Ross Island sits mid-Willamette 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. From Friendly House, 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.
Video of Programs (search and sort)
Scientific Ballooning
05/27/2018
Thinniam Rengarajan
Presentation by Thinniam Rengarajan. Scientific ballooning has been in use for over 100 years. What can we do with balloons? How do balloons compare with aircraft and satellites? T. N. Rengarajan has a Ph.D. in High Energy Physics.
Climate Change
05/20/2018
Michael Unger.
Climate change is a major sustainability issue of the 21st century. We can meet our present energy needs and still address climate change. Michael Unger, co-founder of “Engineers for a Sustainable Future”, discusses the causes of climate change and what we can do about it.
Cease Fire Oregon
05/06/2018
Penny Okamoto
Presentation by Penny Okamoto. Gun violence in the United States claims 33,000 lives a year. More than 70,000 people are injured by gunshots yearly. Ms. Okamoto has been working to reduce gun violence since 2000 when she was the Coordinator of Volunteers for the Million Mom March in Portland.
What Is News?
04/29/2018
Allan Classen
The founder and editor/publisher of a neighborhood newspaper examines a 32-year career invested in creating, defining and reporting local news. “Defining what news is makes all the difference,” Allan Classen says, “and no one should read the news without forming their own working definition.”