The Minnesota Public Interest Research Group (also known as MPIRG) describes itself as "a

grassroots A grassroots movement is one that uses the people in a given district, region or community as the basis for a political or continent movement. Grassroots movements and organizations use collective action from volunteers at the local level to imp ...

, non-partisan,

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

, student-directed organization that empowers and trains students and engages the community to take collective action in the public interest throughout the state of

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

." It is part of the

Public Interest Research Group Public Interest Research Groups (PIRGs) are a federation of U.S. and Canadian non-profit organizations that employ grassroots organizing and direct advocacy on issues such as consumer protection, public health and transportation. The PIRGs are cl ...

federation of advocacy organizations.

History

MPIRG was incorporated on February 17, 1971; the concept was founded and supported by consumer advocate

Ralph Nader Ralph Nader (; born February 27, 1934) is an American lawyer and political activist involved in consumer protection, environmentalism, and government reform causes. He is a Perennial candidate, perennial presidential candidate. His 1965 book '' ...

. Students at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

collected 25,200 signatures that year to start the first MPIRG chapter in Minnesota and start the first PIRG in the nation. College students collected more than 50,000 signatures in all to start chapters at college campuses across the state. The motivating idea was for students to join together in collective action to advocate in the

public interest In social science and economics, public interest is "the welfare or well-being of the general public" and society. While it has earlier philosophical roots and is considered to be at the core of democratic theories of government, often paired ...

, and to use the activity fees they collected from each school to support a staff of professionals that could train them to become powerful advocates in the public policy arena. MPIRG's unique strategy to mobilize students has led to a long list of accomplishments, including protecting the

Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW or BWCA) comprises of pristine forests, glacial lakes, and streams in the Superior National Forest. Located entirely within the U.S. state of Minnesota at the Boundary Waters, the wilderness are ...

in northern Minnesota from environmental damage and promoting stricter ethical standards for lobbyists.

Chapters

MPIRG had chapters at six colleges and universities across the state of Minnesota, including: *

Augsburg University Augsburg University is a private university in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It was founded in 1869 as a Norwegian-American Lutheran seminary known as Augsburg Seminari ...

– inactive since 2018 *

Hamline University Hamline University ( ) is a private university in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1854, Hamline is the oldest university in Minnesota, the first coeducational university in the state, and is one of five Associated Colleges of th ...

– inactive since 2017 *

St. Catherine University St. Catherine University (St. Kate's) is a private Catholic university in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It was established as one of the first institutions of higher learning specifically for women in the Midwest and was known as the College of St. C ...

– inactive since 2018 *

University of Minnesota Duluth The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) is a public university in Duluth, Minnesota, United States. It is part of the University of Minnesota System. UMD offers 17 bachelor's degrees in 87 majors, graduate programs in 24 different fields, a tw ...

– the only active chapter currently *

University of Minnesota Morris The University of Minnesota Morris (UMN–Morris) is a public liberal arts college in Morris, Minnesota, United States. It is part of the University of Minnesota system and was founded in 1960 as a public, co-educational, residential liberal a ...

– inactive since 2018 *

University of Minnesota Twin Cities The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the flagship institution of th ...

– inactive since 2018, since they merged with USPIRG

History

Chapters

See also

References

Further reading