The Public Research Fellows and the Civic Humanities Working Group invite all members of the UP and broader local communities to a year end showcase, “Everyday Democracy,” Wednesday, April 23, 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., in DB Hall. The showcase will feature a roundtable of civic leaders, a project exhibit with reception, and an evening with former Oregon Poet Laureate Anis Mojgani on engaging with the city through poetry. All are welcome for part or all of the evening’s events.
The Everyday Democracy Showcase will include:
4-5:15 p.m. | The Civic Humanities at Work in Portland: A Roundtable | DB 133
What role do the humanities play in civic life and engagement? What can poetry, visual art, or historical narrative—and humanities practices such as open-ended dialogue, storytelling, and close reading—bring to pressing public concerns? This roundtable brings together Portland civic leaders in law, government, and nonprofit fields to explore how humanities ways of thinking show up in professional and personal contexts as they engage with the city. Roundtable participants: An Bui (Multnomah County), Kathleen Holt (Holt Consulting), Lorelei Juntunen (ECONorthwest), Laura Lo Forti (Vanport Mosaic), Susan Russell (career public defender).
5:15-6:15 p.m. | Reception and Project Exhibit | DB Patio
This year, the Public Research Fellows theme “Everyday Democracy” has inspired five collaborative undergraduate research projects piloted by seven faculty and eleven students. Student PRF fellows will be on hand to share about their projects, and drinks and appetizers will be served.
6:15-7:30 p.m. | Poetry as Civic Engagement | DB 101 (Lounge)
What is a poem? A poem is words on a page, thoughtfully arranged. But might poems exist all around us as well? Join us for an evening with Anis Mojgani, former Poet Laureate of Oregon, who will share his work and invite us to consider what might happen in ourselves and in the place where we live when we engage with the poems that surround us.
Questions about any part of the event? Email PRF Program Director Jen McDaneld (mcdaneld@up.edu) or Co-director Molly Hiro (hiro@up.edu ).
