Who Am I?

When you're running for office, a lot of political websites and organizations ask for a biography and a litany of questions...

Here's my profile on Ballotpedia, the "Encyclopedia of American Politics"... 

Biography
Nancy Huntly was born in Traverse City, Michigan. She earned a B.A. in biology from Kalamazoo College in 1977 and a Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology from the University of Arizona in 1985. Her professional experience includes working as a university professor at Idaho State University and Utah State University. She also served on the Northwest Power and Conservation Council's Independent Scientific Review Panel (ISRP) and the Independent Science Advisory Board (ISAB). Huntly has served as a member of Logan Rotary, 100 Cache Valley Women Who Care, 500 Women Scientists, the Women's Democratic Club of Utah, the American Association for Advancement of Science, the American Society of Naturalists, the Union of Concerned Scientists, the AGU, and the International Association for Society and Natural Resources. She has also served as a member, fellow, and elected secretary of the Ecological Society of America (ESA).[1]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.
I grew up in rural Michigan where my mother was a teacher, a small business owner, and an advocate for quality rural schools and public libraries, a Sunday school teacher, and a church pianist and organist. My father was a pharmacist, a small business owner, a hunter, a fisherman, and a county commissioner. One set of my grandparents were farmers; my other grandparents owned a small pharmacy. I learned the values of hard work, independence, and personal responsibility from their heritage and understand the value of healthy communities, land stewardship, and family that are important to people in Cache and Rich counties. I moved west in 1977 and have lived in Arizona, Idaho, and Utah, which has been my home since 2011. I am a mother, a grandmother, an educator and a scientist. I am currently a professor in Utah State University's Department of Biology. I have managed large projects and programs that require prioritizing and balancing competing interests and finances. I have experience working together to understand and find creative solutions to difficult, often contentious, problems. My experience communicating complex topics with citizens and decision-makers will serve the people of Cache and Rich counties well at the Utah legislature.

Please list below key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Healthy Communities - Healthy communities have educational and economic opportunity, affordable health care, well-functioning infrastructure, libraries, parks, public health organizations, and access to recreational, cultural, and spiritual activities. Because so many factors together make for places we and our families can thrive, single issue politics rarely result in good outcomes for all. I will work for policies that balance and foster the many factors that make our northern Utah communities healthy and resilient.
• Land Stewardship - Healthy soils, clean air, and clean water are essential to life. Our health and much of our economic opportunity depend on the health of our environment. I will work for policies that steward our environment, support our health and prosperity, and promote access to lands and preservation of working landscapes.
• Effective Governance - Together we can make a government we can believe in, one that is responsive and accountable to all Utahns. I will work to represent the people of northern Utah as we build a future that retains what we value and offers lasting prosperity.
• Good Growth - As northern Utah grows, we need to have thorough information to support decisions; to engage people in planning for our future; to steward our water, public lands, and other open spaces; and to think long-term as we decide how we grow our infrastructure, buildings, and, economy.​

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?
1. Education. I will work for excellent public education, with improvements in teachers' salaries, professional development, and in-school conditions such as smaller class sizes, and for diverse options for higher education. 2. Environment. I will work for policies that assure clean air and water, environmental stewardship, and access to Utah's lands for enjoyment and for livelihoods. 3. Economy. I will work for balanced policies that support an economy that works for all people and is resilient to environmental and social changes like we have seen recently.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?
A documentary film that influenced my view of politics is The Memory of Justice, directed by Marcel Orphuls, which I saw in 1976 or so. I took from it that people, and especially powerful groups of people such as governments, are capable of enormous callousness and cruelty, as well as ability to rationalize behavior that is far from respecting the basic value of other people. I think we must be alert to our potential short-sightedness and failings and have high ethical standards. I think that we make better decisions when the voices of all are heard and valued. Maybe the character Harry Bosch, in many of Michael Connelly's novels, also captures the message: everybody matters or nobody matters.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?
work ethic; perseverance; ability to collaborate; interest in people and their well-being; frankness; ability to follow or to lead; desire to find mutually beneficial and fair solutions; desire for opportunity for all I believe that there is always a positive path forward.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?
I remember many events from the civil rights movement, especially those associated with voting rights and education. I was 10 when the University of Mississippi was integrated by enrollment of James Meredith and 11 when the University of Alabama was integrated by enrollment of Vivien Malone and James Hood. Shortly after, there were several civil-rights-related murders, including the Birmingham Church bombing, in which children were killed, and the murder of three civil rights workers who had sought to register black people to vote. These events left lasting memories of who had the opportunities that were supposedly for all Americans, who did not, and the violence that was used to deny those opportunities.

What do you perceive to be your state’s greatest challenges over the next decade?
Utah faces several major challenges for the coming decade: 1. Weathering and recovering from the covid-19 pandemic and other future pandemics, the human and economic impacts of which may only be beginning. 2. Negotiating a suite of actions to reduce the rate of temperature rise (global warming, climate change) and adapt to the many hazards it is bringing, including drought, wildfire, heat waves. 3. Transitioning to an economy that works well for everybody under these two realities will require fresh approaches to energy, transportation, education, and infrastructure systems, rural economic development, and more accessible and affordable healthcare.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.
Yes. Legislators must have relationships that enable them to work well together. The legislature must represent the views of many communities and factions. When legislators work together effectively, they can anticipate the costs and benefits of policies for different groups and so can avoid consistently ignoring or disadvantaging some people.

If you are not a current legislator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?
Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment Economic Development and Workforce Services Education; Higher Education Ethics

Is there a particular legislator, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?
I appreciated the empathy, compassion, and willingness to listen to all that past Utah House District 4 Representative Dr. Ed Redd consistently showed. I also appreciated Dr. Redd's ability to acknowledge and articulate underlying problems and to look widely for solutions to them, even when some solutions were not welcomed by his party.
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Are you interested in running for a different political office (for example, the U.S. Congress or governor) in the future?
I have no such plans now, but I believe it is time for me to contribute more to my government. I will work through whatever mechanisms are available to me for a better future and for a much more effective, accessible, and engaged government.