Minnesota's Legacy

Voyageurs Conservancy helps to introduce Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota’s only national park, to K-12 students through outdoor education and virtual workshops.

Computer scientists at the University of Minnesota are building robots to monitor the water quality of Minnesota’s lakes. And they are recruiting middle schoolers around the state to build the robots and collect data!

When a big one gets away, it’s not just anglers who lose out; Minnesota’s loons and lakes pay the price for leftover lead.

Wabasha’s Project Get Outdoors is developing self-guided tours across Southeastern Minnesota that connect children with both natural environments and local history, drawing inspiration from Iowa's Freedom Trail documenting Underground Railroad pathways. Project Get Outdoors interviewed descendants of 10-12 abolitionists and crowd-sourced stories through a Facebook group as a part of their research.

Duluth’s Noatun Community Wooden Boat Works uses Legacy Funds to carry on the multicultural tradition of wooden boat building on the shores of Lake Superior.

The Minneapolis American Indian Center is using technology – like short form video and music production – to teach Dakota and Ojibwe to young people in the Twin Cities.

Midwest Food Connection, based in the Twin Cities, is digging into the flavors, crops, and memories in Minnesota’s African American food traditions.

Sabin Adams grew up hunting pheasants. Now, he works to protect their habitat as the Minnesota Coordinator for Pheasants Forever, which partners with the Minnesota Prairie Chicken Society to conserve the ecosystems of pheasants and other prairie game birds.

As a child, Jesús E. Purisaca Ruiz dreamed of learning guitar. Through Minneapolis’s Guitarra en el Barrio, he helps young students turn their 

Croatian Hall is the last of the South St. Paul social halls built by European immigrants in the early 20th Century and a project of the Hrvatski Dom Association.

The Great Lakes Shipwreck Preservation Society is making it easier to explore sunken ships – without getting wet. They have created 250 maps– and counting. This year, they hired an archeologist to update a map of the Hesper, a schooner which sunk in Silver Bay in the 1800s.

The Funny Asian Women Collective (FAWK), a St. Paul organization dedicated to providing uncensored comedic expression for Asian women, presented their Legacy-funded production, "The Hmong Plus Friends Super Show," to a sold-out Ordway Theater in April 2025.

Douglas County Historical Society is undertaking a Legacy-funded research project to incorporate more Dakota history into the organization’s exhibits.

In Clearbrook, the town’s history isn’t in the archives, but in the walls, fields, and floorboards that hold generations of memories. Local writer Juleigh Prosser is helping Clearbrook compile the stories of their town into a book.

Worthington’s Creative Healing Space is an arts center where both youth and adults can engage in healing through various types of art, including journaling, painting, spoken word, fashion, and music. By providing these creative outlets, the center creates a safe environment for processing trauma while building meaningful connections among participants of all ages.

A century-old storm sewer in St. Cloud claimed by bats, a ravine pushed to the brink by heavy rains, and the project to preserve them both.

The Brainerd Baxter Youth Center, known locally as “TheShop,” serves as a community hub for teens and young adults. Beyond recreational activities, the center empowers youth with hands-on experience in event management, encouraging them to organize shows and music events where they learn valuable technical skills. The Ripple Effect is a Legacy-funded, youth-lead concert series.

At the Cultural Centre in Bird Island, the line between gallery-goer and creator disappears.

125 Live in Rochester, Minnesota is a community center for active adults. With support from the Legacy fund, they are producing a monthly concert series that is continuing to grow in popularity.

Ameriikan Poijat, founded in Northfield in 1990, carries on the tradition of Finnish brass band septets for modern audiences.

Plant/People is an oral history project examining the relationship between human beings and the natural world. Conducted in collaboration with the Institute for Advanced Studies at the University of Minnesota, herbalists Macey Flood and Emily Hagens are deeply passionate about the solidarity driven storytelling.

Founded in 1969, Minneapolis-based VocalEssence has decades of history as one of the world's premier choral music organizations. But despite its global influence, VocalEssence has kept its focus local—consistently pioneering ways to strengthen Minnesota's community through thrilling musical experiences.

Yellow Medicine East School is a small K-12 school of around 500 in Mankato MN. To provide a caring environment of high expectations that prepares every student for a successful future and instills the value of learning.  The Story Map project was an arts project that allowed for the students to be guided by a teaching artist through the creation of a virtual story map for the public.

Rochester Public Library aims to provide quality materials and services, which fulfill educational, informational, cultural, and recreational needs of the entire community in an atmosphere that is welcoming, respectful, and businesslike. The library received funding to obtain a microfilm scanner that will allow for more accessibility to the community.

Osprey Wilds is a residential environmental learning center on the shores of Grindstone Lake in east-central Minnesota. Osprey Wilds is committed to developing an understanding, ethics and responsibility regarding the environment and stewardship through formal and informal teaching that links nature and humans.

Cristeta Boarini, Director of Programs, came to 826 MSP discouraged by the news industry, she found passion supporting young people in creating a positive relationship with writing. She talks about the expansion of 826 MSP and its mission to inspire for a lifetime

CAAM Chinese Dance Theater does not just to entertain, but also to celebrates Chinese cultural heritage through the universal language of dance. This segment highlights some of the programming CAAM does and the impact it has had on the community.

Robert Lehman works on The Cedar Cultural Center's annual Global Arts Festival. The Cedar aims to promote intercultural appreciation and understanding through the presentation of global music and dance. The festival offers accessible, free, and family friendly opportunities to hear innovative and unique artists from across the globe.

Arts Center of St Peter has been serving the communities artistic needs through gallery spaces, vending local art and providing creative equipment ranging from sewing machines to podcast radio microphones. The gallery is free to the public where local art is showcased.

The Trans Herbalism Zine is a project created to capture the power of plant medicine with a focus on trans and non-binary people. With a focus on flower essences the zine highlights ways one can create them and utilize them for self and community.

The South Central Service Cooperative, based in North Mankato, Minnesota, one of nine regional agencies called service cooperatives, established in 1976 by Minnesota Statute to enhance the work of their members. The Cooperative provides a young writers and artists conference annually as one of the programs provided to students. 

The unPrison Project engages people in Minnesota prisons on the art of storytelling and messaging. It works to builds literacy, mentoring and life skills to prepare for successful life after prison.

African Economic Development Solutions is an economic development agency dedicated to serving entrepreneurs, specializing with African communities who are adjusting to the United States. AEDS also puts on the Little Africa Festival off Snelling Avenue in St Paul to showcase and market entrepreneurs, build networks of relationships and support artists.

Ian Leask, executive director of Afton Press and talks about the release of their new book Latin Art in Minnesota which was funded by Minnesota Historical Society.

In Progress provides quality mentorship and access opportunities for digital art makers living in Crookston and Saint Paul, serving emerging artists of all ages while modeling innovative mentorship practices both in person and online.

The Audubon is working toward bird and forest restoration, including planting trees on the upper Mississippi river to restore bird habitat.

Liz Engleman speaks about the 12-day retreat at Tofte Lake Center they offered as part of the legacy grant funding for bi-POC and parent artists in Minnesota

Scott County Historical Society brought in consultants to increase Dakota voices along the Shakopee Riverfront Cultural Trail

The annual Freedom Festival at Goodridge Veterans Memorial Park is an entire day filled with artists performances and art. People from throughout the Goodrich area gather for the event, which also honors Veterans from the community.

The Playwrights' Center is an accelerator for playwrights and new plays. How do they accomplish this? Robert Chelimsky, Managing Director, explains how this organization supports artists and why their work is so important.

Founder of Juxtaposition arts, Roger Cummings, explains why the organization is such a crucial part of the thriving arts community in North Minneapolis and beyond.

The AIDS epidemic forever changed queer culture across the United States when it began in the 1980s. The gay community in Minneapolis did their best to take it in stride, which led to the creation of the Twin Cities Gay Men's Chorus. Executive Director Kevin Stocks explains why Minnesota legacy funds allow this organization to keep evolving and moving forward.

Arleta Little, Executive and Artistic Director of The Loft, shares why Minnesota Legacy funds are so crucial to growing the creativity of independent writers.

Toni Pierce-Sands, founder and artistic director of TU Dance, bringing dance education and performance to the Twin Cities for the past 20 years, talks about the story behind TU Dance.

Not only are the members of senior rock group Alive & Kickin alive, they’re also belting out songs to sold out crowds across Minnesota and the Midwest. Teri Deaver, Managing Director of Alive & Kickin, shares the impact on ensemble members.

Every June, the Delano Sculpture and Blues Fest draws community members to engage in art, music and fellowship along the Crow River in Delano, Minnesota. Delano Area Council for Arts and Culture board member Sarah Hellmich shares how the event got started.

Minnesota’s Cuban American Youth Organization (CAYO) provides chamber music collaborations, lessons, and immersive educational exchange programming for students.

Ashwini Ramaswami is the Choreographic Associate and Communications Director for the Ragamala Dance Company. The organization was founded by her mother, Rama Ramaswami, is an ode to the classical dance form of Bharatanatyam. Ragamala Dance Company keeps this form of dance alive by bringing performances to Minnesotans and beyond.

Tracy Rittmueller is an artist in residence at First United Methodist Church of the St Cloud. Tracy celebrates 12 artists who became a community after participating in her resilience and healing writing workshop where artists are given safe space to be seen and explore their artistic voice.

Ahn-Thu, Theater Director of Theater Mu celebrates the Theater Company's season of South East Asian Plays written by Minnesota-based South-east Asian playwrights and artists.