Events - Week View

Ever wonder what happens to your trash after it leaves the curb? Each year, Hennepin County residents and businesses generate more than one million tons of waste - enough to fill Target Field more than 11 times. On this behind-the-scenes tour of the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC), we’ll learn how garbage is transformed into energy using advanced technology that helps reduce environmental impact and taxpayer costs. Discover how waste processed at HERC can generate electricity to power a home for up to 21 days, while also producing steam that helps heat Target Field and buildings throughout downtown Minneapolis.

The tour begins at the HERC Visitor Center at 435 North 5th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55401. Please note that this address is that of a visitor entrance door on the top level on the Target Field Station Parking Ramp. Ramp and on-street metered parking is available.

This tour is limited to 20 participants. Registration closes on Thursday, April 9.

This tour has been cancelled due to tour issues. A new date will be announced soon.

Please join us as we hear from Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey for a conversation about the city’s response to recent events, including the federal immigration enforcement operation known as “Operation Metro Surge,” which brought national attention to the Twin Cities. The discussion will explore how city leadership navigated this period, the impact on Minneapolis communities, and what steps may support the city’s continued recovery and stability. We will also consider how residents can stay informed and engaged in shaping Minneapolis’s future.

Please join us for a pre-program social at 2:30 pm; Mayor Frey will speak at 3:00 pm.

Do you find it hard to really get to know members at our large programs … or those featuring a speaker? This spontaneous event might be just right for you! Join us for a casual conversation at Milwaukee Road Restaurant and Bar at The Depot. Take this opportunity to meet new members and reconnect with some you haven’t seen lately. If you are attending for the first time, please contact the MCC office so we can be sure someone is there to meet you.

With traditional alliances shifting around the world, some nations may reconsider their nuclear options as a means of ensuring their security. What are the implications for nuclear proliferation around the world? Join us for a virtual watch party of Global Minnesota‘s Great Decisions conference to discuss "Ruptured Alliances and the Risk of Nuclear Proliferation". Former U.S. Under Secretary of State for Arms Control Rose Gottemoeller will deliver the keynote at this year‘s summit. She is also a former Deputy Secretary General of NATO and was the chief U.S. negotiator of the recently expired New START nuclear weapons treaty. MCC will be livestreaming the event; open to all MCC members.

Agenda
8:30: Doors open for coffee and snacks at the MCC office
8:45: Conference Program Begins
• Introduction by Global Minnesota President Phil Hansen
• Primer: "Regulating Nuclear Weapons"
• Keynote by Rose Gottemoeller, followed by Q&A
• Break
• Panel Discussion: "Allies, Alliances, and Threats"
12:00 pm: Conference Concludes

NOTE: This conference will be livestreamed at the MCC Office. If you‘d prefer to attend the conference in person at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, you can register at https://globalminnesota.org/event/great-decisions-conference-ruptured-alliances-nuclear-proliferation/ by April 3. Cost depends on whether you are a member of Global Minnesota.

Loft Teaching Artist Patricia Hoolihan is available to guide MCC Members in exploring their stories during six 2-hour writing classes in April and May. This class will provide a chance to explore the world around you and within you in new ways through language - whether you are writing for yourself or to share with family and friends. Writing exercises will encourage you to open doors and cross thresholds to find words and stories that have been waiting to be discovered - by you. Writing prompts will invite you to express your unique voice in a variety of creative ways through journaling, poetry, essay, and memoir. Each class includes time for writing exercises, discovery of similar experiences, and optional sharing of written words. Cost for the 6 classes is $180, payable to the instructor on the first day of class. Minimum of 6 enrollees, and limited to 20 participants.

Do you ever find it hard to really connect with other members at our larger programs or speaker events? Then this spontaneous gathering might be just what you’re looking for!

Join us for a relaxed afternoon of conversation at The Cabana Club — a perfect chance to meet new members and catch up with familiar faces you haven’t seen in a while.

If you’re joining us for the first time, please contact the MCC office so we can be sure someone is there to welcome you.

Coffee, conversation, and connection await you at C.R.E.A.M Café. No sign-ups, no fuss—just friends and neighbors gathering for a morning chat.

Join us as we learn from our Tech Tutor, Kea, how to organize photos on your iPhone and Apple computer. We will make sure photos are synched across your devices, learn how to create albums, and explore the various ways your photos are organized by person, place, and event.

Caffeine and camaraderie for members of MCC! This group meets every other Thursday and is hosted by various members who get the conversation going.

*This event is open to all members of MCC. Registration is required.

During March-May 2026, MCC is partnering with TPT’s “Viewers Like Us” programming. This year’s selections will focus on areas of diversity, equity and inclusion. The videos will prompt us to explore and discuss thought-provoking topics. Sessions will be in person but there will also be the option to participate by Zoom. If this continues to be of interest to MCC members, there are many other movie/documentary choices that TPT can offer us for future programs.

The April 16th program, facilitated by Susan Plimpton, shares artists and healthcare clinicians creating alternative perspectives on disability, through disability, stories and performances and redefining what we perceive as normal. The video features artist and storyteller Kevin Kling, Professor Jessica Horvath Williams, Ph.D. and Dr. Tseganesh Salameab. Art+Medicine: Disability, Culture, and Creativity and was created in collaboration with the Center for the Art of Medicine at the University of Minnesota Medical School.

Please join us for some early evening jazz with jazz pianist and keyboardist Ted Godbout (known throughout the Northwest and Midwest) and trumpeter Jake Baldwin (who has played with the Four Freshman and MN Orchestra).

Free admission, with no reservations. We will find seating together when we arrive. Snacks, sweets, cocktails, wine, beer, and NA beverages are available for purchase.

For further information, please reach out to Nancy Brown at NBrownMpls@aol.com

Registration is limited to 10 attendees.

Start your Saturday with good company and great conversation!

Join fellow MCC members for a relaxed Saturday morning breakfast mixer at Elsie’s Restaurant, inside their cozy main dining room. Whether you arrive on foot, by bike, or by car, hot coffee will be waiting! You can order a full breakfast or simply enjoy a beverage while chatting with friends—old and new.

Note: We’ll be gathering in a secluded indoor space within Elsie’s main dining room. Attendance is limited to 25 participants to ensure smooth service for Elsie’s staff. To help the restaurant prepare, please register in advance.