Video of Programs (search and sort)

Soil! What it is and how it works
11/16/2025
James Cassidy

 

Most people only have a vague idea of what soil is and how it works. You will learn it here, how soils form, the reason you are alive, what nutrients are, how soil stores water and nutrients, and how to access published on-line soils data to improve your understanding of this critical resource. After 40+ years in the music industry, James Cassidy has been an Instructor of Soil Science at OSU for over 20 years, and is the founder and faculty advisor for OSU Organic Growers Club, OSU's student farm, which has over 300 student volunteers and growing, largely self-supported through produce sales.

 

"The Palestine Exception" - Ask the Director
11/09/2025
Jennifer Ruth

 

Discussion around the Feature-length movie "The Palestine Exception" is an extended Q&A with director Jennifer Ruth (She does not speak for PSU). Synopsis: As students across the country organize protests against Israel's war on Gaza, decades-long taboos in academia around criticism of Israel–the "Palestine exception"–are shattered. The film features professors and students as they join calls for a ceasefire and divestment from companies that do business with Israel and face waves of crackdown from administrators, the media, the police and politicians. Jennifer Ruth is a professor in the School of Film at PSU, writes about academic freedom and higher education in many national outlets, co-directed this film (with Jan Haaken), and has (co)authored or edited four books.

 

Movie:  https://PalestineExceptionFilm.com

              https://WatermelonPictures.com/films/the-palestine-exception

              https://Amazon.com/amazonprime   (After Dec. 9)

 

Experiencing the Universe
11/02/2025
Todd Duncan

 

Observing the night sky and pondering the vastness of the universe can be both inspiring and humbling. Todd Duncan combines visual highlights from human space exploration with ways to experience ourselves as part of the universe. Dr. Duncan teaches physics and astronomy at Pacific University, and "science integration" – distilling key insights from science down to their conceptual essence, a form that helps inform our worldviews. He has degrees from the University of Illinois, Cambridge, and University of Chicago, and co-authored the college textbook, "Your Cosmic Context: An Introduction to Modern Cosmology."

 

Ross Island: Forest Park on the Willamette
10/26/2025
Mike Houck

 

Ross Island sits mid-Willamette River just south of downtown Portland, and has a history of being built up and exploited by men, but today it is ruled primarily by nature. Speaker Mike Houck, Director of the Urban Greenspaces Institute, will present his vision of how it can serve as one. Mr. Houck has been a leader in urban nature issues since 1980 when he founded the Urban Naturalist Program at the Audubon Society of Portland. He has co-founded Coalition for a Livable Future (CLF); The national Coalition to Restore Urban Waters (CRUW); The Intertwine Alliance; and The Nature of Cities forum.

 

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