Registration opens on March 15 (This event is FREE)

Check out the agenda and more information on the website.

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Third Act Michigan is a group of elders united for clean, blue water and just, green energy. In this new political era, we remain resolute in our defense of democracy and climate justice. With thoughtful consideration and wisdom, we respond to threats and build community using sustainable practices. Please join us for our launch of Third Act Michigan as a partner for the future of all our children and grandchildren, and the planet we safeguard for them.

Being a member of Third Act Michigan means you will regularly receive focused, summary information about key issues affecting our democracy and environment and recommendations – big and small – to take action.

At the launch you will meet our dedicated volunteers and experience a hopeful, positive vision of the future.

Your participation matters!

Price shown is a daily estimate, which will include the daily meals and transportation, as necessary. All registrants will have access to all educational materials, including recordings of lectures, and reduced cost entry to the tour’s Zoom meetings, when offered, for the full 8-day schedule. Lodging fees will be separate for those needing overnight accommodations. Details and complete itinerary is in the planning stages now. The planning group welcomes others who wish to participate in planning and identify any and all places to visit, people to meet, and topics to see and learn, for anywhere in Michigan. Plans are being made to develop self-guided tours and a "green map" for Michigan, plus group tours perhaps on an annual basis.  Please contact Mr. Stanton to indicate your interest in the planning process. Tour begins at Interlochen Arts Academy and will visit Northwest Michigan, West Michigan (from Sleeping Bear Dunes area and south thru several stops including Grand Rapids), Central Michigan (around Lansing and Michigan State University), Ann Arbor (including University of Michigan), and Detroit, ending in Detroit. Attendees will be invited to register for anywhere from 1 day to the full 8 days days. 

RSVP Here

Take a break from the fast-paced, tech-driven world and rediscover your connection to nature and art in this three-day retreat.

Set against the beautiful backdrop of Interlochen’s 1,200-acre campus in northern Michigan, this immersive experience invites you to tune into the sights, sounds, and sensations of the natural world while exploring the art created within it. Over the course of the retreat, you’ll rejuvenate your sense of well-being through a profound connection to nature and art, with the scientific benefits of boosting your immune system, reducing stress, enhancing attention, and deepening your sense of awe.

Drawing from the Japanese practice of forest bathing, this program emphasizes a mindful approach, featuring low-impact daily walks through the campus's preserved natural forests and art-making spaces, including music, visual arts, creative writing, and more. You’ll also have the opportunity to experience sunrise yoga sessions, canoeing in the campus’s lakes, joining an excursion to Michigan Art Legacy Park, and participating in story circles with participants to share about your life and build community with others. You’ll be encouraged to journal throughout the retreat, and if you so choose, express yourself through an artistic medium such as writing, visual storytelling, music, dance, or another form. Bring a notebook, poetry, paints, or any tools that help you express your creative voice.

By the end of the retreat, you’ll have rekindled your relationship with the natural world, reawakened your artistic spirit, and emerged with a renewed sense of clarity, inspiration, and awe for the world around you.

*Note early registration with small cost discount ends April 1. Interlochen's three-person "Sustainability" team will provide a lecture and tour of their facilities. Participants will be invited to participate in discussions about ideas for the second 100 years of this campus. Interlochen has adopted a comprehensive global climate action plan already, and the sustainability team is already doing many successful projects.  Participants will enjoy "retreat" time for reflection and immersion in nature and the arts.  

*$386 covers only ONE meal per day (lunch, as it were), but those who get their lodging at one of the Interlochen lodging choices – billed and paid separately - will get 3 meals per day covered.  

*Participants can also consider an add-on "Michigan Ecovillage and Intentional Communities Tour," that will begin on July 16/17 at Interlochen and is slated to end in Detroit on July 24/25. See details on that event in the next calendar entry. It is "associated with" the Interlochen Retreat for 2025, but is separately organized and funded.  

RSVP Here

​This is a free, open group which will read and then virtually discuss It's Not That Radical: Climate Action to Transform Our World by Mikaela Loach.

​​​​All you need is your curiosity, readiness to learn and share, and access to a book. We will discuss the entire book during this session, but you are welcome to attend if you have not finished. Registrants will receive a few questions in advance to consider.

​​For more about the book, head to the book's landing page.

RSVP to hold your spot here.

​​​​Feel free to contact me with questions at [email protected]. Looking forward to it!  

RSVP Here

This is a free, open group which will read and then virtually discuss What If We Get It Right? Visions of Climate Futures by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson. This is our first repeat book, for good reason!

​​​​All you need is your curiosity, readiness to learn and share, and access to a book. We will discuss the entire book during this session, but you are welcome to attend if you have not finished. Registrants will receive a few questions in advance to consider.

​​For more about the book, head to the book's landing page.

RSVP to hold your spot here.

​​​​Feel free to contact me with questions at [email protected]. Looking forward to it!  

Save-the-date! The 2025 Great Lakes Conference will be Thursday, September 25 to Friday, September 26 in Rochester, New York! Stay tuned for more updates, including our request for proposals and registration.

Register Now

 Registration Closes Wednesday, March 12 at 5pm

Groundswell is hosting Dr. Kevin Holohan, Associate Professor of Educational Foundations at GVSU, for a presentation on his research regarding eco-anxiety; particularly with the lens of teaching climate change in the classroom. Dr. Holohan will discuss how to address the anxiety that climate change can incite amongst students and educators, and how we can create a safe environment of learning when teaching the topic. This event will include exploratory discussions of how to turn climate change apathy into hopefulness and motivation to take action; both as educators and as students.

SCECH credits available: 2

These PLO events are open to any educators interested in learning more about Groundswell, those who are actively working on their student projects already, or those looking to learn more about researching environmental and community issues!

The 4th Annual Great Lakes Environmental festival is a celebration of the work being done to preserve and protect our precious natural resources especially water.  That is why this year's GLEF will be held on World Water Day and will focus on the Great Lakes and their abundance of the world's supply of clean, fresh water.  The 2025 GLEF will feature an Environmental Expo with information tables and booths staffed by local, regional, and national environmental activist organizations.  There will also be presentations and panel discussions led by respected subject matter experts as well as screening of award winning documentary films and videos. 

If you represent an environmental activist organization that wishes to be a part of the 2026 GLEF please contact John Helge [email protected] or 616-915-2403.  Check out the GLEF website for additional information!