The Greater Des Moines Convention and Visitors Bureau (GDMCVB) will hold the “GDMCVB Marketing and Media Panel Discussion” for businesses wanting to learn more about working with the media and how to stretch marketing dollars on April 27 from 8 a.m. to noon at the Sheraton West Des Moines, 1800 50th St. The event is open to the public and free to GDMCVB partners. Tickets are $25 for the general public and $15 for students. For more information or to register, click here.

Iowa will receive $35 million in federal money to provide health insurance for Iowans with pre-existing conditions who have been without health coverage for six months, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) announced today. “Health reform will offer coverage to thousands of Iowans who, until now, have been locked out of the system,” Sen. Harkin said in a press release. “Having a pre-existing condition, whether it was a congenital heart problem, diabetes or even arthritis, often meant that basic health care was out of reach. Every American family should have access to the affordable, quality coverage they deserve, and as these reforms take effect, we are moving towards that goal.” To see the full text of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, click here.

The University of Northern Iowa Center for Energy & Environmental Education (CEEE) is accepting applications for a training opportunity that builds capacity for installers of solar energy systems in Iowa. CEEE is the Iowa training partner for a seven-state U.S. Department of Energy grant. Nine participants from Iowa will be trained as instructors in applied solar photovoltaics and solar hot water. Applications are due May 1. For more information or access to an application form, click here.

The Greater Des Moines Leadership Institute and its program director, Rebecca Batcheller, will receive the Preceptor Award at the Community Leadership Association and Association of Leadership Professionals’ National Leadership Conference on April 25. The Preceptor Award is awarded to program directors of community leadership programs that have demonstrated their effectiveness by going above and beyond and achieving a new standard of excellence in their program. Batcheller is a member of the Des Moines Business Record’s 2010 Forty Under 40 class. Read more about her here.

Ottumwa has been awarded $291,000 by the Environmental Protection Agency for ongoing construction of a multi-phased combined sewer separation project. The purpose of the project is to eliminate combined sewer overflows into the Des Moines River and basement backups. The city of Des Moines has a similar project in the works, as do other river communities in the state. Read about Des Moines’ project here.

The Iowa chapter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) will present a night of comedy as part of that organization’s 2010 Man & Woman of the Year campaign. Candidates Joanna Crandell and Darin Ferguson will host the April 26 comedy night, which is scheduled from 7:30 to 9 p.m. at the Funny Bone Comedy Club and Restaurant in West Des Moines. All proceeds will benefit LLS, a voluntary health organization dedicated to funding blood-cancer research, education and patient services. Comedian Bill Blank is slated to headline the event. Doors open at 6 p.m.