 | |
| Formation | 1975 |
|---|---|
| Type | Community organization |
| Headquarters | Des Moines, Iowa |
Region served | Iowa |
Membership | 3,700 members [1] |
| Affiliations | National People's Action |
| Website | iowacci.org |
Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement (CCI, Iowa CCI, occasionally ICCI) is a membership-based grassroots organization dedicated to community organizing in the state of Iowa.
CCI is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, affiliated with sister 501(c)(4) organization Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement Action Fund.
CCI was formed in 1975 by a group of ministers in Waterloo, Iowa who felt Iowa needed an organization to fight for social justice issues. CCI began by focusing mainly on neighborhood-level organizing, but soon grew into a statewide organization. Early issues addressed by CCI members included misuse of public funds, slum landlords, and the practice of redlining. Notable victories from the 1970s included the establishment of the Peoples Community Health Clinic in Waterloo, passage of the statewide Iowa Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act, and the state Neighborhood Revitalization Law. [2]
As Iowans faced the Midwest farm crisis of the 1980s, CCI members added rural issues to their urban organizing. CCI members stopped farm foreclosures, renegotiated mortgages, and helped family farmers gain access to much-needed credit. [3] In the 1990s, as agriculture began to be ever more tightly controlled by corporate interests with the appearance of factory farms and the mandatory pork checkoff, CCI members led efforts to block these actions. [4]
CCI made national news in August 2011 when members questioned Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney at a soapbox appearance at the Iowa State Fair, leading Romney to respond, "Corporations are people, my friend." Video footage of this remark was picked up by media outlets as an indication that Romney was out of touch with ordinary Americans. [5]
CCI members continue to organize against factory farms, work to regulate payday lending, institute public campaign financing in the form of Voter-Owned Iowa Clean Elections (VOICE), and defend the social safety net, among other campaigns to fight corporate power. Many CCI members are members of Iowa's growing Latino community. CCI issues in this community include ending widespread wage theft and enacting immigration reform.[ citation needed ]
As of 2015 [update] CCI has been organizing around four issues: Farming & Environment, Immigrant rights, Fair Economy and Clean Elections. [6]
ICCI exposed the state’s failure to protect water quality. [7] It fought for a workplan for Clean Water Act enforcement by suing EPA to bring Iowa Department of Natural Resources's Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO) program into compliance with the Clean Water Act. [8] After an EPA field investigation of the DNR in 2012, DNR "promised to enforce the Clean Water Act, yet did not sign a workplan in 2012, and only signed a weakened plan on September 11, 2013. In the year since, the Iowa DNR did not issue any Clean Water Act permits to agricultural polluters. ICCI has pointed out that DNR has fined responsible parties of only 11 of the 49 manure spills, but has not issued administrative orders nor collected fines issued. [9]
John Nichols of The Nation named CCI the "most valuable grassroots advocacy group" of 2009. [10]
CCI was featured on the final episode of Bill Moyers Journal , where the group was described as "advocates for the people." [11]
The Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is the agency of the U.S. state of Indiana. There are many divisions within the DNR and each has a specific role. The DNR is not only responsible for maintaining resource areas but also manages Indiana's fish and wildlife, reclaims coal mine ground, manages forested areas, aids in the management of wildlife on private lands, enforces Indiana's conservation laws, and many other duties not named here. According to the department's website, their mission is "to protect, enhance, preserve, and wisely use natural, cultural, and recreational resources for the benefit of Indiana's citizens through professional leadership, management, and education".
In animal husbandry, a concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO), as defined by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is an intensive animal feeding operation (AFO) in which over 1,000 animal units are confined for over 45 days a year. An animal unit is the equivalent of 1,000 pounds of "live" animal weight. A thousand animal units equates to 700 dairy cows, 1,000 meat cows, 2,500 pigs weighing more than 55 pounds (25 kg), 10,000 pigs weighing under 55 pounds, 10,000 sheep, 55,000 turkeys, 125,000 chickens, or 82,000 egg laying hens or pullets.
The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) is the principal federal law in the United States intended to ensure safe drinking water for the public. Pursuant to the act, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is required to set standards for drinking water quality and oversee all states, localities, and water suppliers that implement the standards.
Pollution prevention (P2) is a strategy for reducing the amount of waste created and released into the environment, particularly by industrial facilities, agriculture, or consumers. Many large corporations view P2 as a method of improving the efficiency and profitability of production processes by waste reduction and technology advancements. Legislative bodies have enacted P2 measures, such as the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 and the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 by the United States Congress.
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The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) is a government agency of the U.S. state of Wisconsin charged with conserving and managing Wisconsin's natural resources. The Wisconsin Natural Resources Board has the authority to set policy for the WDNR. The WDNR is led by the Secretary, who is appointed by the Governor of Wisconsin. The WDNR develops regulations and guidance in accordance with laws passed by the Wisconsin Legislature. It administers wildlife, fish, forests, endangered resources, air, water, waste, and other issues related to natural resources. The central office of the WDNR is located in downtown Madison, near the state capitol.
Altgeld Gardens Homes is a Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) public housing project located on the far south side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It sits on the border of Chicago and Riverdale, Illinois. The residents are 97% African-American according to the 2000 United States Census. Built between 1944 and 1945 with 1,498 units, the development consists primarily of two-story row houses spread over 190 acres (0.77 km2).
The Sierra Student Coalition (SSC) is the national student chapter of the Sierra Club, a grassroots environmental organization. Founded by Adam Werbach in 1991. It now has about 14,000 members and is almost entirely student-led.
The National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) is the only independent, nonpartisan membership organization devoted exclusively to advocacy on behalf of the National Parks System. Its mission is "to protect and enhance America's National Park System for present and future generations."
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is a department/agency of the U.S. state of Iowa formed in 1986, charged with maintaining state parks and forests, protecting the environment of Iowa, and managing energy, fish, wildlife, land resources, and water resources of Iowa.
ICCI is a four-letter acronym that stands for:
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is a government agency in the state of Maryland charged with maintaining natural resources including state parks, public lands, state forests, state waterways, wildlife and recreation areas. Its headquarters are in Annapolis.
Private landowner assistance program (PLAP) is a class of government assistance program available throughout the U.S. for landowners interested in maintaining, developing, improving and protecting wildlife on their property. Each state provides various programs that assist landowners in agriculture, forestry and conserving wildlife habitat. This helps landowners in the practice of good land stewardship and provides multiple benefits to the environment. Some states offer technical assistance which includes:
The Equitable Building is a high-rise located in Des Moines, Iowa. It is named after the insurance company Equitable of Iowa, which originally owned the building, and is located along Locust Street in the downtown area of the city. The 19-story Equitable Building, at 604 Locust St. in Des Moines, was completed in 1924, and standing at 318 ft (97m), for 49 years was the tallest building in Iowa. It remained the tallest building in Iowa until the completion of Financial Center in 1973. The Equitable Building is now the eighth tallest building in Iowa.
Coosa River Basin Initiative (CRBI) is a 501c3 grassroots environmental organization based in Rome, Georgia with the mission of informing and empowering citizens to protect, preserve and restore North America's most biologically diverse river basin, the Coosa. Since 1992, the staff, board and members have served as advocates for "the wise stewardship of the natural resources of the Upper Coosa River basin, or watershed, which stretches from southeastern Tennessee and north central Georgia to Weiss Dam in Northeast Alabama. This includes the Coosa River, the Etowah and Oostanaula rivers and the tributaries of these waterways as well as the land drained by these streams and the air that surrounds this land area."
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