If you plan to attend your precinct caucus tonight please take one of the resolutions below!

Resolutions are issue-specific statements that are considered at the precinct-level, the county convention, the district convention, and finally the state conventions of the Democratic and Republican parties.

If the resolutions pass at all levels, language gets inserted into the party platform. This is a useful way to get citizens discussing important issues and to show grassroots consensus about what Iowans want their political leaders to stand for.  

During the November 12, 2011 Annual Meeting, members elected three individuals to the 1000 Friends of Iowa Board of Directors. Please join us in welcoming Ed Cox, Drake Larsen and Lynn Laws to the 1000 Friends of Iowa Board of Directors! 

Ed Cox (Columbia, MO)

Ed is a staff attorney with the Drake Agricultural Law Center in Des Moines. Ed graduated from Drake University Law School in 2009 with a Certificate in Food and Agricultural Law. He has published a number of articles on the interplay between public policy, land use, agriculture, and sustainability. In addition, he has developed a “Sustainable Farm Lease” website and edited a series of mini-documentaries on the role of public policy in sustainable farmland management. During law school Ed was an intern with the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation where he analyzed reform of tax increment financing as a potential source of funding for natural resource protection and worked as a law clerk on the Iowa NRCS Easement Programs Team. Ed grew up in the rural Missouri Ozarks and enjoys canoeing and wildlife photography. Prior to his legal and academic career Ed was enlisted in the U.S. Coast Guard. He now lives in Columbia, Missouri with his wife and their daughter.

Drake Larsen (Ames)

Drake is a recent graduate of ISU with a MS in Sustainable Agriculture. He is currently working as a research associate in the Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management at ISU examining Iowa farmers’ perspectives on strategic placement of perennial conservation practices. A native of central Iowa, Drake was active in FFA and has a deep interest in waterfowl biology and wetlands conservation. He operated a successful guide business resulting in thousands of hours spent on Iowa’s landscape where he witnessed the impact of our vast corn monoculture on wildlife and the consequences of “irresponsible” agricultural practices. Drake and his wife, Sarah, currently live in Ames.

Lynn Laws (Des Moines)

Mark your calendars for 1000 Friends of Iowa's 2011 Annual Meeting! The theme is "Smart Planning the Iowa Way". The meeting will be November 11-12, 2011 in Greenfield, IA. Registration is $25 for members, $40 for non-members (includes a one year membership), and $15 for students. RSVP by November 7, 2011! We will also hold a  benefit on November 11 at the Hotel Greenfield (see below for details). All proceeds from the benefit go directly to supporting the mission of 1000 Friends of Iowa and are tax deductible. Click here to download the agenda,  here to download the annual meeting registration form or click here to register online using your credit card!

1000 Friends of Iowa Benefit—$15.00
Friday, November 11—Come to the Hotel Greenfield the night before for a light dinner, cash bar, entertainment and a showing and discussion of Green Fire! Get to know board members, other attendees, share your ideas and experience the beautiful, newly renovated, Hotel Greenfield! Hotel space is limited – be sure to make your hotel reservations early by visiting www.hotel-greenfield.com or call 641-343-7323.

1000 Friends of Iowa Annual Meeting—$25 Members, $40 Non-Members, $15 Students
Saturday, November 12—The Annual Meeting will be held at the Commons Event Center. Registration begins at 9:15 a.m., the Annual Meeting will last from 10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The day’s events will include the 2011 Best Development Awards Ceremony and a tour of Greenfield’s unique town square.

1000 Friends of Iowa is pleased to announce the winners of the 2011 Best Development Awards. Please join us in congratulating the following winners:

New Residential: The Seasons Housing Addition, St. Ansgar

Renovated Commercial/Civic: Small City Award – Wright on the Park, Mason City

Renovated Commercial/Civic: Large City Award – Roshek Building, Dubuque

New Commercial/Civic: Municipal Marina and Visitor Center, Guttenberg

Mixed Use: CMBA Studio/The United Center, Sioux City

Leadership: City of Perry
 
The award presentation honoring the winners will be held at The Commons Event Center in Greenfield, IA during the 1000 Friends of Iowa Annual Meeting, November 12, 2011. All who are interested in the mission of the organization are welcome to register and attend. Please join us in Greenfield to help recognize the 2011 recipients!

1000 Friends of Iowa Benefit, Friday, November 11, 2011. Come to the Hotel Greenfield the night before our Annual Meeting for a light dinner, cash bar, entertainment and a showing and discussion of Green Fire led by board member Erv Klaas! Green Fire is the first full-length documentary film ever made about legendary environmentalist Aldo Leopold.  Green Fire highlights Leopold’s extraordinary career, tracing how he shaped and influenced the modern environmental movement. The cost is $15. Proceeds support the work of 1000 Friends of Iowa.

Get to know board members, other attendees, share your ideas and experience the beautiful, newly renovated, Hotel Greenfield!  Hotel space is limited – be sure to make your hotel reservations early by visiting www.hotel-greenfield.com or call 641-343-7323. 

For additional information about the benefit on November 11th, or for details about the November 12th 1000 Friends 2011 Annual Meeting, click here.

This year's Iowa Environmental Council Annual Conference, "Agriculture for Life", will explore the connection between what Iowans eat and the environment. Led by keynote speaker Frances Moore Lappé, author of Diet for a Small Planet, a full day of speakers will inspire Iowans to connect their choices at the dinner table with their desire for a healthy environment.

The conference will take place on November 3, 2011 at Drake University in Des Moines.

For additional details and registration information, visit www.iaenvironment.org.

"In Search of a Sustainable Economy" Presented by David Swenson

David Swenson, ISU Professor of Economics will present a special public lecture entitled "In Search of a Sustainable Economy" at 7 pm in the Auditorium of the Ames Public Library, Monday, September 26, 2011.

The lecture is sponsored by the library and the Environmental Research Team of AMOS (A MID-IOWA ORGANIZING STRATEGY).

For additional details, and to learn about other events at the library, visit http://amespubliclibrary.org/calendar/calendar_detail.asp?ID=7112.

2011 Norman Borlaug Lecture - Pedro Sanchez   

The 2011 Norman Borlaug Lecture presented by Pedro Sanchez will be at 8:00 pm, October 10, 2011 in the Great Hall of the Memorial Union at Iowa State University.
 
Pedro Sanchez was awarded the World Food Prize in 2002 for his pioneering use of agroforestry to restore fertility to some of the world's poorest and most degraded soils. The MacArthur Foundation subsequently recognized his work with a Genius Award in 2003.

Sanchez is Director of Tropical Agriculture at Columbia University's Earth Institute and is an international leader in the fight against hunger, having co-led the United Nation's Millennium Project's Task Force on Hunger. Prior to joining the faculty at Columbia, he was for many years director general of the Kenya-based International Center for Research in Agroforestry. A native of Cuba, Sanchez completed his undergraduate and graduate degrees in agronomy and soil science at Cornell University.

For more information visit http://www.event.iastate.edu/event/24569/ or contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 515-294-9934.

A reception and student poster display will precede the lecture from 7 to 8 p.m. in the Oak Room, Memorial Union. Posters will address world food issues and are submitted by undergraduate and graduate students.

REAP Assemblies are held every other year, at 18 locations across the state. This is the time when citizens can learn what REAP (Resource Enhancement and Protection) has accomplished in their areas and reaffirm their support for this important program. Attendees at each assembly also elect delegates to the REAP Congress that will convene at the State House in Des Moines in July of 2012.

Special interests are continually at work in attempting to change the funding formula which specifies how appropriations for this program are spent. Please attend the REAP Assembly in your area and voice your support of this program!

See our calendar for dates and locations, or visit http://www.iowadnr.gov/Environment/REAP/REAPPublicParticipation/REAPRegionalAssemblies.aspx to learn more about REAP and download the 2011 REAP Assemblies Schedule.

Below is a basic description of REAP from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources website:

REAP stands for Resource Enhancement and Protection. It is a program in the State of Iowa that invests in, as its name implies, the enhancement and protection of the state's natural and cultural resources. Iowa is blessed with a diverse array of natural and cultural resources, and REAP is likewise diverse and far reaching. Depending on the individual programs, REAP provides money for projects through state agency budgets or in the form of grants. Several aspects of REAP also encourage private contributions that help accomplish program objectives.

REAP Assemblies are basically public meetings at which information is given out and ideas are taken in by the attending state officials. The REAP law requires the following things happen at each assembly:

• The DNR provides those attending with information regarding REAP expenditures. The overall REAP budget is presented and projects in the region are listed that have been funded with REAP dollars.
• People attending the assemblies shall identify opportunities for regional REAP projects. Examples that have frequently come up are trails, river corridor protection, wetland restoration, soil erosion prevention, conservation education, and resource inventories.
• People attending the assemblies shall also review and recommend changes to REAP policies, programs, and funding. This is the portion of the meeting that people speak out on anything they want regarding the inner workings of REAP.
• And last but not least, the people at the assemblies are responsible for electing five individuals to serve on the REAP Congress. In addition to the five delegates, 3-5 other people are elected as alternates to the delegates. In the event that one of the delegates cannot attend the Congress, an alternate fills that spot.

The 2008 Iowa Legislature directed the Iowa Department of Transportation, in conjunction with the Iowa Office of Energy Independence and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to conduct a study to:

1.  Quantify the amount of revenue available to support public transit.
2.  Determine whether current revenue is sufficient to meet future needs.
3.  Assess how well the state’s public transit network supports the current and expanding mobility needs of the state’s senior population.
4.  Document the transit improvements needed to meet the state’s energy independence goals.

The iRIDE Advisory Committee helped guide the study which was completed in December. The final report has been submitted to the 2010 legislature.

You can read the final report here, and the executive summary here.

1000 Friends of Iowa is looking for talented people to join our Board of Directors. We will elect several new members to serve a three-year term beginning with the elections held each year at our Annual Meeting.  All applicants and nominees are considered, and we welcome your application. Read through the Board Member Responsibilities listed below and if you (or someone you know) would like to apply please download , complete and return the Board of Directors Application Packet to:

If you prefer to fill out and submit the application via email, you can download the packet as a Word document here. Please email the completed form as an attachment to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

1000 Friends of Iowa Board Member Responsibilities

Board members are expected to attend at least three quarterly meetings, one of them our annual meeting.  While not required, we encourage board members to serve on at least one committee.  Frequently, committee work is conducted via email, so physical travel is not necessary.

Board members are expected to know the Organization’s Purpose, Mission, Vision, Values , Goals and Programs, and to have a general interest in some aspect of land use.

Board members may be asked to assist with various program activities in their local communities. Involvement is optional, but we encourage every board member to be our “eyes and ears” in their area. Some ways in which board members have been helpful include:

• Hosting a house party
• Organizing an event, such as a conference, presentation, or “Tour de Sprawl”
• Finding a location for a set of our roadside signs
• Helping recruit new members (and board members)
• Holding a press conference
• Building coalition with other local groups
• Becoming involved in local land-use issues
• Educate decision-makers about wise land-use decisions
  

And finally, perhaps obviously, board members must be members of the organization, preferably Founding Friends.

Vinton Today, May 4, 2011

Vinton comprehensive plan: Process began with public meeting Tuesday By Dean Close

What are the best things about Vinton, and living here?

What are the greatest future challenges and concern for Vinton?

The process of beginning the Vinton comprehensive plan began with a group of 21 local individuals sharing their answers to those questions.

The 2020 Vision for Vinton Committee began the process of making a comprehensive plan with a public meeting led by Chad Sands, a community development specialist with the East Central Iowa Council of Governments. (ECICOG).

Sands told the group that public input is essential for any plan to succeed.

"People here know what is good for your city," he said. "Without public input, it holds little water."

The ideal comprehensive plan is simple, and can be understood and used by everyone, said Sands.

"It's a policy document; a road map of where to go and how to get there," he said.

After introducing the planning concepts, Sands divided the 21 participants into three groups of seven and asked them to answer the two questions at the top of this story. After listing several of the positive qualities and challenges in small groups, the entire group met again to begin selecting which ones were the most important.

Read the entire article by clicking here , or copy and paste the following into your browser:

http://www.vintoniowa.org/articles/News/article103433.html 

"Losing Ground", a report from the Environmental Working Group (EWG), found that soil erosion in Iowa is much worse than previously reported. Federal officials estimate Iowa loses 5 tons of soil per acre per year, but the report found that following some storms in 2009, areas of Iowa lost as much as 100 tons of soil per acre. There are Iowa farmers, conservation minded, who are doing their best to protect our soil and water by planting grass strips to prevent gullies and plant trees and grass to act as buffers between streams and the crop-fields where they apply pesticides & fertilizer. Most farmers plant fence row to fence row and right up to stream banks to produce as much as they possibly can due to federal subsidies that encourage production over conservation.

Irresponsible farming practices, and the federal subsidies that encourage the practices, are putting soil and water at risk.

Read the full report "Losing Ground" at http://www.ewg.org/losingground/, and watch the "Losing Ground" video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehlUKkw69Dg&feature=player_embedded.

Iowa groups have put together the following talking points on the EWG "Losing Ground" report & video:

Drake University's Agricultural Law Center and the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University will release the results of a two-year study of sustainable agriculture and land tenure in Iowa at a joint news conference on Wednesday, March 2, at 2 p.m. in the library of the Neal and Bea Smith Law Center at 2400 University Ave., Des Moines, IA.

Speakers at the news conference will include Professor Neil Hamilton, director of the Drake Agricultural Law Center; Lois Wright Morton, interim director of the Leopold Center; and Ed Cox, staff attorney at the Agricultural Law Center. A demonstration of a  website created to provide owners of farmland with information resources will follow the news conference.

The Census Bureau has begun releasing the 2010 Census Data and will continue to do so, state by state, through March. The 2010 Iowa Census Results can be viewed by clicking here, or if you prefer, copy and paste the following url into your browser: http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/embedstate.html?state=IA.

An article in the February 11, 2011 Des Moines Register titled "2010 Census: Iowa more urban, more diverse " by by William Petroski closes with "The sprawl of suburbs into what has traditionally been agricultural areas means that more Iowa farmland is being developed into residential and commercial property. And as people move into rural areas, more conflicts are popping up in places in Story County and elsewhere in Iowa, said Bill Peterson, executive director of the Iowa State Association of Counties." 

Click here to read the full article on the Des Moines Register website.

A new report by the Center for Clean Air Policy finds that smart growth practices can enhance community prosperity and generate economic benefits for local businesses, households, and governments. The study, “Growing Wealthier: Smart Growth, Climate Change and Prosperity ,” shows how reduced driving and efficient land use planning are strongly interconnected with economic growth and better quality of life.

The report also documents how efficient land use planning can improve household resilience to rising oil prices, boost employment rates and income levels for low-wage workers, cut government infrastructure costs, enhance public health and conserve natural resources.

Visit http://www.growingwealthier.info/about.aspx read more, download the report, or purchase a hard copy of the report.

Here you'll find a wide range of publications, including 1000 Friends of Iowa literature, and recommended reading on the topic of land-use.  Please email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it with your suggestions for additional content.

1000 Friends of Iowa Publications & Materials

• Land Use Bulletin Previous Issues
• 1000 Friends of Iowa Brochure
• Top Ten Things Adversely Affected by Poor Land-Use Decisions
  
• Cost of Community Services Study
• Citizen Guide 
• TIF Brochure
  

Recommended Reading

• Follow this link for a list of recommended reading from Erv Klaas
• The Emerald Horizon: The History of Nature in Iowa by Corneilia F. Mutel
• A Watershed Year Anatomyof the Iowa Floods of 2008 edited by Corneila F. Mutel
  
• Investigating the Potential Economic Impacts of Local Foods for Southwest Iowa analyzed by Dave Swenson