take the steps towards achieving financial independence.The sense of hope can inspire perseverance, innovation, and then the willingness to seize those opportunities that lead to greater financial stability. Dignity, on the other hand, comes from the ability to support oneself and one's family without relying on others. So, financial independence then restores this sense of control and self-worth, allowing individuals to participate fully in society with confidence.

So much of our lives are spent in a car. Whether it’s driving to work, scooting around kids to friends houses and other activities, or running to the post office, we really are stuck in a car-centric culture. But today’s guest is trying to get us out of that rut, one bicycle at a time.

Donna Matturro McAleer is the Executive Director of Bicycle Collective, a group of non-profit bike shops refurbishing donated bicycles and putting them into the hands of those in need, focusing on children, Newly resettled refugees, immigrants, individuals experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity and more.

In this episode, they explore the broader economic, environmental, and community impacts of making bicycles accessible as a form of sustainable transportation. We’ll also hear about the Bicycle Collective's programs, sustainable business model, and pandemic growth.

Eccles Business Buzz is a production of the David Eccles School of Business and is produced by University FM.

• Donna Matturro McAleer | LinkedIn
• Donna Matturro McAleer | 2024 CEO of the Year - Utah Business
• Bicycle Collective
• David Eccles School of Business (@ubusiness) • Instagram
• Eccles Alumni Network (@ecclesalumni) • Instagram

In a car-centric country where transportation poses significant barriers to economic stability, bicycles emerge as a transformative tool.

[03:32] If you think about it, Frances, In Utah, in our country, we are a car-centric country. But if you think about transportation, transportation is a formidable barrier to economic mobility. Access to nearly everything associated with economic progress and upward mobility, whether that's getting to school, getting to a job, getting to a job interview, fairly priced goods and services, medical services, healthcare, depends on the ability to get from one place to another efficiently and in an affordable manner. And that's where a bike can really be a transformative tool, especially in a place like Salt Lake City and throughout this state where so many resources may be concentrated within a few miles.

Choosing a bike over a car can cut your carbon footprint by 67% and transform communities

[08:22] Choosing a bike over a car just once a day reduces the average person's carbon footprint from transportation admissions by 67%. So, that's just once a day. Think about if you use it as your primary form of transportation, a moderate increase in bicycling each year could save 6 to 14 million tons of carbon dioxide. So, there's huge, huge impacts that bicycling has on the individual, on the community, on the economy, and on the environment, all in a positive way. It's not a trade off of one or another. We get to experience all those things with biking.

Bicycle Collective is a resource for everyone

[20:16] Bicycle Collective is really for everyone. Whether you are a first-time cyclist or maybe you want to try a new discipline, but you want to get in at an affordable level. So, maybe you never tried mountain biking and you want to get a mountain bike or you want to start road riding or, hey, I've been road riding, I've been mountain biking, but I want to be a bike commuter. We are a great resource for cycling enthusiasts, first-timers.

Our guest today calls herself an “unabashed promoter of Utah,” and has the resume to back it up.

Theresa Foxley is a Utah native, and has spent her career championing economic growth in Utah and serves her community through numerous boards and initiatives. For example, Teresa's commitment to business recruitment as the President and CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Utah brought numerous corporations to the state, with an eye on the distribution of economic impact for the entire state, especially rural Utah.

Theresa is currently Chief of Staff to rPlus Energies, a national leader in utility scale, renewable energy, and energy storage development.

She chats with host Frances Johnson this episode all about Utah’s future in renewable energy, starting with the state's unique demographics, infrastructure, and economic strengths. Teresa shares insights on large-scale renewable projects, the balance between growth and environmental stewardship, and the promising intersection of renewable energy and economic development in rural Utah.

Eccles Business Buzz is a production of the David Eccles School of Business and is produced by University FM.

• Theresa Foxley | LinkedIn
• rPlus Energies on LinkedIn
• rPlus Energies Website
• David Eccles School of Business (@ubusiness) • Instagram
• Eccles Alumni Network (@ecclesalumni) • Instagram

How renewable energy bridges the gap between Utah's economic growth and preserving the quality of life

[05:11] It is really important that we preserve these incredible assets that we have, these beautiful physical natural assets that we have as a state. I heard, over and over again, when I was leading the economic development organization, Economic Development Corporation EDC Utah, from employers that, gosh, I knew I would find a great local workforce in Utah, but I'm so pleasantly surprised at how easy it’s been for me to recruit people in from out of state. I see it myself here now, being on the leadership team of rPlus Energies and being involved in our recruitment, how enthusiastic people are about, either, relocating to Utah or how happy they are to be able to, now, have a job in renewable energy in the state of Utah to be able to stay here. We do have a number of team members who found their way to rPlus Energies via another state and who seem to, kind of, say, "I never thought I'd be in Utah, but now I never want to leave."

While renewable energy may create fewer jobs than thermal power plants, it brings significant benefits to local communities.

[Frances Johnson] [20:56]: In rural Utah, in particular, what is the economic impact of bringing these projects online?

[Theresa Foxley]: It's pretty significant. The Green River Energy Center with an over $1 billion capital investment really means significant impact to local property tax revenue. And this is property tax revenue that can be utilized by the taxing entities, the county, the school district, et cetera, to invest in roads, libraries, schools. There's a very significant injection of talent. During the construction process, we'll have some 500 workers on site at peak for the Green River Energy Center. And though you're correct in that the generating facilities for renewable energy projects don't tend to have the same number of jobs attached to them as maybe a thermal power plant, there are a number of other ways that these projects do benefit local communities, again, through their construction, through local design, engineering, consulting work, law firms, others that are hired to help to go and help support and to put together the project financings and the construction of these projects.

The future of renewable energy in Utah

[27:54]: And I just see Utah continuing to lead on this. We have all of the ingredients to be successful leaders in this future energy space because of the abundance of energy resources that we've had, whether those have been resources that come from underground or above ground, like solar and wind. I see a really bright future for Utah and energy development here in the state.