July 17, 2025

Community Conversations: Who are We?

The first in a three-part series, this is a conversation about the history of the city of Toledo, including the Toledo Incident and the effects of the railroad and timber industries on the community of Toledo. We will reflect on the questions of who we are and what made the city of Toledo what it is today. Part Two, Community Conversation: Where are we going? will be in August, and the series will end with a resource/volunteer fair in September. This event is made possible in part by a grant from Oregon Humanities.

6:00 p.m., Toledo Public Library, Toledo

July 21, 2025

Facilitation Training for Libraries

Oregon Humanities will present three trainings in 2025 for staff, board members, volunteers, and program partners of Oregon libraries of all types (public, academic, school, and tribal). These trainings will help people involved with libraries strengthen their skills in leading conversations about vital issues and ideas across differences, beliefs, and backgrounds. With the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence as a jumping off point, participants will learn about facilitation and reflective conversation, practice new skills and techniques, and learn to design and facilitate conversations that allow people and groups to learn more about themselves and each other.

This training will take place at Hillsboro Public Library, Brookwood (2850 NE Brookwood Parkway, Hillsboro) over the following days:

• Day 1: Monday, July 21, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
• Day 2: Tuesday, July 22, from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

To register for the July training, click here.

9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Hillsboro Public Library Brookwood Branch, Hillsboro

July 21, 2025

Summer Reading Program: Junior Conservationists

During the four Mondays in July,  the Yachats Library Children's Program will be hosting a series of Junior Conservationists. The conservationists will present to groups of children ages nine to twelve. The topics of presentations will vary from urban gardening to native plant and coral reef preservation. This program is made possible in part by a grant from Oregon Humanities.

1:30 p.m., Yachats Public Library, Yachats

July 22, 2025

Conversation Project: Can We Parent Together?

Like many aspects of life in the United States, parenting is increasingly done in isolation. American adults report spending 30 percent less time doing face-to-face socializing than they did twenty years ago. (Teenagers report spending almost 50 percent less time.) This conversation provides an opportunity for parents and caregivers to reflect on how we engage with friends and community and how social connectedness and community support affect parenting and caregiving. How does the presence or absence of extended family affect how we raise children? Can there be nontraditional extended families? Join Catherine Feeny to explore the conventions and norms that prevent us from building intimacy and experiencing mutual support and consider strategies for building connections to support families and others in our communities.

RSVP for this free online event.

4:00 p.m., Virtual Event, statewide

July 24, 2025

The Seven Rs of Sustainable Living

Join Canby Public Library for a presentation and discussion on how sustainability, the 7 Rs (rethink, refuse, reduce, reuse, repair, repurpose, recycle), and thrifting can benefit individuals and the larger community, featuring guests from Clackamas County Sustainability & Solid Waste and the Canby Kiwanis Thrift Store.

This event is made possible in part by a grant from Oregon Humanities.

6:00 p.m., Canby Public Library, Canby

July 27, 2025

Estacada 120th Celebration: How Our Library Was Made

In 2006, the Estacada Public Library moved from its cozy home in city hall to a new building on a two-acre site on the other side of the Clackamas County town. David Bugni, the current president of the Friends of the Estacada Public Library, will share his inside scoop on the long process of bringing this dream into fruition. This program was made possible in part by a grant from Oregon Humanities.

6:00 p.m., Estacada Public Library, Estacada

July 28, 2025

Summer Reading Program: Junior Conservationists

During the four Mondays in July, the Yachats Library Children's Program will be hosting a series of Junior Conservationists. The conservationists will present to groups of children ages nine to twelve. The topics of presentations will vary from urban gardening to native plant and coral reef preservation.

1:30 p.m., Yachats Public Library, Yachats

August 9, 2025

Conversation Project: Talking About Values Across Political Divides

“How can I be me without making it difficult for you to be you?” This question gets at the fundamental challenge of being in society together. We live in a contentious political world, and it’s difficult to talk about our deepest values and beliefs in safe, civil, and respectful ways. In 2021, the Pew Research Center found that nearly six in ten Americans felt that political conversations with those you disagree with are generally stressful and frustrating, as opposed to being interesting and informative. If we avoid such conversations, we lose opportunities to form a community with others that reflects our best selves. How can we learn to share our values in ways that bring us together rather than push us further apart?

2:00 p.m., Jacksonville Branch Library, Jacksonville

August 19, 2025

Conversation Project: Reentry and Empathy

Reentering society after being imprisoned or dealing with addiction is a difficult process, and people who go through it are often stigmatized. This conversation will explore the feelings, challenges, and experiences people encounter while reentering society and encourage participants to reflect on similarities to their own feelings and experiences. We will illuminate the connections we have with one another, and leave with a better understanding of what it is like to return to community after time away and a stronger sense of connection to those who are doing so.

Register for this free online conversation.

3:00 p.m. Pacific, Virtual Event, statewide

August 21, 2025

Conversation Project: Talking About Gender

Do you remember the first time you were taught how to “be a man” or “act more ladylike”? Do you recall moments of permission where you got to break free from the pressures of your gender? Everyone experiences gender differently, which can cause confusion when the gender of others challenges our own understanding. By exploring our own histories with gender, we can open ourselves up to being curious about the experiences of others. In this conversation, participants will be invited to reflect on and share the ways gender was taught to them, moments they challenged gender expectations, and ways they live in their gender today.

RSVP for this free online conversation.

3:00 p.m., Virtual Event, statewide