The Iowa Department of Natural Resources holds more public meetings this week to discuss water quality standards. A few days later, Republican legislators continue their series of forums around the state to bash government rules and regulations that are supposedly too burdensome for businesses. Details on those and other events are after the jump.
As always, please leave a comment in this thread or contact me at desmoinesdem AT yahoo.com if you know of an event that should be mentioned here.
Tuesday, February 22
The DNR is holding a public meeting to discuss water quality standards in Independence at the Falcon Civic Center, 1305 Fifth Ave. NE, 4 to 7 p.m.
UPDATE: A rally in solidarity with Wisconsin workers will take place at the Iowa State Capitol at 1 pm. The AFL-CIO is organizing the event, and the Service Employees International Union is participating too.
Wednesday, February 23
The DNR is holding a public meeting to discuss water quality standards in Washington at the
Washington Public Library (Nicholas Stoufer Room), 115 West Washington, 4 to 7 p.m.
Iowa Safe Schools is hosting a reception the night before the annual Iowa Governors Conference on LGBTQ Youth. The reception will take place from 6:30 to 8:30 pm at Baby Boomers Cafe, 303 East 5th St in Des Moines. Suggested donation: $25. To RSVP, e-mail Nate Monson: nate AT iowasafeschools.org
Our keynote for the Conference, Sarah Schulman will be our special guest. Sarah is a well respected playwright and novelist. Her published works include The Mere Future, Ties that Bind: Familial Homophobia and Its Consequences, Enemies: A Love Story, Manic Flight Reaction, People in Trouble, Rat Bohemia, and Stagestruck: Theater, AIDS, and the Marketing of Gay America. She was featured in a 2005 New York Times article about her career and the difficulties she has faced as an openly lesbian playwright.
Sarah is well known for her works detailing the issues of the AIDS epidemic and the consequences of homophobia in relation to the disease. She appeared in the 2009 OUT 100, a list of the 100 most influential openly LGBT leaders in the country. She was featured on this list with major celebrities including Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother), Wanda Sykes (Comedian), and Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family). More information about the reception is below.
Thursday, February 24
From Iowa Safe Schools:
6th Annual
Iowa Governors Conference on LGBTQ Youth
BUILDING A HEALTHY IOWA
February 24th, 2011 · Drake University Olmsted Center · Registration 8:00AM-9:00AM · Conference 9:00AM-4:00PM
Sponsored By
Iowa State Education Association · Iowa Department of Education · GLSEN · JEL-Iowa · Iowa Association of School Boards · First Friday Breakfast Club
Keynote by: Dr. Sarah Schulman
Dr. Schulman is an award winning playwright and novelist. Her published works include The Mere Future, Ties that Bind: Familial Homophobia and Its Consequences, Enemies: A Love Story, Manic Flight Reaction, People in Trouble, Rat Bohemia, and Stagestruck: Theater, AIDS, and the Marketing of Gay America.
Dr. Schulman appeared in the 2009 OUT 100, a list of the 100 most influential LGBT leaders in the country. She was featured on this list with major celebrities including Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother), Wanda Sykes (Comedian), and Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family).
Dr. Schulman has won several awards including the Guggenheim in Playwrighting, Fullbright in Judaic Studies, Revson Fellowship for the Future of New York City at Columbia University, Stonewall Award for Contributions Improving the Lives of Lesbians and Gays in the United States, three NY Foundation for the Arts Fellowships (Fiction and Playwrighting), finalist for the Prix de Rome in Fiction, Berilla Kerr Prize in Playwrighting, two American Library Association Book Awards (Fiction and Non-fiction), Ferro-Grumley Award in Lesbian Fiction, Kessler Prize for Sustained Contribution to LGBT Studies.
She recently co-coordinated The ACT UP Oral History Project, which is a collection of video interviews with surviving members that premiered in the fall exhibition: ACT UP New York: Activism, Art, and the AIDS Crisis. This exhibit featured interviews with men and women of all races and classes who have transformed entrenched cultural ideas about homosexuality, sexuality, illness, health care, civil rights, art, media, and the rights of patients. They have achieved concrete changes in medical and scientific research, insurance, law, health care delivery, graphic design, and introduced new and effective methods for political organizing. These interviews reveal what has motivated them to action and how they have organized complex endeavors. The interviews can be viewed here: http://www.actuporalhistory.or…
Workshop Topics Include:
Sexual Assault Awareness · HIV 101 · Reproductive Health Advocacy · Ask the Doctor: For Youth Only · Ending Bullying in Schools Counseling Transgender Youth · Big Tobacco & LGBT Community · Equality Through the Courts · Ending Racism in LGBT Community · Sexism/Gender · Immigration & LGBT Community · Substance Abuse Prevention LGBT Youth Suicide Risk Prevention · HIV Advocacy
Registration (Registration includes breakfast, lunch, and access to all sessions)
$35 for Adults After February 1st $10 for Students
Conference Mission Statement
The mission of the Annual Iowa Governors Conference on LGBTQ Youth is to (a) engage and educate students, educators, parents, community leaders, youth-serving professionals, policy-makers, and others concerned about issues relevant to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) community, and (b) encourage networking and activism to inspire our communities to promote diversity, equality, and social justice.
For more information go to www.iowasafeschools.org and look under the EVENTS tab.
The Center on Sustainable Communities is hosting a social gathering to learn more about COSC at Des Moines Social Club, 1408 Locust St, 5:00-7:00 pm. Free and open to the public. Come for after-work socializing and networking with discussions, complimentary appetizers, prize drawings and a cash bar. Register online at icosc.com or contact Leslie Berckes at (515) 707-2787 or leslie@icosc.com.
Friday, February 25
Republican state legislators are looking for business owners and local officials to tell them about supposedly burdensome government rules and regulations. It would be helpful for members of the public to attend these forums and speak up for meaningful regulation of business. Dozens of Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement members attended similar forums earlier this month in Ames and Newton.
Schedule for February 25:
Sioux City 10:30 am – 12:30pm Morningside College 1501 Morningside Ave Sioux City, IA
Council Bluffs 3 – 5pm Council Bluffs Public Library 400 Willow Ave, Council Bluffs, IA
February 25 is also the new deadline for ordering repurposed rain barrels to benefit the non-profit 1000 Friends of Iowa. Proceeds will “support the development of an educational exhibit which focuses on land use and water as it relates to run-off from non-porous surfaces as well as to bring attention to the many uses for collected rain water.” Those uses include watering gardens, washing cars and general housecleaning. Click here for more information about the rain barrels and here to order.
Ed Fallon is leading a discussion on “Raising Vegetables & Chickens in the City” at a potluck dinner to be held at a Woman’s Place in Des Moines. Limited to the first twelve RSVPs. Cost is a $5 donation to a Woman’s Place and a potluck dish to share with others. RSVP to a Woman’s Place.
Saturday, February 26
GOP state legislators are holding more meetings to bash government rules and regulations. Today’s schedule:
Cresco 9am CS Bank 111 North Elm St, Cresco
Cedar Falls, 1 pm, Hurst Center for Arts 304 W Seerley Blvd, Cedar Falls
Dubuque 5 – 7pm Best Western Conference Center 3100 Dodge St, Hwy 20 W, Dubuque
Sunday, February 27
The Iowa Farmers Union is meeting in Cambridge at White Oak Vineyards from 4:00-7:00 pm. Event includes supper and legislative updates from IFU lobbyists. The featured speaker is Francis Thicke, who ran for Iowa Secretary of Agriculture in 2010. It’s a fundraiser for IFU’s work at the Capitol and costs $30 per person. RSVP to sue AT iowafarmersunion.org
Monday, February 28
From the Iowa Environmental Council’s calendar:
Sustainable Commercial Development
Location: Greater Des Moines Partnership, 700 Locust St, Suite 100, Des Moines
Using the vacant office buildings in the Des Moines metro area as its fulcrum, this new series features guest instructors and relevant topics that address ways green building principals can pay off in terms of economic, health and environmental savings as well as contributing to a community’s overall vibrancy. Join COSC, the Greater Des Moines Partnership, Downtown Community Alliance’s EcoCore Program and numerous other partners as we improve the competitive profile of Downtown Des Moines by promoting environmentally sustainable investment. See http://icosc.com for more information.