Elders Action Network

Building Community: Having Real Conversations
2024-03-21 10:00 - 11:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Zoom video conferencing
Thursday, March 21
10:00-11:00 am PT / 1:00-2:00 pm ET
Good questions build good conversations, and good conversations build community. As elders we want to have real conversations with others, but how do we do that when everything feels so polarized? Join us for a glimpse into why conversations get derailed and then experience for yourself what a difference a Living Room Conversation can make!
Please note: This session requires multiple facilitators, so we really appreciate it if you make sure you are available to attend at the time of this session.
Registration deadline is March 18
register

Promote the Youth Vote: Gearing Up!
2024-03-25 13:00 - 14:00
Monday, March 25
1:00 – 2:00 pm PT / 4:00 – 5:00 pm ET
Join us to learn about EAN and The Civics Center (TCC) in 2024:

Caps, Gowns and Ballots – TCC’s big Spring program
TCC-EAN Training for Ambassadors to Local High Schools on April 4
How the EAN State Team in Arizona is piloting local high school outreach
How EAN-TCC can help you support a drive in your local high school
How to get ready to write letters encouraging progressive parents to encourage their kids and friends registered to vote

Register below to receive the Zoom link. Email event host Therese Flaherty at theresef@eldersaction.org with any questions.
register

Campaign to Learn & Understand Book Banning (CLUBB) Meeting
2024-03-27 10:00 - 11:30
Wednesday, March 27
10:00 – 11:30 am PT / 1:00 – 2:30 pm ET
Empire of Storms by Sarah J. Maas (Please get at your local library or bookstore)
Empire of Storms is the fifth book in Maas’ Throne of Glass series, which is a young adult fantasy series focusing on a teenage assassin.
“Fantasy is an amazing escape genre for teens. It is usually filled with mythical creatures, fantastic worlds and lots of action between characters,” Yeager.
register
After registering, you will receive an email from Zoom (no-reply@zoom.us) with a unique link to join the event. Please check your email inbox. You will also receive a reminder email ahead of the event so that you have the Zoom link handy.

Building Bridges: Living Room Conversation
2024-03-29 12:00 - 13:30
Friday, March 29
12:00-1:30 pm PT / 3:00-4:30 pm ET
Building Bridges is bringing us together for a conversation about how our planet’s multiple systems are showing signs of imminent collapse and how we choose to respond to The Great Unravelling.
Can we assume that technology, our current educational systems, reducing reliance on fossil fuels, and desperate hope can reverse the slide toward systems’ collapse? This conversation will challenge participants to reflect on their beliefs that a Meta-crisis may be confronting us. Do you see this as a problem to be solved or a predicament?
We all want to live in a healthy environment, but is that compatible with our enjoyment of all the benefits of modern society? How much influence do people have over the quality of the environment they live in? Is it possible that even our best efforts will not be able to stabilize the climate and avoid catastrophic consequences for the entire planet? Is this even a conversation you are willing to have?
If so, JOIN US and tell us how you feel about this!!
We use the Living Room Conversations model. Living Room Conversations work to heal society by connecting people across differences – politics, age, gender, race, nationality, and more – through guided conversations proven to build understanding and transform communities. We do not try to change your mind – just to open it.
After registering for the event, you will receive a confirmation email containing your unique link to join the meeting. We need to plan ahead around the number of people who register, so registration will close on March 26.
Important note: These conversations are not recorded. Please do not register unless you plan to attend the live event. We have to staff for the number of registrations, so if you are unable to attend, please notify pam@areteinternational.com to cancel.
REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED

Welcome to EAN Webinar
2024-04-05 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-05-03 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-06-07 10:00 - 11:00
10:00 – 11:00 am PT / 1:00 – 2:00 pm ET
Join us for a one hour gathering for new members of Elders Action Network (EAN) to learn about the work we do and how you might participate in the network.
This will be an in depth introduction to the different areas of our Elder Action Groups and an opportunity to meet other Elders and EAN leaders, ask questions and determine how you might like to get involved.
We offer this gathering on the first Friday of each month, so you can join us for a future date if you can’t make the current month’s meeting.

How to join the meeting
register
After registering for the meeting using the REGISTER button above, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
We will be using Zoom video conferencing technology, which is straightforward to join by computer. Simply click on the link that was provided to you in the registration confirmation email from Zoom.

Promote the Youth Vote: Next Steps Update
2024-04-08 13:00 - 14:00
Monday, April 8
1:00 – 2:00 pm PT / 4:00 – 5:00 pm ET
Join us to learn about EAN and The Civics Center (TCC) in 2024:

The Civics Center Strategies and Programs for 2024
Update on TCC-EAN Training for Ambassadors to Local High Schools on April 4
How EAN-TCC can help you support a drive in your local high school
How to get ready to write letters encouraging progressive parents to encourage their kids and friends registered to vote

Register below to receive the Zoom link. Email event host Therese Flaherty at theresef@eldersaction.org with any questions.
register

FixMyFunds - Climate Finance Team
2024-04-09 12:00 - 13:30
Tuesday, April 9
12:00 – 1:30 pm PT / 3:00 – 4:30 pm ET
FixMyFunds is a working group developing a strategic campaign to educate our EAN/ECA folks about “climate finance campaigns” and get them engaged. We will be discussing:

How to choose and then amplify the FixMyFunds/Climate Finance campaigns that most align with the interests of our EAN/ECA folks.
What we’ve learned about the Summer of Heat – a 6-week campaign targeting financial institutions – and how we can participate. EAN has signed on as a sponsor of this campaign and we’ll be regularly amplifying those messages through our newsletter and social media resources.

Our FixMyFunds group is part of the global CLIMATE FINANCE Campaign, which is based on these strategic principles:

To stop the climate crisis we must end fossil fuel development
The fossil fuel industry will fail without access to financial capital
Sustained, strategic campaigns can move powerful institutions, including banks

We welcome new folks, especially those who want to learn more and help to further the development of this campaign.
Questions? Email LynneI@EldersAction.org
register

Taking Action to Confront Authoritarianism
2024-04-11 09:00 - 10:30, 2024-05-09 09:00 - 10:30, 2024-06-13 09:00 - 10:30, 2024-07-11 09:00 - 10:30, 2024-08-08 09:00 - 10:30
Second Thursday of the month
9:00 – 10:30 am PT / 12:00 – 1:30 pm ET

We’ll continue exploring what actions that we, as elders, can take to push back against extremist attacks. We’re focusing on right-wing efforts to undermine public education, including restricting curricula, punishing discussion of targeted topics, and eliminating programs (like DEI) that make a school environment safe and welcoming for all students.
We’ll continue sharing what we’ve learned so far through our research on how these issues are playing out in our own local school districts, including the actions of extremist protesters like Moms4Liberty, or of right-wing school board members.

register

Elders for Sound Democracy
2024-04-17 10:00 - 11:30
Get Out the Vote: Persuading and Mobilizing Voters
Join us to hear Anat Shenker-Osorio, host of the Words to Win By podcast and Principal and Founder of ASO Communications, explain how her research and advice have led to electoral policy victories on progressive issues across the globe. Anat will highlight ASO’s Guide to Messaging our Freedoms with proven approaches to motivate and inspire audiences to take action to help inform our GOTV efforts.
Anat’s original approach through priming experiments, task-based testing, and online dial surveys has led to more effective messaging. Her writing and research are profiled in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Boston Globe, Salon, The Guardian, and Grist. She is the author of Don’t Buy It: The Trouble with Talking Nonsense About the Economy.
ESD will feature opportunities for elders to join us to Get Out The Vote.

register
After registering, you will receive an email from Zoom (no-reply@zoom.us) with a unique link to join the event. Please check your email inbox.

Elders for Social Justice Monthly Meeting
2024-04-18 09:00 - 10:30
Third Thursday of each month
9:00 – 10:30 am PT / 12:00 – 1:30 pm ET
We will continue our conversation on Confronting Whiteness and explore next steps in creating awareness around this concept.

“White people are trapped in a history they don’t understand and until they understand it they cannot be released from it.” –James Baldwin, The Fire Next Time
At Elders for Social Justice (ESJ) we create an inclusive education and advocacy environment for social and environmental justice. We work with other EAN groups, external organizations, elder activists, youth and visionary leaders as we act on behalf of Earth and all life. We gather to focus on current social justice issues so we can take informed collective and local actions.
REGISTER

Making the Implicit Explicit Workshop with David Rose
2024-04-30 13:00 - 15:30
Tuesday, April 30
1:00 – 3:30 pm PT / 4:00 – 6:30 pm ET
Making the Implicit Explicit: What Neuroscience Reveals About Controlling Our Unconscious Biases with David Rose
The Building Bridges team is honored to sponsor this special class by neurophysiologist David Rose. In recent years, there has been a great deal of scientific and popular interest in what are called “implicit biases.” Such biases—like racism, sexism, ableism—are largely unconscious and unintentional and yet can profoundly affect perception, behavior, and emotion. David will explore what modern brain research can teach us about the origin of these implicit biases, and especially about how they can be prevented, reduced, or controlled.
Some questions he will address:

When and where do unconscious biases emerge in the brain?
To what extent are social biases inherited or learned?
What are the primary types of implicit social biases found in the brain?
Why are implicit biases easier to learn than to unlearn?
Why are most anti-bias trainings and educational programs unsuccessful?
What does brain research reveal about how to design educational interventions that are successful in reducing, controlling, or preventing the injustices that follow from implicit biases?

register

Promote the Youth Vote: Options for Action
2024-05-06 13:00 - 14:00
Monday, May 6
1:00 – 2:00 pm PT / 4:00 – 5:00 pm ET
Join Promote the Youth Vote, EAN State Teams, and Third Act to learn about how you, too, can support the Civics Center to “make voter registration part of every American high school.”
In just 5-10 hours a month, Elders volunteer to:

Reach out to high schools to encourage educator-advised, student-led voter registration drives.
Write letters to progressive adults in key states to register and to encourage their friends, family, and especially young people to register.
Educate ourselves, identify candidates and opportunities for collaboration, and develop further opportunities for pragmatic and effective elder activism.

Register below to receive the Zoom link. Email event host Therese Flaherty at theresef@eldersaction.org with any questions.
register

Elders for Sound Democracy
2024-05-15 10:00 - 11:30
Pro-Democracy Messaging in Challenging Times
Join us for our Call to Action meeting. By applying what we learned from Anat Shenker-Osorio at our town hall in April, we will use our collective creativity to turn threats to democracy into positive messaging opportunities. Our goal is to craft messages we can use to persuade and mobilize others in support of democracy.
This meeting will highlight opportunities for elders to join us to Get Out the Vote.

register
After registering, you will receive an email from Zoom (no-reply@zoom.us) with a unique link to join the event. Please check your email inbox.

Elders for Social Justice Monthly Meeting
2024-05-16 09:00 - 10:30, 2024-06-20 09:00 - 10:30
Third Thursday of each month
9:00 – 10:30 am PT / 12:00 – 1:30 pm ET
Elders for Social Justice (ESJ) will host a Building Bridges introductory session. You’ll learn more about EAN’s Building Bridges and get your questions answered. In June, ESJ will host a Building Bridges conversation that continues our discussions of Confronting Whiteness. We reduce polarization when we build bridges.
At ESJ we create an inclusive education and advocacy environment for social and environmental justice. We gather to focus on current social justice issues so we can take informed collective and local actions.
REGISTER

Civic Values & Culture Team
2024-05-21 12:00 - 13:00
Tuesday, May 21
12:00 – 1:00 pm PT / 3:00 – 4:00 pm ET
Connect & Refresh with EAN’s Civic Values & Culture Team
Join our Civic Values & Culture Team as we pause from our activism and release our serious concerns during this challenging year. Once again, we will come together to enjoy our virtual and restorative community. We will reaffirm the values that guide our collaboration:

Integrity & Authenticity
Deep Listening with Openness, Curiosity and Presence
Appreciation of Differences

register

Building Community: Having Real Conversations
2024-05-22 10:00 - 11:00
Wednesday, May 22
10:00-11:00 am PT / 1:00-2:00 pm ET
Good questions build good conversations, and good conversations build community. As elders we want to have real conversations with others, but how do we do that when everything feels so polarized? Join us for a glimpse into why conversations get derailed and then experience for yourself what a difference a Living Room Conversation can make!
Please note: This session requires multiple facilitators, so we really appreciate it if you make sure you are available to attend at the time of this session.
Registration is now CLOSED for this event.

Promote the Youth Vote: Options for Action
2024-06-17 13:00 - 14:00
Monday, June 17
1:00 – 2:00 pm PT / 4:00 – 5:00 pm ET
Promote the Youth Vote: Sharing Progress & Challenges
Our Promote the Youth Vote actions this spring are well underway!
On Monday, June 17, we will meet to share experiences in our two major actions that are underway by elders from across the country and discuss our planning and options for making a difference:

Reaching out to high schools to encourage educator-advised, student-led voter registration drives. Projects are underway in Arizona and California, with Florida, Georgia, and Wisconsin in planning mode.
Writing letters to encourage progressive parents of 17- and 18-year-olds in Ohio and Arizona to register and to encourage their friends, family, and especially young people to register.
Educating ourselves, identifying candidates and opportunities for collaboration, and developing further opportunities for pragmatic and effective elder activism.

Register below to receive the Zoom link. Email event host Therese Flaherty at theresef@eldersaction.org with any questions.
register

Elders for Sound Democracy
2024-06-19 10:00 - 11:30
America’s Plague of Gun Violence: How Did We Come to This?
Please join us to hear historian Dominic Erdozain take us through the events that have led to America’s plague of gun violence. As he does in his recently published and widely acclaimed book, One Nation Under Guns: How Gun Culture Distorts Our History and Threatens our Democracy, he will take on the myths about the Second Amendment that private gun ownership keeps us safe and free and that gun deaths are typically the result of bad guys killing good guys. In the words of James Baldwin, “Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”
Dominic Erdozain is a graduate of Oxford and Cambridge Universities and a visiting professor at Emory University. He has a long-held interest in the origins of democracy.
ESD will feature opportunities for elders to join us to Get Out the Vote.

register
After registering, you will receive an email from Zoom (no-reply@zoom.us) with a unique link to join the event. Please check your email inbox.

Confronting Whiteness Journey & Workshop
2024-07-10 10:00 - 11:30
Wednesdays: July 10 – September 4, 2024
10:00 – 11:30 am PT / 1:00 – 2:30 pm ET

Cost: $150 includes Confronting Whiteness book (Financial support is available upon request. If needed, please contact Teri Whitehair before registering at btwhitehair@gmail.com)
Confronting Whiteness is an intentional spiritual journey of anti-racism to aid people racialized as White to identify and dismantle their Whiteness. The Confronting Whiteness journey is designed primarily for white people and is experienced in community with Reverend Ben Boswell as the facilitator.
Over the course of nine weeks participants will read, hear, and watch the work of Black creatives. While there are many more that could have been chosen, these selections will embolden you to acknowledge your Whiteness. Hopefully, you will be inspired to invest time, energy, and heart to delve deeper into this discovery. The more dedicated you are, the more you will get out of the series.

REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED

Elders for Sound Democracy
2024-07-17 10:00 - 11:30
Please come to our Job Fair to learn how you can help contribute to our Get Out the Vote (GOTV) efforts for this year’s critical election! The Job Fair will provide participants with four areas for volunteer opportunities to support our GOTV actions, including supporting:

Initiatives, petitions, and actions in favor of women’s reproductive rights
The Environmental Voter Project and Promote the Youth Vote actions
The GOTV efforts of our five state teams – AZ, FL, GA, PA, and WI
The communications and engagement committees, which support the other teams’ efforts

Each presentation will include immediate ways for participants to engage.

register
After registering, you will receive an email from Zoom (no-reply@zoom.us) with a unique link to join the event. Please check your email inbox.

Elders for Social Justice Monthly Meeting
2024-07-18 09:00 - 10:30
Third Thursday of each month
9:00 – 10:30 am PT / 12:00 – 1:30 pm ET
Honoring John Lewis
ESJ’s July meeting will honor the life of John Lewis with a showing of Suppressed and Sabotaged: The Fight To Vote, looking at racist voter suppression that has taken root in states across the U.S. We’ll break into small groups to discuss actions that we can take.
REGISTER

Promote the Youth Vote: Options for Action
2024-07-22 13:00 - 14:00
Monday, July 22
1:00 – 2:00 pm PT / 4:00 – 5:00 pm ET
Our Promote the Youth Vote actions that began in the spring are well underway!
On Monday, July 22, we will meet to share:

Our plans and options for making a difference in the Election this Fall.

Educating ourselves, identifying candidates and opportunities for collaboration, and developing further opportunities for pragmatic and effective elder activism.

Our experiences from our two major campaigns.

Reaching out to high schools to encourage educator-advised, student-led voter registration drives. Projects are underway in Arizona and California, with Florida, Georgia, and Wisconsin in planning mode.
Writing letters to encourage progressive parents of 17- and 18-year-olds in Ohio and Arizona to register and to encourage their friends, family, and especially young people to register.

Register below to receive the Zoom link. Email event host Therese Flaherty at theresef@eldersaction.org with any questions.
register

Connect & Refresh with the Civic Values & Culture Team
2024-08-20 12:00 - 13:00
Tuesday, August 20
12:00 – 1:00 pm PT / 3:00 – 4:00 pm ET

Join our Civic Values & Culture Team as we pause from our activism and release our serious concerns during this challenging year. Once again, we will come together to enjoy our virtual and restorative community. We will reaffirm the values that guide our collaboration:

Integrity & Authenticity
Deep Listening with Openness, Curiosity and Presence
Appreciation of Differences

Register below to receive the Zoom link. Email event host Therese Flaherty at theresef@eldersaction.org with any questions.
register
