Shaylyn Romney Garrett — celebrated author, speaker and social entrepreneur — will present “America’s Upswing” at 6:30 p.m. March 31 at the Lied Center for Performing Arts.
The free public lecture is the final event of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s 2025-26 E.N. Thompson Forum on World Issues. It is sponsored by the Center for Great Plains Studies.
Tickets can be reserved through the Lied Center here, by calling 402-472-4747 or by visiting the Lied’s box office, 301 N. 12th St. The event is general admission, with seating on a first-come, first-served basis. Doors open at 6 p.m.
Garrett offers a fresh take on political polarization, social isolation, economic inequality and culture change. Her award-winning book “The Upswing: How America Came Together a Century Ago and How We Can Do It Again,” co-authored with Robert Putnam, offers an energizing and deeply researched message of hope during a dark time in America’s history. Her commentary has appeared in such outlets as NPR, PBS Newshour, the BBC, Time Magazine and The New York Times.
Garrett holds a Bachelor of Arts in government from Harvard University and has served in the Peace Corps. She spent six years in Jordan working to catalyze youth social innovation there. Upon returning to the United States, she helped found Weave: The Social Fabric Project at the Aspen Institute with David Brooks. She is a member of the Braver Angels Scholars Council, Citizen University’s Civic Collaboratory and the Faith Matters Initiative advisory board.
Based on “The Upswing,” Garrett’s March 31 presentation will offer an evidence-based roadmap for how to reweave the country’s tattered social fabric. Through stories and data drawn from more than a century of history, she speaks passionately about how everyday Americans once changed the nation’s course by building a culture of “we” — and can do it again. The lecture will kick off the Great Plains Futures conference, hosted by the Center for Great Plains Studies, and will be followed by a Q&A moderated by Margaret Jacobs, the center’s director. The event will include a ticket giveaway for The Moth, April 17 at the Lied Center, with five sets of two tickets to be given out. Individuals must be present to enter and win.
Garrett’s visit also will include a “Global Cafe: Coffee and Conversation Hour” from 9:30 to 10:45 a.m. March 31 in the first-floor atrium of Louise Pound Hall. The event, which is free and open to all Husker students, will feature a moderated Q&A about Garrett’s work, plus networking over coffee and pastries. The Global Cafe is hosted by the University Honors Program, in partnership with the School of Global Integrative Studies and Peace Corps Prep program.
This year’s Thompson Forum series is organized around the theme “Belonging: Finding Connection in a Lonely World” and explores the rising public health challenges of loneliness and isolation, highlighting the vital role of social connection in enhancing the health and well-being of individuals and communities. The season is co-sponsored by the Lincoln Community Foundation and the College of Business.
The season opened with a short-film screening Sept. 18 and continued with “A Conversation with Dr. Vivek Murthy” on Oct. 14, “Belonging is a Practice, Not a Place” with communication expert Orly Israel on Nov. 18, a Cooper Conversation with Holocaust educator Megan Helberg on Jan. 28 and the Ignite Lincoln event on Feb. 17.
The E.N. Thompson Forum on World Issues is a cooperative project of the Cooper Foundation, Lied Center and University of Nebraska–Lincoln. The series was established in 1988 with the purpose of bringing a diversity of viewpoints on international and public policy issues to the university and people of Nebraska to promote understanding and encourage discussion. Learn more.
