Inspired by the Austrian neurologist, psychologist, philosopher, and Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl, the project was endorsed by the governor of Utah in 2023, and it is planned to be built on the site of a former prison.
[2]Frankl's concept for the statue grew in popularity after the publication of Man's Search for Meaning, and drew the affection of Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
Covey teamed up with Kevin Hall to push the idea of the statue forward in the 1990s, and eventually commissioned the sculptor Gary Lee Price, who came up with the concept of two hands clasped together, one lifting the other up, symbolizing the need for people to help each other.
Their first choice was California, to have it in a Pacific Ocean harbour to complement the Statue of Liberty's position in the Atlantic harbour of New York..[4][5] When the approval process in California proved too difficult, the governor of Utah, Spencer Cox, endorsed the project and suggested a location in his state in 2023.
The proposed design will stand 300-feet tall and is expected to cost $350 million USD, which is being raised through private donations to the Statue of Responsibility Foundation.