Events & Opportunities
November 22, 2024
Conversation Project: Housing and Belonging
Housing and homelessness is a visible and divisive issue in local media, in politics, and across different communities within our state. Many of us were experiencing housing instability and economic uncertainty even during the “boom” times before the current crisis. This conversation will explore common assumptions and perspectives about the experience of houselessness/homelessness and seek to answer the question, How do we decide who “belongs” in our community?
4:30 p.m., Portland State University Smith Memorial Student Union, Portland
November 23, 2024
Fearless Lieder
Giving voice to the fearless poetry of Oregon Poets Laureate—Elizabeth Woody, Kim Stafford, Paulann Petersen, and Lawson Inada—the music of Cascadia’s member composers will make this unforgettable evening a celebration of our Pacific Northwest. With special guest Ellen Waterston, current Oregon Poet Laureate.
Register here: https://www.cascadiacomposers.org/upcoming/fearless-lieder
7:30 p.m., The Old Madeline Church, Portland
December 5, 2024
Consider This: Stories of the Hood River Watershed
Join us at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 5, at Columbia Center for the Arts in Hood River for a conversation with city manager Abigail Elder, media creator Sarah Fox, and orchardist Lesley Tamura on the intersections of place, storytelling, and the public in the Hood River watershed.
7:00 p.m., Columbia Center for the Arts, Hood River
December 12, 2024
Conversation Project: Housing and Belonging
Housing and homelessness is a visible and divisive issue in local media, in politics, and across different communities within our state. Many of us were experiencing housing instability and economic uncertainty even during the “boom” times before the current crisis. This conversation will explore common assumptions and perspectives about the experience of houselessness/homelessness and seek to answer the question, How do we decide who “belongs” in our community?
1:00 p.m., Chetco Community Public Library, Brookings
January 16, 2025
Salem Poetry Project Featuring Ellen Waterston
Each week, the Salem Poetry Project presents a featured reader followed by the Infamous Open Mic: three poems or five minutes, whichever is first. The featured reader begins at 7:00 p.m. and the open mic will follow.
Parking for the Bush Barn and Bush House is located off of High Street.
7:00 p.m., Bush Barn Annex, Salem
January 16, 2025
The Detour Live: Poetry and Politics, or not, with Anis Mojgani
Oregon Humanities and the Tomorrow Theater present a live recording of The Detour podcast with poet and visual artist Anis Mojgani. Anis and host Adam Davis will dig into what it means to be an artist, fulfill a Governor-appointed, public role, and be a politically engaged individual, too. We’ll explore the relationship between art, art-making, and politics, maybe especially when one’s art is not overtly political.
Ticket for this event are available at tomorrowtheater.org.
7:00 p.m., Tomorrow Theater, Portland
January 29, 2025
Consider This: Our Place in the World with Ben Rhodes
A conversation about geopolitics, American power, and public service with Ben Rhodes, a former national security and diplomacy advisor to President Barack Obama and host of the Pod Save the World podcast. How much should the general public know or understand about global affairs and foreign policy? How do the US government’s actions on the world stage respond to public interest? How do people who work on those policies respond when their understanding of the public interest differs from the majority of public opinion? Ben Rhodes is a writer, political commentator, and national security analyst. He is the author of After the Fall: The Rise of Authoritarianism in the World We've Made and The World As It Is: A Memoir of the Obama White House. From 2009–17, he served as a speechwriter and Deputy National Security Advisor to President Obama. Rhodes is currently cohost of the podcast Pod Save the World; a contributor for MSNBC; and chair of National Security Action.
7:00 p.m., Alberta Rose Theatre, Portland
March 18, 2025
Reading with Ellen Waterston
Oregon Poet Laureate Ellen Waterston presents her work at Cook Memorial Library.
5:30 p.m., Cook Memorial Library, La Grande
May 7, 2025
Consider This: Reinventing American Democracy for the 21st Century with Danielle Allen
A conversation about the failings and challenges of democracy in the United States and what we can do about them with Danielle Allen, director of the Allen Lab for Democracy Renovation at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Ash Center. How can we find common purpose to build a stronger democratic society amid today’s complex political climate?
7:00 p.m., Tomorrow Theater, Portland