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Chicago Council on Urban Affairs
Formerly the Congress of Population and Environment (COPE), later the Council of Population and Environment, later (ca 1975) TRUST INC.
The Congress on Population and Environment (COPE) was formed in Colorado in 1969 to unite leaders of population control and environmental movements. COPE felt that there was little interaction between these organizations resulting in duplication of effort or missed opportunities. In June 1970, the First National Congress on Optimum Population and Environment was convened in Chicago with over 1000 representatives of environmental, population control, and special interest groups representing non-white groups, students, and the impoverished. COPE established two goals based on this congress: to <"bring these people into cross-interest group communication, where the important thing was to achieve interaction, not consensus, agreement or resolutionğt;" and educating the general public on environmental and population problems. [1]
A series of conferences in various locations across the country during 1971-1972 broadened the focus of the organization to include such problems as poverty, employment, and other inner-city issues. To test the feasibility of COPEğt;'s theories, Chicago was chosen as the location of an on-going pilot project due to its typical set of urban problems. COPE took an <"ecologicalğt;" or holistic approach to resolving issues in that it viewed the interconnections between the various problems facing Chicago.
An early undertaking of the Chicago project was to organize an ongoing luncheon meeting program with representatives from labor, civil rights, business, community, and other interest groups. Individual topic groups were organized to regularly discuss subjects such as criminal justice, energy, housing, health care, and transportation, among others. Building consensus was not the goal of these meetings. Rather, COPE hoped to introduce organizations that might not have otherwise interacted because of racial, social, economic, and other barriers.
Having identified problem areas, COPE sought solutions to some of Chicagoğt;'s larger social and economic problems. An interest of the organization during the early 1970s was an interactive media project, known as TRUST (To Reshape Urban Systems Together). This involved making a film on a provocative topic and organizing groups to watch and record their reactions and subsequent discussions. The first such project was on mass transportation entitled <"You Cannot Get There from Here.ğt;" This was broadcast on WTTW in 1973 and met a favorable response from viewers and critics. In 1974, COPE undertook a more ambitious project concerning criminal justice. The film, <"And Justice for All. . .ğt;" won the Helen Cody Baker Award for Best Program by a Non-Profit Organization in 1975.
In 1976, COPE expanded the scope of its activities when it turned its focus toward new topics. <"Urban Dollarsğt;" examined municipal spending and urban development in 1976. This project concluded that efforts to revitalize downtown districts must be supported by actions to reverse neighborhood deterioration in order to preserve the cityğt;'s tax base. This led to a TRUST Neighborhood Agenda program, which examined policies related primarily to neighborhood economic revitalization with an emphasis on balanced investment and local accountability. A part of this project focused on housing problems won COPE a second Helen Cody Baker Award in 1978 for <"Best Interpretive Report in the Chicago Region.ğt;"
The investigation into neighborhoods led the organization to explore the question of employment. In October 1978, TRUST began examining how small neighborhood businesses and public-private ventures are able to create jobs. Of particular interest to the organization was how to find ways to link education, jobs, and federal employment programs.
In 1980, TRUST INC began a series of projects focused on the role of philanthropy in urban affairs. These projects included a conference entitled <"Meeting of the Mindsğt;" and two studies addressing the question of how to increase support of public and private sources of philanthropy donations. These studies were entitled <"Stimulating Joint Urban Venturesğt;" and <"Developing Individuals and Communities in Partnership.ğt;"
During the early 1980s, the organization underwent a third name change when it became the Chicago Council on Urban Affairs. The Council continuously endeavored to bring public attention to the problems of housing, employment, adult education, criminal justice and juvenile criminality, health services, and environmental and tax policy. As a result of its efforts, the Council has successfully shaped public policy decisions at both the state and municipal level.
[1] <"History and Analysis of COPE by Shelly Kellman for John McKnight, 1972ğt;" in Box 3, Folder 59.
The following is a list of the organization's reports and films included within the collection:
MANRESA Report, 1971
<"You Cannot Get There from Here.ğt;" This was broadcast on WTTW in 1973.
Report on Medicine, Health, and Institutional Growth, 1975
Proposal for Chicago's Future: A Model to Enhance Private Sector Leadership and Citizen Participation, 1975
Managing Chicago's Urban Dollar, 1976
TRUST INC, Jobs Study Committee Minutes and Reports, 1979
Developing Individuals and Communities in Partnership, 1980
Community Action and the United Way Report, 1980
United Way Report on Neighborhood Development Needs Assessment Panel, 1980
U-Way Reports--Joint, TRUST, 1980
Spivey-Report to Governor, 1980
Inter-American Foundation Annual Report, 1980
Chicago Urban Lending Committee Report, 1981
Linkage Report: Computer-Based Support, 1981
CETA/TRUST Linkage Reports, 1981
Public-Private Partnerships CED Report, 1982
National Council on Urban Economic Development Legislative Report, 1982
Although this collection encompasses documents from 1968 to 1985, the bulk of material originates from the 1970s, when the Chicago Council on Urban Affairs was still known as TRUST, Inc. The records include administration papers, research material and policy papers, correspondence, minutes, fundraising, and public relations material.