League of Women Voters Lake Michigan Region

Preserving and Protecting Lake Michigan and the Great Lakes

The League of Women Voters Lake Michigan Region is an Interleague Organization of four member states and over 60 local leagues. Whether it is advocating for full funding of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI), supporting strong regulatory protections for the Great Lakes, or educating citizens about emerging threats to the Great Lakes such as PFAS, coal ash or combined sewer overflows, LWVLMR is there.

The health and well-being of citizens residing in Lake Michigan watershed states as well as the vitality of their respective economies are directly connected to the health and vitality of Lake Michigan. Through Education and Advocacy efforts, LWVLMR has not only worked to protect Lake Michigan, but has also addressed policy and Environmental Justice issues so vital to the health and well-being of residents of our four member states and local league communities. Please join us!

Join Us!
2024 Annual Meeting & Conference in Manistee, Michigan
Preserving & Protecting Lake Michigan: Restoration, Climate & Line 5
October 25-26, 2024
Registration Open!

We are looking forward to seeing you at our 2024 Annual Meeting & Conference on October 25-26, 2024, in Manistee, Michigan, on the shores of beautiful Lake Michigan.

League of Women Voters Lake Michigan Region
2024 Annual Meeting and Conference
Preserving & Protecting Lake Michigan:
Restoration, Climate & Line 5
October 25-26, 2024
Attend in-person or via Zoom*
In-person registration is $115 for full conference, including lunch and dinner
Conference without dinner is $55.00
Dinner only is $60.00
On-line attendance is $25; field trips are not available online.
Discounted rooms are $180 per night, plus tax, and include breakfast.
Rooms may be reserved online or by calling the Hampton Inn at 231.299.1096 and press 0 (let them know you are with LWVLMR, Code CHH-LWV) To reserve online, use this link: https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/mblmahx-hampton-suites-manistee-waterfront, and enter Code CHH-LWV. A limited discounted room block is available. Once sold out, the discounted room rate will only be extended, based on availability.

CONFERENCE, LODGING, & AUCTION DETAILS

LWVLMR Celebrated Earth Month!

2024 Earth Month Environmental Conference &
Lake Michigan "Cruise for a Cause" Brunch

"Lake Michigan & the Great Lakes: Environmental Developments, Challenges and Opportunities"
with
Tom Skilling & Experts in Climate, Great Lakes & Water Science & Policy
Saturday, April 27, 2024
In-Person in Lake Forest, Illinois & Online
10 am-4:30 pm CT

In April of this year, League members and friends gathered to hear Tom Skilling, Chief Meteorologist Emeritus for WGN-TV, and a distinguished line-up of experts and policy makers discuss recent developments in climate change and water science, law and policy as well as the future of climate change, water resources and Great Lakes strategy, including:

Seth Darling, Chief Science & Technology Officer for the Advanced Energy Technologies Directorate and Director, Advanced Materials for Energy-Water Systems (AMEWS) Center at Argonne National Laboratory

Todd Nettesheim, U.S Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), Region V, Deputy Director of the Great Lakes National Program Office.

Donald J. Wuebbles, PhD, Professor Emeritus of Atmospheric Science and Presidential Fellow at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana & Coordinating Lead Author on several international climate assessments led by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that resulted in IPCC being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007.
The conference was followed the next day by our Lake Michigan "Cruise for a Cause" Brunch Benefit, departing from Navy Pier. We enjoyed a delightful brunch cruise of Lake Michigan, while learning about and supporting the preservation and protection of the Lake Michigan watershed.

STATE SPECIFIC PROGRAMMING

League of Women Voters Lake Michigan Region
Citizen Scientists
Cruise Lake Michigan!

Useful Data Gathered During Research Vessel Cruise Aboard the D.J. Angus!
Members and friends became "citizen scientists" aboard the D.J. Angus, departing from the resort town of Grand Haven, Michigan, as part of our state specific programing. During this sold-out cruise, we engaged in water quality testing and learned about the ongoing research programs that help protect our Lake Michigan watershed. We cruised Spring Lake and Lake Michigan, while comparing water quality. Following the cruise, we enjoyed a catered lunch at the river-front American Legion Hall, and learned about the work of the League of Women Voters Lake Michigan Region and the West Michigan Environmental Action Council.

We hosted two more research vessel cruises in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for freshwater resources monitoring waterways tours, to experience scientific research in action aboard the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District’s research vessel, the Pelagos! We learned water collection techniques, how to take various water quality measurements, and what the results mean for our waterways, including Lake Michigan.

Speaker Highlights

Restoring Lake Michigan: Her Past, Present & Future
In Conversation with
US. Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin

Taking place on the shores of Lake Michigan at the beautiful Blue Harbor Resort in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, this weekend included our annual meeting, engaging Lake Michigan-related field trips and an exciting line-up of policy makers, scientists, and Great Lakes advocates.

Joining us for an In-person conversation was United States Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin! We also learned about a fascinating local NOAA project (National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration), the impact of ancient glaciers on the Lake Michigan Watershed, the impact of infrastructure funds on the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative and Areas of Concern, and much more.

Click the links below to watch videos of these engaging in-person and livestreamed presentations:
In Conversation with U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin
Heather Williams, Environmental Engineer & Project Manager, USEPA
Russ Green, Superintendent, Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast Marine Sanctuary, NOAA

Join or Renew for 2024-2025

Local and State Leagues in the four states surrounding Lake Michigan make up our valued members. Click through to join or renew online or download the renewal form here. Dues are tiered by the number of members in your League reported to the LWVUS roster in January, 2024. There is a small surcharge for renewing online to help cover the processing fees.

Join Now

State Specific Program Series

Watch the Zoom Recordings of this Series
Learn About Issues Impacting Lake Michigan!

Our Education Committee and Speakers Bureau presented a series of state specific programs, throughout September.

We surveyed representatives from each of the four member states, surrounding Lake Michigan, to determine which topics related to the preservation and protection of Lake Michigan were of most interest. With those results in mind, we prepared a series of programs, with each program devoted to a different state: Indiana, Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan.

The number one area of interest was Climate Change and, as a result, we presented our 2022 Climate Change Forum in-person and online in April 2022. In September 2022, we continued our education efforts, with a focus on each state, specifically.

Beginning on Thursday, September 8, 2022, and for the next three Thursday evenings, we presented individualized programs, via Zoom, to educate members and the public about the issues impacting Lake Michigan, in each of the four states.
These programs were complimentary and open to the public. Please share this information with fellow league members, your colleagues, family and friends.

Click the links below to watch the videos:

Thursday, September 29, 2022, 7:30 p.m. CT – Michigan
Topics: Climate Change, PFAS, Invasive Species, Coal Ash, Line 5
Watch video here.

Thursday, September 22, 2022, 7:30 p.m. CT – Illinois
Topics: Climate Change, PFAS, Invasive Species, Coal Ash
Watch video here

Thursday, September 15, 2022, 7:30 p.m. CT – Wisconsin
Topics: Climate Change, PFAS, Invasive Species, Coal Ash
Watch video here.

Thursday, September 8, 2022, 7:30 p.m. ET – Indiana
Topics: Climate Change, PFAS, Invasive Species, Coal Ash
Watch video here.

2021 Annual Conference and Meeting

In October we gathered on Zoom and in-person at the Spring House Inn and Spa, in Porter, Indiana for our 2021 Conference and Annual Meeting. Our speakers inspired us with stories of “Bad Ass Women of the Dunes," educated us on "Shoreline Erosion and Solutions," and urged us to take action to combat "Lake Michigan Pollution." We also recognized Ruth Caputo's education, advocacy and dedicated service to the environmental health and protection of Lake Michigan with the 2021 Art Palleon Advocacy Award. Pictured to the right is the 2021 Art Palleon Advocacy Award Winner, Ruth Caputo (on the right), with President, Elizabeth "Joy" Guscott-Mueller.

2021 Conference

Continuing the Legacy

The League of Women Voters Lake Michigan Region proudly continues the League's water quality advocacy and education work. The League has been working on water issues for nearly a century - over 50 years in the Lake Michigan basin.

This video from our 2018 Water Conference presents some of this history...