Becoming Water Wise
Natalie Olsen explores how residents of the Deschutes River Basin are adapting a century-old water management system for a drought-persistent era.
A Radical Idea
Mark Putney on the revolutionary vision of public education and the challenges facing Oregon's schools
The People and the Public: 2024–25 Consider This Series
In 2024 and 2025, join us for a series of onstage conversations about all things public.
For the People
Jordan Hernandez writes about how Oregon libraries are responding to the evolving needs of their communities.
From the Director: Tents
Adam Davis on the ubiquitous symbol of Oregon's housing crisis
Notes from Peace Shelter
Paul Susi writes about his experience managing an emergency shelter in downtown Portland.
Making Pre-K Possible
This comic by Sarah Mirk explores how universal preschool went from an idea to the ballot to law in 2020.
Oregon in the Machine Age
Joe Vance writes about the effects increasing automation may have on Oregon workers and how the state can prepare.
"Farming Is So Much More than Food"
An interview with Megan Horst of Portland State University on the future of Oregon's food systems. By Dylan Jefferies
Burn Down Valley
Theo Whitcomb writes about the 2020 fires in Southern Oregon, cooperative land management efforts, and finding hope for the future.
“We All Have to Be Committed and Help Each Other”
Four leaders working on homelessness in Oregon share perspectives on how to address the state's ongoing crisis in this article by Olivia Wolf.
What's Growing in John Day
Juliet Grable writes about the Eastern Oregon town of John Day, a small city with big plans for the future that start in the greenhouse.
The Family You Choose
Residents of Portland’s C3PO camps share their experiences of street life, the pandemic, and building a new community. By Olivia Wolf
Safety, Justice, and Policing
A conversation with Nkenge Harmon Johnson, president and CEO of Urban League of Portland, and activist and data scientist Samuel Sinyangwe, cocreator of Police Scorecard and Mapping Police Violence.
Think & Drink with John Haroldson, Adrienne Nelson, and Shannon Wight
Join us January 22 for an onstage conversation on democracy, justice, and the American court system.
Returned
Caitlyn May covers the complicated story behind the closure of Douglas County's libraries and their difficult paths to reopening sustainably.
Family Ties
Emilly Prado writes about how changes to immigration legislation shape the lives of undocumented families in an excerpt from "More than Words," her project for Oregon Humanities' Emerging Journalists, Community Stories project.
Protecting Inequality
Anoop Mirpuri on the economic causes of racist policing
A City's Lifeblood
As efforts to clean up Portland Harbor begin, the communities most affected by pollution see a chance to reconnect to the Willamette River. By Julia Rosen
The Orphan and the Oxbow
Matthew Minicucci writes about searching for the origin of a tiny sliver of public land in Marion County.
Shouldering Homelessness
In Southern Oregon, the lack of affordable housing edges out a growing number of people. An essay by Vanessa Houk
Portland Expo Center: A Hidden History
This film produced by Jodi Darby for Oregon Humanities shares the experiences of Japanese Americans who were imprisoned in the Portland Expo Center during World War II.
Within Makeshift Walls
Author Eric Gold on the Portland Expo Center’s era as a prison for Japanese Americans during World War II.
Feeling It All
Oregon Humanities magazine editor Kathleen Holt on the complicated and blurry lines between private rights and public good
Just People Like Us
Writer Guy Maynard on a little-known history of a Southern Oregon community during World War II where prisoners of war were more welcome than US military of color
In the Land of the New
Mexican immigrants find home in el nuevo South. An excerpt from Translation Nation by Héctor Tobar
Whose State Is This?
Journalist Brent Walth on how legal measures targeting Latino Oregonians reflect fears of change.
Community in Flux
The long-persecuted Roma people begin to speak out. By Lisa Loving
This Way through Oregon
Illustrating the systems that move salmon, waste, traffic, and legislation
The Problem with the Immigration Problem
Elliot Young writes about the origins of the belief that immigrants harm our society
The River Fix
Journalist Valerie Rapp on the complexities of dam removal
Magazine Podcast: Start
Talking about epigenetics, adoption, faith, and clowns with Oregon Humanities magazine contributors
Almost a Family
Colleen Kaleda writes about the hope and hearbreak of international adoption.
Second Opinions
Camela Raymond asks economists, activists, public officials, and financiers for advice for Oregon's ailing economy.
Continual Watching
Historian Bob Bussel on Oregon's long history of protecting workers