| CARVIEW |
Mississippi River, Minnesota
About ELPC
The Environmental Law & Policy Center is the Midwest’s leading environmental legal advocacy organization. We drive transformational policy changes with national impacts.
We show that environmental progress and economic development can be achieved together by putting sustainability principles into practice. We advance climate solutions effectively by accelerating clean renewable energy alternatives to conventional power plants and advancing clean transportation solutions. We protect the Great Lakes and defend the Midwest’s wild and natural places, and we fight for safe, clean water and healthy clean air for all. We combine effective public interest litigation with strategic policy advocacy, sound science, and economic analysis. ELPC produces strong results for the environment in the courtrooms, boardrooms, and legislative hearing rooms across the pivotal Midwest states and in Washington D.C.
Midwest Focus
The Midwest is ELPC’s home, and we have a deep understanding of our region’s people, politics, pollution, and public interest opportunities. The Midwest is the nation’s most important region for taking on climate change with sound renewable energy and clean transportation solutions. Our region is the nation’s transportation system hub and agricultural center, and has the highest concentration of polluting coal plants still running. We’re home to the Great Lakes, the world’s largest freshwater body, which helps drive the region’s economy and make this a great place to live. The Midwest is a political powerhouse that is pivotal in national elections, and our Congressional members are often the key swing votes deciding important environmental and energy legislation. The Midwest matters, a lot, and ELPC’s expertise and deep roots here makes the difference.
Working in Communities
From our cities to small towns, our region’s diverse cultures and communities give us strength, creativity, and resilience. The Midwest must be at the heart of environmental solutions, but in both urban and rural communities, harmful policies and systemic racism have resulted in disproportionate pollution impacts that compound other inequities. ELPC is committed to pursuing environmental justice, defending natural resources, and holding polluters accountable for environmental and public health harms. We work to ensure the benefits of renewable energy are more equitably distributed in advancing climate change solutions. ELPC will continue to learn as an organization as we diversify our staff, engage with community partners, and build effective coalitions because these perspectives make our work more impactful. We all deserve a healthy environment, an equitable economy, and a future for the Midwest that leaves no one behind.
Our Impact
We’re wonky and we know it. ELPC staff dive deep into economic, scientific, and policy analysis. We achieve results with effective and strategic public interest litigation, and we create profound change in everyday lives. Our work protects the water you drink, the air you breathe, and the land we all call home.
34,800
Megawatts
wind and solar energy capacity built across the Midwest in the last 20 years, thanks to ELPC and allies’ clean energy roadmap to repowering the Midwest.
110+
Coal Plants Closed
across the Midwest taking millions of tons of carbon out of the atmosphere, helped by ELPC & allies’ advocacy and litigation.
5,400+
Great Lakes Projects
funded through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative since 2010, sparked by ELPC & many coalition partners’ policy work.
Big Wins
ELPC has built a strong track record of success on national, regional, and local campaigns, since our founding in 1993. We’re here to change the world, and we have the results to prove it.
Electric School Buses Roll Out Across Midwest
ELPC secured funding from the VW Settlement & local utilities to support clean transportation for our kids.
Our Team
ELPC is effective because we work as a team across states and disciplines. From our public interest attorneys and policy experts to research analysts and communications specialists, our staff works together to improve the Midwestern environment and economy. Our board and advisory councils are also critical in this work, sharing expertise and vision from across the region as we fight for a vibrant green future.
Careers
ELPC depends on dedicated staff to solve environmental challenges and protect public health across the Midwest. We regularly have job opportunities at our headquarters in Chicago or offices across the region. You may be just the candidate we’re looking for.
Financials
ELPC’s financial support is diverse and growing from donors across the Midwest. ELPC earned Charity Navigator’s “exceptional” rating and Guidestar’s Platinum participant level. We take financial responsibility seriously. We appreciate and value the support of all ELPC’s donors, who make it possible for us to fight for the environment every day.