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.
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.
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.
Our Untapped Treasures: Children and Elders are Problem Solvers too
There are many reasons why people fail to invite children and elders to the table when it comes to solving problems: “They’re too young.” “They need to be protected from hearing about serious issues.” “I’m sure they care, but the world is a very different place now.” “They’re just going to talk about how things used to be.” “I wouldn’t want my child to be burdened with this reality.” “I don’t want to have to explain the issues repeatedly.”
The more serious the issue, the less likely it is that a child or elder will be helping to come up with a solution. We were all children once, and sometimes we had great solutions to problems that adults didn’t have. If we’re fortunate, we’ll all become elderly, and we will have a wealth of experience and accumulated wisdom to share. The goal of this conversation is to encourage people to approach problem solving in a more inclusive manner and ask elders or children to share their ideas.
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.
Consider This: Redrawing Borders
Join us for an onstage conversation on borders and divides. Why are our borders in the places they are, and when should they be redrawn? Our confirmed guests for this event are Matt McCaw, spokesperson for the Greater Idaho movement; Alexander Baretich, designer of the Cascadian flag; and Carina Miller, chair of the Columbia River Gorge Commission.
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.
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?
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?
Learn more and register for this event at cocc.edu/seasonofnonviolence.
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?
Learn more and register for this event at cocc.edu/seasonofnonviolence.
"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.
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?
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?
Consider This: Why Does Housing Cost So Much?
Join us for a conversation with people who are working in different ways on making housing more affordable for Oregonians: Kim McCarty, executive director of Community Alliance of Tenants; Lorelei Juntunen of ECONorthwest; and developer Eli Spevak.
“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.
Connect in Place: From Marijuana to Cannabis - The New Normal
After nearly a century of attempted federal prohibition, cannabis is woven into the fabric of our mainstream society, from entertainment platforms to publicly traded corporations. Join Ryan Stroud to reflect on the impacts of these changes on ourselves and our communities.
Consider This on the Klamath Basin
A discussion on the history and future of settlement and water use in the Klamath Basin with panelists Russell Attebery (Chairman, Karuk Tribe), Mark Bransom (CEO, Klamath River Renewal Corporation), Don Gentry (Chairman, Klamath Tribes), Becky Hyde (Klamath Basin rancher), and Joe James (Chairman, Yurok Tribe).
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.
Educated in Oregon
Kitchen Table Democracy's project Educated in Oregon will explore how storytelling, in the form of short audio stories, creates space for productive conversation about the future of education in Oregon.
Conversation Project: What's the Purpose of Public Education?
Join facilitator Aimee Craig for a conversation that explores the extent to which our various—and sometimes conflicting—ideals about the purpose of public education align with what is happening in our schools.
Conversation Project: Sentenced for a Season, Punished for Life
What does it mean to our society that 8 percent of our overall US population—and 33 percent of African American men—who have felony convictions run into these barriers after they serve time in prison? Join facilitator Pamela Slaughter in a conversation about how this reality affects our communities and what alternatives might look like.
Conversation Project: How Do Our Values Influence Environmental Policy?
This conversation explores our environmental values and questions how those values are reflected—or not reflected—in current local, national, and global environmental policies.
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Facilitators Anita Yap and Traci Price will lead participants in a conversation that looks at how Oregon’s history of racism influences our present and asks, How can understanding historic and current impacts of racism in Oregon contribute to our sense of place and vision of the future?
Conversation Project: How Do Our Values Influence Environmental Policy?
This conversation explores our environmental values and question how those values are reflected—or not reflected—in current policies.
Think & Drink on Criminal Justice Alternatives
Join us for a conversation about alternative systems of justice with two people who have dedicated their careers to reforming the one we have now: Novelist and former criminal investigator Rene Denfeld; David Rogers, executive director of ACLU of Oregon; and Bobbin Singh, executive director of Oregon Justice Resource Center.
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
Protecting Inequality
Anoop Mirpuri on the economic causes of racist policing
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
Conversation Project: How Do Our Values Influence Environmental Policy?
Given competing interests and visions of the public good, how do we protect our common resources such as land, water, and air? Join philosopher Monica Mueller to explore our environmental values and question how those values are reflected—or not reflected—in current local, national, and global environmental policies.
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
Growth in Portland: Whose Livability?
Adam Davis, executive director of Oregon Humanities, moderates a panel discussion on the Portland comprehensive plan.
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
My Brother's Keeper: "Where to Invade Next" and "Maximum Capacity"
This fall, Four Rivers Cultural Center in Ontario will present "My Brother's Keeper," a series of eight documentary film screenings exploring the lives of marginalized peoples and issues such as mental health, addiction, and mass incarceration. Each screening will be followed by a presentation and Q&A session by a local nonprofit or government agency.
Conversation Project: How Do Our Values Influence Environmental Policy?
Join philosopher Monica Mueller to explore our environmental values and question how those values are reflected—or not reflected—in current local, national, and global environmental policies.
Conversation Project: Race and Place
Racism and Resilience in Oregon's Past and Future
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.
"Spiritrials" Post-Show Discussion with Mic Crenshaw
A conversation reflecting on the show with hip hop artist and activist Mic Crenshaw. This is an Oregon Humanities grant-funded event.
"Spiritrials" Post-Show Discussion with Pancho Savery
A conversation reflecting on the show with Pancho Savery, professor of English and humanities at Reed College. This is an Oregon Humanities grant-funded event.
"Spiritrials" Post-Show Discussion with Creator Dahlak Brathwaite
A conversation reflecting on the show. This is an Oregon Humanities grant-funded event.
"Spiritrials" Post-Show Discussion with JoAnn Hardesty
A conversation reflecting on the show with JoAnn Hardesty, President of NAACP Portland branch. This is an Oregon Humanities grant-funded event.
Shouldering Homelessness
In Southern Oregon, the lack of affordable housing edges out a growing number of people. An essay by Vanessa Houk
Conversation Project: Are International Trade Agreements Good for Oregon?
Oregonians have been active and vocal participants in global debates over trade since the creation of North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). Lawyer and researcher Michael Fakhri will lead participants in a conversation about how we assess the value of international trade agreements.
Think & Drink on Poverty, Displacement, and Inequality
A conversation with Portland leaders and activists working on creative ways to mitigate the effects of the city's housing shortage and build more stable, prosperous communities.
History in the News: Immigration in Oregon's Past and Present
The first program of the 2017 History in the News forum series explores the history of immigration, immigration law, and immigrant rights in Oregon. This is an Oregon Humanities grant-funded event.
Community Forum on Identity and the Use of Race on National Forms
The NAACP Eugene-Springfield Branch hosts a forum about racial identification on government forms. This is an Oregon Humanities grant-funded event.
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