SALT LAKE CITY — Some film students at Salt Lake Community College will soon debut a documentary on one approach to saving the Great Salt Lake that they say has been overlooked.
The documentary is called “Diverted; Indigenous stewardship and Saving the Great Salt Lake.”
Students behind the film admit it's a pretty heavy topic but they dove headfirst into the documentary because of their passion for making sure native voices are involved in efforts to save the lake.
Kolby Butts, a Co-Director of the film, says he realizes the future of Utah could be in jeopardy if drastic measures aren’t taken to save the Great Salt Lake.
“It’s dire straits now at this point," he said. "We have to do something in order to make it work.”
Butts believes indigenous people in particular need to be involved as the lake is significant to their history, with ancestors living by and depending on it for more than 10,000 years.
McCaulee Blackburn, a Producer of the documentary agreed with the message overall and hopped on the project.
"Without the lake, the air is not safe to breathe, and without water, we can’t live," she said. "So I think indigenous stewardship and indigenous sovereignty is the morally correct thing to do.”
The team of students is being encouraged and guided by a community of indigenous people, including SLCC Native Outreach Coordinator Valene Peratrovich.
Growing up in Alaska, Peratrovich's indigenous ancestry comes from three separate tribes. She lived in different parts of the western United States before settling in Utah and explained she’s watched the intersection of environmental and Indian law be utilized in other environmental issues.
"To see this and see how it’s been successfully carried out in other parts of the United States and globally, where indigenous nations have successfully restored natural resources, it gives a sense of hope," she reflected. "I feel like that’s what sets our documentary apart.”
The students are now preparing to share their work during a special, on-campus screening.
"I’m excited for it to be partially done," Butts remarked. "The plan is to continue...and to get more people, expand it. But having it, at least a completed vision is a very, calming thought.”
The film will be one of two, student-directed documentaries that will premiere next Friday, December 8, at 6:00 PM at the Salt Lake Community College South City campus.
