Earth Advocates Year Round:

Sundance Mountain Resort and Sundance Nature Alliance

While Earth Day is universally celebrated every April 22, proactively caring for our surrounding environment is a high priority at Sundance Resort 365 days a year — in fact, conservation is the reason Sundance was founded on these lands.Robert Redford’s original vision when constructing the area was “to develop a little and preserve a great deal.” The Resort has a long-standing commitment to green policies, dating back to the original purchase in 1969 to protect the canyon from potential over-development. Today, Sundance’s purpose is the same. We are continually updating and implementing new strategies to best care for the land, staying at the forefront of environmental stewardship and conservation.

The Conversation Around Conservation

Sundance Mountain Resort holistically serves as a living monument of environmental sustainability. The 2,600-acre resort includes 1,862 acres of land preserved through a conservation easement and restrictive covenants, including the 316-acre Redford Family Elk Meadows Preserve. Dedicated to maintaining the balance of art, nature and community, Sundance Resort is the perfect setting for thoughtful conversations to blossom among artists, scholars, scientists, business leaders as well as the general public.

Through its strategic partnerships with local communities and environmental advocates, the resort aims to protect biodiversity, mitigate climate change, and promote ecological stewardship on individual and collective levels.

The greater Sundance community consists of 5,000 acres of private land surrounded by 245,000 acres of U.S. Forest Service lands — the crown jewel being the 10,518-acre Mt. Timpanogos Wilderness. The 1,400 acres in and around the resort are protected by Utah Open Lands, and 1,547 acres are protected by Sundance Nature Alliance.

Green Initiatives Around the Resort 

From Sundance Mountain Resort’s inception, sustainability has always been a high priority. One hundred percent of the items available for purchase at our Art Studio are locally made, most of which are made right here on the property. Additionally, the resort hosts glassblowers from Guadalajara Mexico who transform hot molten balls of recycled glass into new art pieces such as Christmas ornaments, vases, wine glasses, dinner plates or pitchers. Many of these new creations are then utilized in the resort’s restaurants or are tastefully displayed at other venues around the resort. 

Outlets around the resort, such as the General Store and Deli, purchase environmentally responsible products. Restaurant and catering teams use organic produce and products and utilize many local vendors to keep shipping costs and fuel consumption as low as possible. All packaging materials on shipments to the resort are recycled on-site. 

Lodging rooms and buildings are cleaned using non-toxic cleaning supplies. Sundance sets aside 1% of all resort revenue for the environment, education, and the arts in the immediate areas and communities around Sundance Mountain Resort. The funds go to nonprofits like the Sundance Nature Alliance and other organizations addressing environmental issues and promoting stewardship in Provo Canyon and beyond.

One hundred percent of the water throughout the resort comes from local mountain-fed springs, and due to the purity of our water and in our effort to conserve whenever possible, Sundance does not offer bottled water in its lodging units. All soaps placed in lodging units are also made at the art studio. A Green Building Policy guides all new development and remodeling projects at Sundance. On top of all this, the resort is powered entirely by electricity from renewable solar and wind energy — powering our chairlifts and operations, lodging and restaurants, shops and structures!

Sundance Nature Alliance

A proud partner of the resort, Sundance Nature Alliance is an environmental nonprofit organization committed to protecting the land by igniting curiosity and inspiring residents and visitors to love, learn, and act to protect our natural world. By preserving, conserving, and restoring the water, land, and biodiversity within and beyond the resort, Sundance Nature Alliance is securing a future for our community of residents and visitors to find beauty, inspiration, and adventure in the great outdoors.

This is largely accomplished through their ongoing “Voices of Nature” series, which features the works of environmental storytellers, activists, artists and adventurers who encourage audiences to foster meaningful relationships between humanity and nature. These events ultimately aspire to cultivate a community that is inspired, empowered and equipped to do its part to protect the natural world. 

By creating more opportunities for meaningful dialogue, the Alliance strives to address pressing environmental challenges while fostering a sense of environmental responsibility to everyone possible.For more information on the Sundance Nature Alliance, feel free to follow them on Instagram: Sundance Nature Alliance (@sundance_nature_alliance) • Instagram photos and videos