Education for Peace in Iraq Center (EPIC)

The Education for Peace in Iraq Center (EPIC) is a charitable organization founded in 1998 and located in Washington, DC. Its objective is to "make Iraq safe and prosperous again."

Trade and economic sanctions against Iraq and the Saddam Hussein regime throughout the mid-1990s contributed to conditions of inadequate healthcare, few public education opportunities, and a critical shortage of food across the country. Iraqis who sought to convince Hussein to comply with UN demands or conspire to remove him from power were frequently jailed or killed by the regime.

In that context, EPIC was founded in 1998 by veterans of the Gulf War. Early organizers created a grassroots movement to share the concerns of everyday Iraqis living under sanctions with Members of Congress, thought leaders, and the American public. Leading up to the U.S.-led 2003 invasion of Iraq, EPIC urged the American public to support a peaceful approach and to prevent war through the use of e-mail petitions and a speakers bureau of volunteer military veterans who discussed their opposition to the invasion on college campuses and in front of civic organizations. In the aftermath of the invasion, including the years of sectarian violence and occupation of territory by the so-called Islamic State, EPIC's mission shifted to include humanitarian work on-the-ground.

EPIC currently conducts the following programs in three categories, according to its website:

As of June 2017, the Education for Peace in Iraq Center's Board of Directors is composed by the following officers and members: