The Utah State University has established an advisory board of iconic industry brands for its Outdoor Product Design and Development (OPDD) program, the first of its kind. Brands represented on the advisory board include Patagonia, Black Diamond, Altra Footwear, Cabela's, Vista Outdoors, Backcountry.com, Cotopaxi, Burton, Klim, Klymit, Simms Fishing, and ENVE Composites. Leslie Howa, founder of American Hardwear (now Mountain Hardwear), and Tom Adams, director of the Utah Office of Outdoor Recreation,

The next mega-droughts and subsequent active wildfire seasons for the western U.S. might be predictable a full year in advance. The new model, developed by an international team of scientists from the U.S., South Korea and U.K., and led by Utah State University climate scientist Yoshimitsu Chikamoto, was reported in the July 26 edition of Scientific Reports.