Scholarships are now open. Apply now!

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August 12 - 16, 2026
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Are you ready to lead with resilience and possibility?

We are living in a time of overlapping crises – ecological, social, and political – that demand constant attention and response. For progressive leaders, this can bring a heightened sense of responsibility, pressure to hold communities together, and the weight of cumulative fatigue. Even seasoned changemakers can find themselves questioning their capacity to stay resourced, imaginative, and grounded amid ongoing challenges.

This gathering offers a rare opportunity to pause, reconnect, and recharge. This is the place for honest conversation with peers who truly understand the stakes of this work and a chance for reflection on what sustains hope. Set in a wild, natural landscape, this is your opportunity to reconnect with your body, breath, and the living world around you. Move into the year ahead with renewed clarity, perspective, and intention.

Strategies for Lasting Progressive Power

For 40 years, the Hollyhock Leadership Institute has trained progressive leaders to navigate uncertainty, bridge divides, and sustain long-term change.

At Activate 2026, you’ll:

  • connect with leading organizers and peers,
  • find inspiration and support for your digital and campaign skills,
  • share tactics across sectors,
  • build cross-movement solidarity and cohesion,
  • rest, reset, and sharpen strategic clarity,
  • and build a resilient network to meet the challenges ahead.

Meet the Experts

Gain insights from leading strategists, campaigners, and organizers, including:

Connect with leading organizers and forge a network built for resilience.
REGISTER NOW

Juhi Sohani, Action Co-Lab

Activate Testimonial
Activate Testimonial
Activate Testimonial

Who Should Join?

  • Advocacy leaders & nonprofit campaigners building strong digital programs and mobilization strategies.
  • Grassroots organizers & labor union activists looking to strengthen community engagement and digital advocacy.
  • Political strategists & movement builders working to secure progressive wins beyond the ballot.
  • Tech & digital experts shaping the future of progressive organizing.

We need a diversity of voices in the room. To address economic barriers and ensure frontline community leaders can participate, Hollyhock offers a limited number of scholarships.

Apply for a Scholarship: Learn more about scholarships and apply here.

What You’ll Learn

Activate is more than a conference—it’s a masterclass in movement building. With the rise of the far right shaping the global landscape, we’ll take stock of recent elections, analyze key lessons, and strategize on how to meet voters and communities where they are. Topics from 2025’s gathering include:

Big Picture Thinking

  • Navigating Power for Collective Action 
  • The State of Democracy 

Leadership for Our Times

  • When We’re in Charge: Redefining Leadership for a New Era 
  • Staying True to Your Values Beyond the Win or the Loss

Interactive Strategy Sessions

  • What are we building? The fight to shape what comes next
  • Engaging Community for Labour- before collective bargaining season
  • Addressing Nationalism Within the Progressive Movement 

Hands-On Workshops

  • Grassroots Fundraising 
  • AI Sovereignty for Campaigners 
  • Pathways to Hope Through Organizing
See 2025’s Agenda Here

Our 2026 Agenda will be announced in March! Join the Hollyhock Leadership Institute Newsletter for announcements.

Meet Your Team

The producers and advisory team behind Activate are movement leaders and strategists, curating the conversations and speakers that matter most.

Build Your Movement. Find Your People

Activate doesn’t end when you leave Cortes Island. As part of the Activate network, you will gain access to Peer Coaching Circles with top strategists, providing an ongoing space to refine strategies, exchange insights, and sustain momentum long after the gathering.

Pricing & Accommodations

Package Pricing: 

You can view availability of accommodations and rates on our Registration Page.

Learn more about our accommodation types.

Your all-inclusive campus rates include:

  • Program tuition
  • Accommodation
  • 3 gourmet meals a day 
  • Unlimited coffee & tea
  • Daily movement and wellness activities
  • Access to hot tubs, sauna, and campus facilities

Getting Here

Let us handle the logistics. Travel to Hollyhock hassle-free with the Activate Participant Charter. With pickups in Vancouver and Nanaimo, you’ll ride in comfort, connect with fellow participants, and take in the beauty of the journey. Your trip wraps up with a 30-minute boat ride across the Salish Sea—keep an eye out for whales, seals, and eagles.

Reserve your seat here.

Short on time? You can also register your interest in a direct seaplane flight to Cortes from Vancouver.

If you’d prefer to organize your own travel to and from Hollyhock, check out our Travel Directions page for suggested options and costs.

Accessibility

We want everyone to feel fully present and supported at Activate. Learn more about accessibility at Hollyhock or reach out to [email protected] for any specific needs.

Scholarships

Hollyhock recognizes that economic opportunity is not currently equal. Our scholarship program is one of our key strategies to expand program access to underrepresented and marginalized communities. A limited number of scholarships are available with awards ranging from partial to full tuition

We encourage applicants from those whose identities intersect with, but are not limited to: Black, Indigenous, People of Colour, 2SLGBTQIA+, people with disabilities, newcomers, youth, and elders

Scholarships are now open! You can apply here. 

Learn more about scholarships

Partners

“I recommend Activate to anyone looking to recharge, find community, and reconnect with their values or their sense of purpose and agency. You will leave transformed.” – Kate Catherall, Founder and Principal, Slow Clap & Co-founder and Board Chair, Arena

“Activate Hollyhock was like a week of masterclasses in life. The knowledge and skills I gained were invaluable. I’m taking home a refreshed mindset, a deeper understanding of the world, and a notebook full of ideas. This is education re-imagined.”