Third Act Movement

The Third Act (Also known as "Third Act Movement") is a progressive and environmentalist U.S. national organization and movement consisting of people over the age of 60 which focuses on voting rights, issues regarding climate change, Anti-Trumpism and democratic values.

History of activities

The movement, founded on September 1, 2021, was created by Bill McKibben, a writer and climate activist, who in the past had created the international climate organization "350.org". He created "Third Act" after turning 60 himself, rally baby boomers and the silent generation to assist in the remaking of those systems that, according to the organization, now threaten the future generations. In a span of 5 days, thousands of people had signed up to join the organization.

In March 2023, the organization had gathered over 50,000 members, and partecipated in a protest in New York City using the slogan "fossils against fossil fuels" and threatening to quit en-masse Chase, Citibank, Wells Fargo and Bank of America if they did not stop funding fossil fuels.

In July 2024, the group organised a "die-in" in front of Citibank headquarters in New York City, resulting in the arrest of 46 of its members. The event also included ways to engage the wider public, such as live music, karaoke, puppets and a rocking chair brigade.

The movement endorsed Kamala Harris in the 2024 U.S Presidential elections, and its founder, Bill McKibben, kickstarted a fundraiser which accumulated up to $100,000 on July 25, 2024.

They have closely worked with organizations such as the Indivisible Movement, MoveOn, Fight Back Table,Women's March, Democratic Socialists of America and Planned Parenthood during the "Hands Off" protests of April 5, 2025.

They continued to be active, and partecipated to the " All Out on Earth Day" protests which were held between April 18–30, 2025. For that occasion, they worked closely with the Sunrise Movement, Climate Power, Popular Democracy, Climate Defenders, the Democratic National Committee Council on Environment and Climate, Unitarian Universalists, NAACP, Dayenu, Evergreen, United to End Polluter Handouts Coalition, Climate Hawks Vote, and the Center of Biological Diversity (CBD).

On 28 February 2025, the movement endorsed the " Economic Blackout" protest, and even gave directives on its official page on what to do in order to partecipate.

On April 19, 2025 the movement organized a peaceful rally in Farmington during the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution calling attention to threats against democracy and inaction on climate change alongside the 505001 movement.

During the first half of 2025, Third Act partecipated in anti-Musk and anti- Tesla protests in the U.S.

The organisation actually partecipated in the "No Kings protests" against Donald J. Trump, co-operating with groups such as the Indivisible movement, 50501, the Nevada Labor Union, Social Security Works, Public Citizen and Blue Band Alliance.

As of June 2025, up to 70.000 people are now part of the movement.

Ideology

From their very first years of activities, they opposed the notion that as someone starts to age they become more conservative, and instead state that older generations are just as worried as younger people about inequalities within the nation. They also stated that they fear the possible death of the movements they took part in when they were younger, such as the civil rights movement and the early waves of femminism.

The movement openly declares itself progressivist, and embraces ideas of environmentalism, anti-Trumpism, anti-deportation, pro-LGBTQ and pro abortion.

Bibliography

{{uncategorized, date=June 2025