Spirit in Action

Greenfire Farm is a vortex of environmental thought, research, and action, located near Athens, Ohio, and Dick Hogan is at the center of that energy. With penetrating ideas about how we need to think about our place in creation, there are equally transformative lifestyle methods being studied.

A visit with 3 people connected with UWEC's alternative spring break trip, the Civil Rights Pilgrimage. Kiersten Bauer has been a student participant in the pilgrimage twice. Jodi Thesing-Ritter is UW-EC Associate Dean of Students and teacher of Women's Studies, and she is the founder of the pilgrimage in 2008, and Bluegold Beginnings more recently.

If a progressive author writes an insightful world-changing book, but no one hears it, does it really matter? The intent of Gail Leondar Public Relations is to make sure that such voices do get heard and are added to the forces for change. Gail Leondar-Wright and her business partner, Peter Bermudes, amplify the message of progressives by connecting them up to a nation-wide web of radio broadcasters.

Christina Crosby became a quadriplegic in mid-life because of a bicycle accident, totally changing her life and introducing her to the ranks of the 'disabled'. Christina is very familiar, experientially and scholastically, with other minority roles, as a professor of both English and Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Wesleyan University.

A look at the ills of our healthcare coverage system, with special attention to the coverage gap resulting from opposition to the ACA/Affordable Care Act. Tom Rowley shares his song & video about The Healthcare Blues, and his passion for fixing the system, working in rural Missouri, near Cabool.

A powerful advocate for democracy and progressive causes, Matt Rothschild led The Progressive Magazine for most of 32 years, and in now Executive Director of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign. Matt has a birds-eye view of the nuts and bolts of government, elections, & the success or failure of democracy.

After 20 years in the Navy, Leah Bolger retired into full-time work as a peace activist. Leah is active almost everywhere, is the first female president of the national Veterans for Peace, works on the World Beyond War project, acts as Secretary of Defense for the Green Shadow Cabinet, coordinates the Drones Quilt Project, and chairs the VFP Drones Working Group.

Dan Nerhaugen's Daily Progressive is a great source of inspiration & knowledge, highlighting change-makers and events which have tilted the world in a progressive direction, and promise more in the future. Succinct, rich, and diverse, there are tidbits, with links to those interested in going deeper, for some really transformative people and events.

Jamila Raqib is executive director of The Albert Einstein Institution, the brain-child of Gene Sharp, leading researcher in non-violent action & civilian-based defense. Jamila was a refugee from Afghanistan at age 4, with a keen and innate sense of the power of non-violence to preserve and obtain freedom and justice, at the least cost.

Frances Moore Lappé is putting herself on the line as part of the April 2016 Democracy Spring and Democracy Awakening.