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Mission Statement
EPIC supports efforts to end the Iraq crisis through humanitarian relief, economic development, and peacebuilding.
 
Background
EPIC was founded in 1998 by veterans, aid workers and peace activists to end armed conflict, defend human rights and advance peace and development in Iraq. For the past nine years, EPIC has been a reliable resource and advocate for citizens and organizations concerned about the situation in Iraq. We have hosted policy forums, raised public awareness, and helped connect peace activists and organizations with knowledgeable experts on Iraq, returning soldiers, and Iraqis. 

Strategic Plan for 2007
With input from EPIC advisors and hundreds of valued members, the Board of Directors and staff of the Education for Peace in Iraq Center (EPIC) adopted the following Strategic Plan for 2007:

Strength in focus: Build peace through relief & development

• Restore full funding for community-based development, Iraqi civil society initiatives, conflict resolution and peacebuilding strategies, and the advancement of human rights
• Support international relief efforts to respond to the needs of Iraqi refugees, internally displaced persons, and especially vulnerable individuals
• Shift policy towards a sustainable development strategy that reduces conflict and benefits all Iraqis.

Strength in numbers: Build a coalition of NGOs for greater impact

Strength in members: Activate our 25,000 email subscribers & generate at least 50,000 actions in support of peacebuilding and other responsible steps for reducing conflict and suffering in Iraq

Geographical Reach
Our work focuses on educating and activating members of Congress, their constituents and the media to understand and address the pressing needs of the Iraqi people. Our member network consists of more than 28,000 email subscribers across the country.
 
Funding Sources
EPIC is funded by gifts from individual donors and grants from private foundations. In 2006, we received approximately $35,000 in monetary and in-kind gifts from hundreds of generous individuals. Private foundations granted more than $55,000 to support EPIC's programs and operations. 

What our members value most
In November 2005, EPIC conducted its first member survey. According to the results, 41 percent of our members think that educating U.S. citizens about what is happening in Iraq is the most important thing EPIC can be doing. Another 28 percent value the responsible, timely withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq and want our efforts to work toward those ends.

Programs & Successes
Click here for a complete list of our current programs and initiatives.

EPIC has experienced incredible growth and success since its founding in 1998. Here are just some of our most crucial and well-known accomplishments over the past eight years:

• In 1999, EPIC organized the First National Conference for Organizers on Iraq, bringing together more than 350 anti-war activists from 27 states—both Iraqi and American—and representatives of over 50 organizations to network, strategize and coordinate efforts to lift economic sanctions on Iraq. Major coalition partners included: Peace Action, Voices in the Wilderness, LIFE for Relief and Development, American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), Veterans for Peace, and the Washington Peace Center.
• Between 1999 and 2001, EPIC hosted more than a dozen Iraq Forums and Advocacy Days, which included advocacy training workshops, talks by noted experts, activists, and Iraqis, and “in the field” advocacy work on Capitol Hill. These well-publicized events brought together the media, congressional offices, NGOs and the American public to discuss the most important issues on Iraq and to promote real and lasting solutions for Iraq’s future.
• In 2000, EPIC held the August 6 National Rally to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of the sanctions, working with over 90 national organizations to call for an end to the economic sanctions and bombings on Iraq. Noted attendees and speakers included: Ralph Nadar, Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), Rev. Jim Lawson, and British MP George Galloway. Martin Sheen, who was originally scheduled to attend, called organizers from his Los Angeles home to express strong support for the protest.
• In 2001, EPIC hosted the Call to Conscience Rally, where EPIC and affiliate organization Pax Christi presented over 150,000 signatures to the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, urging the UN to end the conflict in Iraq and ban the use of sanctions. In 2003, this effort was finally rewarded when the UN Security Council passed a resolution to lift the embargo that crippled Iraq for nearly 13 years.
• EPIC debuted the FACES of IRAQ traveling photography exhibit in a Washington D.C. gallery in 2003. A collection of work from eight accomplished photographers, the exhibit has traveled to more than half-a-dozen states and has reached thousands of Americans nationwide.
• In May 2004, EPIC launched the Honor the Legacy Campaign, a national petition calling our leaders to restore America’s reputation as a champion of international law and human rights. In conjunction with our coalition partners, including Amnesty International USA and Oxfam America, we have garnered nearly 15,000 signatures representing veterans and concerned Americans across the country.
• In 2005, EPIC took a hard stand against torture and initiated our Act Against Torture online campaign to help raise awareness and foster action against the torture of detainees. In late 2005, we helped win overwhelming support in the Senate (90-9) and House (308-122) for Senator John McCain's Amendment banning the use of torture and inhumane treatment of detainees held in U.S. custody.
• EPIC launched the Ground Truth Project in August 2006. The project interviews Iraqis, aid workers, journalists, and others who have a firsthand perspective about the Iraq crisis. EPIC has completed more than a half-dozen interviews and has distributed them to more than 28,000 email subscribers and several hundred press contacts. Recent interviews include an Iraqi humanitarian, an Iraq War veteran who has become a passionate advocate for the youth of Iraq, an Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker, and an advocate for refugees.
• In summer 2006, EPIC partnered with the University of Pennsylvania’s Middle East Center, helping to bring together Iraqi NGOs with other Iraqis, Americans, and key U.S. government agencies, such as USAID. This gathering was held off-the-record, without the presence of media, in order to ensure the kind of free discussion and dialog that can foster better understanding and better policies to help the people of Iraq.
• On December 12, 2006, EPIC co-chaired the first gathering of the Iraq Peace & Development Working Group (IPDWG), an NGO working group co-initiated by EPIC that advocates policy improvements to reduce human suffering and conflict in Iraq. The gathering included participants from 25 organizations. In mid-March, the group generated a letter to Congress demanding an increase in U.S. support for civil society, peacebuilding, humanitarian relief, and responsible economic development in Iraq. That letter was signed by more than 40 national groups, demonstrating common ground and shared priorities among groups with a range of constituencies and mandates.