2026 Sustainability Summit - Sustainability Hub for Innovation & Environment

We The Earth: Sanctuary at the Nexus of Rest, Resilience, and Resistance | Northern Center Ballrooms I & II

This session will introduce We The Earth, an emergent local nonprofit land project with the mission of fostering rewilding through the operation of a seasonal retreat center on the Yellow Dog River that serves as a space of sanctuary for our earthly kin, as a gathering grounds for movement activists, creatives, and healers, and as an institute for experimental experiential embodiment education. 

Ganonyok: Gratitude as Resilience and Everyday Resistance | PEN I

This presentation examines Ganonyok (Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address), gratitude as an everyday, relational practice, as a form of resilience that functions as resistance within Indigenous knowledge systems. Moving beyond narratives of resilience as mere survival or adaptation to harm, the session positions gratitude as a refusal of extractive, productivity-driven, and settler colonial logics that undermine rest, reciprocity, and care.

Student Led Sustainability Rest and Resilience Panel | PEN II

We hope to gain valuable student insight and explore how the theme of resilience resonates with organizations on campus through a student leader panel. The session would ideally represent as many student groups as possible. 

The Northern Woodshed Project: Cultivating Rural Resilience through Local Bioenergy Production in the UP | PEN II

The farm-to-table movement has demonstrated how eating locally can promote rural resiliency. The Northern Woodshed Project explored the possibilities for heating locally in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. This applied, collaborative research project has combined the expertise of NMU’s lead engineers, researchers from different departments on campus, and community partners to explore holistically how NMU might reduce its dependency on fossil fuels by heating campus with woodchips from sustainably managed forests.

Transformative Hope for the Climate Crisis - Eileen Boekestein, EGLE | PEN II

In the face of escalating climate challenges, it can be difficult to approach climate change action without leaning into fear and despair. Rooting climate action in transformative hope, however, breaks the doom cycle and emphasizes the power of our practical skills and critical thinking. This presentation explores the significance of hope in fostering a generation of informed, resilient, and proactive climate leaders. 

Walking the Talk on Sustainability at NMU | Outdoor Experience

NMU has been working to become a more sustainable campus for decades. Join us as we walk through time and learn about some of the innovations and initiatives that enhance our collective resilience to climate change. Rain or shine, this is an 1.5 hour, outdoor, walking tour of campus; meets in front of the bookstore at the Northern Center. 

Individual Actions Matter: Reducing Waste | PEN IV

This will be a 1 hour session that focuses on the power that individuals can have when they reduce the amount of waste they produce. Information will be provided about recycling, and composting, as well as statistics and facts about individual waste reduction. An activity of some kind will also be included.

Responsible AI for Environmental Management | PEN I

This 50-minute workshop (a laptop is required) introduces Northern students to practical, responsible uses of AI in environmental management. We’ll explore how AI can support sustainability goals, such as reducing energy and water demand, while acknowledging concerns about its resource-intensive nature. Students will learn strategies to minimize AI’s environmental footprint and balance benefits with costs. 

Book Swap, Encouraging Rest and Resilience through Literature | PEN III

Bring your favorite books that focus on rest, resilience, sustainability, and wellbeing to share  your favorite chapters or ideas of the books.

With Great Lakes Comes Great Responsibility: Digital Outragicity and Data Center Resistance | PEN III

This presentation will discuss the ways in which Gen Z has utilized social media in its grassroots movement to oppose data centers along the Great Lakes. Using Jeff Rice's theory of digital outragicity (2016), this presentation highlights the ways in which place, story, and circulation influence resistance, responsibility, and reach. 

More-than-Human Relative: Giizhik (Cedar) Workshop | Outdoor Experience

The facilitator (Tyler Dettloff, CNAS Director) will begin the workshop by reviewing key elements of Ecology and Society research publication "Gathering Giizik in a changing landscape" (Clark et al.). A guest presenter will share cultural teachings about giizhik (cedar) with attendees while the group walks to gather giizhik (cedar) boughs from the Woodland Park woods. Finally, the group will return to the conference room to make giizhik (cedar) bundles and drink giizhik (cedar) tea.  

Indigenous Fashion Show | PEN I & II

Native American Student Association is putting on the 1st Annual Indigenous Fashion Show. This event will showcase various clothing and jewelry styles of Indigenous Peoples from Turtle Island and beyond. This show is focused on Indigenous fashion, artists, and models. This is an inclusive event for all students to showcase their fashion (Indigenous or otherwise).