Nonprofits across our region are navigating a moment of real complexity, and real opportunity.
On May 11, 2026, nonprofit leaders from across northern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin are invited to come together for the Nonprofits Unite Summit.
The Summit is a space to learn, share, and strengthen the sector together. It’s grounded in the belief that our communities are best served when nonprofits are connected, supported, and working in alignment.
May 11, 2026 | 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
University of Wisconsin–Superior
View the full program schedule here
This is the first-of-its-kind regional gathering is built for the realities nonprofits are facing right now, and the shared solutions that can only happen when we come together.
👉 Register now (seats are limited) | Cost is $25/person
Scholarships are available, please email Amber Burns at amber@borealwaters.org if a scholarship would be helpful for you or your team.
This isn’t a typical conference. It’s a working session for the sector.
The Summit is designed to create space for:
The day includes a keynote conversation on the current state of the sector, breakout sessions across key focus areas, and a closing session focused on moving from conversation to action.
You’ll also find space woven throughout the day for connection and well-being, because sustaining this work starts with supporting the people doing it.
The Summit is grounded in three priority areas identified by nonprofit leaders across the region:
Staff Retention & Well-Being
How do we better support and sustain the people doing this work?
Shared Services
Where can collaboration reduce duplication and increase impact?
Organizational Transitions
How do we navigate leadership changes, restructuring, and even endings with greater clarity and stability?
Sessions throughout the day will bring real examples, honest conversations, and candid questions from organizations actively navigating these challenges.
In early 2025, as federal funding cuts began impacting organizations across the region, Boreal Waters Community Foundation convened a group of nonprofit leaders to create space to share information, compare experiences, and better understand what was unfolding.
What started as a series of conversations quickly grew.
Participation expanded. Needs became clearer. And a shared understanding emerged: the sector needed more than information—it needed connection, coordination, and a way to move forward together.
From that work, the coalition Nonprofits Unite was formed.
Today, it continues as a growing coalition of nonprofit leaders committed to strengthening the sector through collaboration, not by leading everything, but by bringing people together take on challenges and opportunities.