Who We Are
Third Act NC Working Group formed in February 2023. We are a committed group of seniors seeking to address the dual crises of climate change and attacks on our democracy, bearing in mind that in North Carolina the climate crisis is inextricably connected to the crises of environmental injustice that especially affect our state’s Black, Brown, Indigenous and poor people. The attacks on democracy in North Carolina are pointed attacks on the political and economic rights of our working population, including people of color – a legacy of the Jim Crow South.
The people of North Carolina have a long and memorable history of struggling both for civil rights and for environmental justice. These include the national environmental justice movement that began in Warren County and the early leaders of the national Civil Rights movement who in 1960 sat in against racial segregation at a lunch counter in Greensboro.
We are intentionally building a group of people who are over sixty and reflect the diversity of our state, including racial and ethnic identities, class backgrounds, cultures, faith traditions, differently abled, genders, and communities. We are committed to following the Working Principles of Third Act in working within our own North Carolina communities to implement Third Act’s goals and campaigns.
We do this through a state-wide coordinating committee of volunteers who work directly with Third Act’s national staff and volunteers to define overall direction, as outlined in its Working Group Agreements.
What We Do
As a state working group, we work closely with Third Act National to support its countrywide campaigns and we also work on state and local issues to:
- protect democracy and the vote
- advance fossil free finance
- democratize energy
We don’t “reinvent the wheel,” but work closely with other groups who have long shown us the way. These include 350.org, Interfaith Power and Light, People’s Power NC, NC WARN, North Carolina League of Conservation Voters, the Sierra Club of North Carolina, as well as the Hip-Hop Caucus and the Sunrise Movement.
We also seek not only to lead when needed but also to support and follow our home-grown youth, Black and Indigenous activists in their campaigns to protect their health, their economic futures, and their rights to the vote.
Join Us!
A top priority for Third Act North Carolina is to create opportunities for members to learn together and enjoy working with one another as we build our collective power to protect democracy, protect the planet, and promote green energy. We are excited to provide our members with the tools and support to make a difference.
Sign-up for our working group to:
- meet other committed seniors around the nation, state and in your area
- get involved in our meetings, rallies, actions and social events at the level you feel comfortable
- join in on our monthly Roundtable where we get together online with other Third Act NCers to learn more about what we are doing
- stay abreast of and participate in local actions to advance our goals for a more democratic and livable planet
- learn more about the issues we face, including climate justice, divesting from fossil fuels, democratizing energy and advancing our democracy
We realize that to be effective, most of us want to know more about the issues at stake and learn from folks with special knowledge, particularly those who have been directly harmed by anti-democratic or fossil fuel forces.