Founded in 1969, InterEnvironment Institute is an independent. nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy institute. Our main focus is on natural resources and the environment, both internationally and in the United States, particularly in California.
We do problem-solving research, provide advice, and produce online and print publications. We convene groups of leaders and experts to search for, design, and implement solutions to international and public problems. We take no position on legislative issues or candidates for public office.
Until February 2010, we were known as the California Institute of Public Affairs (CIPA), and many references to CIPA remain on this Web site. CIPA is now a program of InterEnvironment Institute.
Internationally, we have been a pioneer in explaining and promoting the concept of sustainability, defined as improving the quality of human life while living within the carrying capacity of supporting ecosystems. Applying this concept requires a systematic, long-range view of public affairs that combines political, social, cultural, and economic, as well as ecological concerns. Thus, the "Inter" in InterEnvironment stands for interconnections, as well as international.
Most of our international work is done with or through IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, of which we have been a member since 1980. IUCN activities for which InterEnvironment Institute currently provides the secretariat are listed at right. See also "Our IUCN connection."
Although we are not an academic institute, we work to build bridges between the practical and academic worlds, involve scholars from many institutions of higher education, and have been affiliated since 1972 with Claremont Graduate University, a member of The Claremont Colleges consortium.
We believe small catalytic organizations such as ours have a special role to play in international and public affairs.
