So Much Together is an Oregon Humanities program that celebrates the abundance of imaginative and collaborative work happening in Oregon and throughout the Pacific Northwest.
So Much Together workshops blend presentation, conversation, and activities to build understanding of how great work is shaping lives and the land in our region.
Click here to view a list of past workshops, including links to presentation recordings.
2024 Workshops
This year's workshops will explore the themes of fear, public, and currents. Workshops are free and open to all ages. Advanced registration is required where noted.
April 6 | Spark to Finish: Creating Together Quickly with Dan Currin
Historic Alberta House, Portland | 12:00 to 4:00 p.m.
While creativity can be a slow and deliberate process, it can also be fast and spontaneous. In this highly interactive workshop for people of all levels of creative in/experience, we will explore the possibilities that reveal themselves when people get together to imagine and create something QUICKLY!
Learn more and register.
May 4 | Unpacking Our Past: History as a Catalyst for Change with Taylor Stewart
Historic Alberta House, Portland | 12:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Oregon has a particularly unique history of racial injustice that in some ways mirrors and in other ways is distinct from the larger history of racial oppression that exists in our nation as a whole. As Oregonians, we’ve inherited these histories, and their legacies connect to present-day injustices. But what does it look like to confront them, as individuals and communities? And beyond that, how might we come together to shape those histories being written today?
Learn more and register.
May 11 | Getting to the Root of It: Growing Movements from the Ground Up with Randal Wyatt
Works Real Estate, Portland | 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.
No matter who we are or where we live, we all have the capacity to move the needle of change in our communities. This workshop is a chance to dig in, ditch the bureaucratic red tape, and contribute to multi-faceted solutions to pressing local challenges—all while sharing perspectives and lifting up others who want to do the same.
Learn more and register.
June 22 | As Often as the Bold: Fear, Community, Movement, and Change with Rene Denfeld and Bobby Bermea
Historic Alberta House, Portland | 12:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Fear is central to our human experience, a powerful force that extends beyond our individual lives into political and cultural realms. In an uncertain world, the opportunities for fear to take root and spread are infinite. In this workshop, we take a non-judgmental approach to fear, viewing it not as our enemy—but as a catalyst for self-discovery and transformation.
Learn more and register.
July 13 | Singing Our Traditions to Life: Music, Memory, and Migration with Corey Murphy
Shaw Historical Library, Klamath Falls | 12:30 to 3:00 p.m.
We all have a particular lineage, a continuing story connecting us across centuries to ancestors, land, and traditions. But what does it really mean to be from a place, from a heritage? In this workshop, we'll deepen our sense of cultural heritage and/or identity, while engaging in thoughtful dialogue about how these might impact our roles and responsibilities as residents of our current communities.
Learn more and register here.
July 20 | Touching Inspiration: Embracing Creativity through the Senses with Amelia Díaz Ettinger
Four Rivers Cultural Center & Museum, Ontario | 12:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Our hands may be our primary tools for daily work and productivity, but they are also a powerful vessel for creativity and connection. Join us in collaborating with the natural environment and exploring the powerful currents that connect and move us.
Learn more and register here.
About the venues
This season, we're excited to partner with several venues across the state, who will serve as hosts for our workshops.
Historic Alberta House, located in Portland, is an event space intended for all, with a focus on reaching and engaging voices from the community that have been disproportionately impacted by social, economic, and/or racial injustices in Oregon.
Four Rivers Cultural Center in Ontario is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that offers a broad program of music, humanities, civic discourse, art & theater, educational and historical curation and local and world culture events. In addition to their programming, they are home to the only Japanese Garden within 400 miles; a 13,000 square foot diorama museum; 85,000 square foot event and conference center, and the Harano Gallery which rotates local and national exhibits all year.
The Works Building in Portland is home to Works Real Estate, a full-service brokerage that focuses on helping people access and achieve their goals for home ownership.
Accessibility
We aim to provide detailed information regarding venue accessibility—including public transportation options, parking, building access, restrooms, and more—for all of our public events. To find specific information for an event, please refer to the individual event listing. If you have questions about this information or would like to request accommodations, please contact r.medina@oregonhumanities.org.
What to Expect During a Workshop
At each event, guest presenters share their work through storytelling, diverse media, and dialogue. Participants are invited to ask questions, have conversations, and collaborate on projects and activities designed by presenters to inspire meaningful engagement with the ideas and processes that make this great work happen.
So Much Together is open to the public and free to attend. These workshops are for anyone interested in better understanding how collaborative and imaginative work is shaping lives and the land in Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. They can be particularly relevant to people who are interested in deepening collaborative and imaginative qualities in their own work and exploring how their work aligns with existing endeavors. People who are early in their careers or at crossroads may find inspiration, connection, belonging, and joy in So Much Together.
Workshops focus on themes explored in Oregon Humanities magazine. Guest presenters will include magazine contributors and people nominated by the public, including Oregon Humanities staff and partner organizations.
Past Workshops
2023
Seeds of Collective Healing: Art Making as a Response to Living and Dying with Crystal Meneses
Event description | Link to recording
Bridging the Gaps: The Future of the Intergenerational Climate Movement with Danny Cage and Adah Crandall
Event description | Link to recording
No Big 'I's, No Little 'U's: Building Multigenerational Communities with Andre Middleton
Event description
Sharing the Tools: Creative Collaboration for BIPOC Artists and Audiences with Gabriel Barrera and Manya Yana
Event description
Create, Iterate, Persist: Connecting People to Action and Action to a Movement with Karen Wolfgang
Event description | Link to recording
Me, Myself, and Us: Evolving Identity Beyond Labels with MOsley WOtta
Event description
Staged Frights: Banding Together Around a Playful, Creative Cause with JR Rymut
Event description
2022
We Can Create a Paradise with Andrea Whiteplume and Stefanie Krantz
Event description | Link to recording
The Link Between Us: How Technology Can Create (and Impede) Opportunity with Caroline Gao
Event description | Link to recording
What Should Not Be Forgotten: Crafting Living Legacies with Susan DeFreitas
Event description | Link to recording
Seeing More Than What's in Front of You with Tammy Jo Wilson
Event description
The Circle is Expanding: The Gift of Climate Grief with Daniela Naomi Molnar, Thomas Doherty, and Emma Marris
Event description | Link to recording
Writing on the Landscape: Reimagining Monuments and Memorials with David Harrelson and Jess Perlitz
Event description | Link to recording
Wit, Wisdom, and Fury: Collaborative Approaches to Community Wellness with Darrell Wade and Christopher Scott
Event description | Link to recording
2021
Workshops in this series were inspired by the "Possession" issue and the “Feed” issue.
Us and Our Stuff with Frog & Toad Hauling Company
The People’s Park: Reclaiming Underused Spaces for Our Communities with Lauren Everett
Shared Possessions with Patricia Vázquez Gómez
Land Conservation: Roots, Realities, and Reimaginings with Katie Voelke
Rekindling Our Ancestral Relations through Food with Michelle Week
Inheritance Stories: Oral Histories of Food Culture with Lola Milholland
View the Inheritance Stories Collective Cookbook, a project created in collaboration by workshop participants.