Motto	Bring people together to protect the land, air and water of central and southern Appalachia.
Established	1997
Founder	Harvard Ayers
Exec. Dir.	Willa Mays
Chair of the Board	Christina Howe
Headquarters	Boone Boone - Places :In the United States:* Boone, Colorado* Boone, Iowa* Boone, North Carolina* Boone Grove, Indiana* Boone Township, Minnesota* Boones Mill, Virginia* Boonesboro, Missouri* Boonesborough, Kentucky* Booneville... , NC North Carolina North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte... , U.S. United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Homepage	www.appvoices.org

Mission

Appalachian Voices is a grassroots

Grassroots

A grassroots movement is one driven by the politics of a community. The term implies that the creation of the movement and the group supporting it are natural and spontaneous, highlighting the differences between this and a movement that is orchestrated by traditional power structures...

 environmental organization

Environmental organization

An environmental organization is an organization that seeks to protect, analyze or monitor the environment against misuse or degradation or lobby for these goals....

 whose mission is to

Bring people together to protect the land, air and water of central and southern Appalachia. We empower people to defend our region’s rich natural and cultural heritage by providing them with tools and strategies for successful grassroots campaigns. Since the impacts of coal threaten Appalachia more than any other single source of pollution, we are committed to reducing coal’s impact on the region and advancing our vision for a cleaner energy future.

Appalachian Voices was founded in 1997and is based out of Boone

Boone

- Places :In the United States:* Boone, Colorado* Boone, Iowa* Boone, North Carolina* Boone Grove, Indiana* Boone Township, Minnesota* Boones Mill, Virginia* Boonesboro, Missouri* Boonesborough, Kentucky* Booneville...

, North Carolina

North Carolina

North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...

 , but has offices in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 and Charlottesville, Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

  They are members of the Alliance for Appalachia, Waterkeeper Alliance, Wise Energy for Virginia. Their work focuses primarily upon environmental issues concerning the Appalachian Mountains

Appalachian Mountains

The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...

 region. Their stated goals include eliminating air pollution

Air pollution

Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or cause damage to the natural environment or built environment, into the atmosphere....

, ending mountaintop removal coal mining, and restoring Appalachian forests. Their main actions entail advocacy, education, and grassroots organizing.

Mountaintop removal

Appalachian Voices has been working to end the practice of mountaintop removal coal mining since 2002 through a campaign to garner national support. In 2003 Appalachian voices started the Appalachian Treasures Tour which went to different communities raise awareness across America about the impacts of mountaintop removal. In 2006 they continued to raise national awareness about mountaintop removal by producing the award winning website Ilovemountains.org

I Love Mountains

I Love Mountains, also known as iLoveMountains.org, is an environmental website against mountaintop removal coal mining.It is a self-described 'action and resource center' that attempts "to use cutting edge technology to inform and involve Americans in their efforts to save the mountains." It is...

 for the Alliance for Appalachia. The website was recognized in 2006 as one of the internet’s top non-profit sites and recently has been recognized as a “Google Earth Hero” by Google Earth .

Appalachian Water Watch

Appalachian Voices is committed to protecting the waterways of the region from the largest source of pollution. They head the initiatives of the Appalachian Water Watch and the Upper Watauga Riverkeepers to ensure a future for the waterways of Appalachia.
Appalachia Water Watch is currently pursuing legal action against Kentucky coal companies ICG, Nally and Hamilton, and Frasure Creek Coal (owned by Trinity Coal) for over 20,000 violations of the Clean Water Act .

Working to Promote Coal-Free Energy

Appalachian Voices led an effort in Wise County, V.A. to advocate energy alternatives such as efficiency that would protect the state’s environment, boost employment, consumer savings, and the economy rather than building a new coal-fired power plant. Appalachian Voices is also involved in organizing grassroots opposition towards a Surry County, VA power plant planned to be build by Old Dominion Electrical Co-operative. Appalachian Voices also successfully lobbied for the establishment of the North Carolina Clean Smokestack Act.

Magazine

Appalachian Voices publishes a free semi-monthly news magazine about the group's activities titled Appalachian Voice. Archives of the magazine are available online.

External links

• Appalachian Voices (Official website)
• Charity Navigator
  Charity Navigator
  Charity Navigator is an independent, non-profit organization that evaluates American charities. Its stated goal is "to advance a more efficient and responsive philanthropic marketplace by evaluating the financial health of America's largest charities."-About:...
  
  Rating - Appalachian Voices (2006)