Sharing ideas that change how we learn
Overview
ED Talks are public presentations that bring Michigan faculty expertise to communities statewide. Each talk makes educational research accessible and actionable—connecting scholarship with the real challenges people face in schools, workplaces, and communities.
Through plain language and engaging stories, ED Talks foster dialogue between researchers and practitioners. Topics range from how children learn to read to what makes mentorship effective to designing inclusive classrooms.
How It Works
Events happen several times each semester in partner communities. Each 20- to 30-minute talk is followed by open discussion that invites audience insight and questions. Speakers come from across disciplines—engineering, medicine, arts, education—showing that learning innovation is everywhere.
Talks are free and open to the public. Recordings and summaries appear afterward so ideas keep circulating long after the event. Attend in person, join online, or propose a talk of your own.
Future of Learning Scholars
The inaugural Future of Learning Scholars cohort consists of a select group of scholars leading innovative education research across disciplines at the University of Michigan. They have completed intensive scholarship and community engagement training and will be deployed for public engagement initiatives during the upcoming fall semester.
Upcoming Ed Talks
Our inaugural ED Talk launch event was on May 18 on the Marygrove Learning Community campus in Detroit. Over summer 2026, faculty scholars will undergo ED Talk training, and more ED Talks will come in Fall 2027. Join our mailing list for speaker announcements and locations.
Student Life Sustainability is collaborating with Visionary Organizing Lab to host our third summit in visionary organizing, Future Lab: Visionary Students and Visionary Organizing. Alumni of previous trainings have already generated powerful campus projects including a Free Store, a Time Bank, a Fix-It Cafe, and more. Visionary organizing is an approach to social change that equally values our material needs for survival and nonmaterial needs for well-being, like love, purpose, identity, and community. As students learn this framework in community throughout the training, they will join a network of leaders with hands-on training in community-led, sustainable social change. Meals included for participants! Register by July 24. This event is sponsored by the Life Changing Education fund and the Ginsberg Center.
08/16/2026
2:56 PM - 2:56 PM
The Edward Ginsberg Center, 1024 Hill Street, Ann Arbor, MI
Upcoming Ed Talks
Our inaugural ED Talk launch event was on May 18 on the Marygrove Learning Community campus in Detroit. Over summer 2026, faculty scholars will undergo ED Talk training, and more ED Talks will come in Fall 2027. Join our mailing list for speaker announcements and locations.
Student Life Sustainability is collaborating with Visionary Organizing Lab to host our third summit in visionary organizing, Future Lab: Visionary Students and Visionary Organizing. Alumni of previous trainings have already generated powerful campus projects including a Free Store, a Time Bank, a Fix-It Cafe, and more. Visionary organizing is an approach to social change that equally values our material needs for survival and nonmaterial needs for well-being, like love, purpose, identity, and community. As students learn this framework in community throughout the training, they will join a network of leaders with hands-on training in community-led, sustainable social change. Meals included for participants! Register by July 24. This event is sponsored by the Life Changing Education fund and the Ginsberg Center.
08/16/2026
The Edward Ginsberg Center, 1024 Hill Street, Ann Arbor, MI