Think Out Loud

The Cedar Grove apartments in Beaverton were created by Community Partners Affordable Housing, or CPAH. The nonprofit has been working to create homes that Oregonians can actually afford to live in for 30 years now. This is part of a series of conversations we’re having this year about some of the biggest problems Oregon is facing, along with possible solutions.

More than half of renters in Oregon don’t have enough money after they pay rent to be able to afford basics like food, child care or transportation. Meanwhile, Oregon is among the states with the lowest supply of rentals that are affordable to people who are at or below poverty levels. As a state economist put it, “We have the worst affordability” in the nation.

We were joined by CPAH staff: Executive Director Rachael Duke; Housing Director Jilian Saurage Felton; and Resident Services Coordinator Renee Sheets Johnson. We also heard from neighbors and residents of Cedar Grove and other residents of CPAH properties, including Talaur Alvarado, Patrick Kirlin, Virginia Bruce, Paula Morrison, Mary Barbee and Jeffrey Worthington.

Fentanyl has taken over the illegal drug market largely due to its low cost and abundant supply. It’s fueling rising addiction rates, and those in need of treatment often have no options. Enter the Confederated Tribes of the Grande Ronde’s Great Circle Recovery program. Great Circle runs two clinics in Portland and Salem, as well as a mobile clinic. It serves not just tribal members, but anyone who’s struggling with addiction and wants help.

We hear more about the nonprofit’s mission and how the program works from Executive Director Kelly Rowe, Medical Director Dr. James Laidler and Operations Director Jennifer Worth. We also talk with James Smith, a urinalysis technician at Great Circle who is working to become one of their peer mentors; as well as Albert Mendez, who is in recovery and receives regular treatment from the clinic. Oregon Health Authority’s Behavioral Health Director Ebony Clarke also joins the conversation.

The Oregon-based nonprofit LifeWorks NW began providing mental health services more than 60 years ago, long before the idea of providing mental health services in the community was recognized as a best practice. Today the nonprofit runs a variety of mental health treatment programs, including Adolescent Day Treatment and one of the state’s Early Assessment and Support Alliance programs. It’s also one of the three partners of the Bridge clinic at OHSU.

As a part of a new OPB series tackling some of the most pressing problems that Oregonians are facing, along with some promising solutions, we went to the LifeWorks NW Tigard site and sat down with those involved in receiving and giving mental health care.

Our guests were: Massimo Merolla, an Oregon State University sophomore; Occupational Therapist Kylie McDermott; Tamara Sale, director of the EASA Center for Excellence; Sara Cady and her dad Josh Cady; Family Therapist Becca Schweigert; and Karen Bos, OHSU assistant professor and medical director of LifeWorks NW.

We are joined by a panel of experts to look back at the biggest news stories from the Pacific Northwest in 2023. Nkenge Harmon Johnson is the president and CEO of the Urban League of Portland. Anna Griffin is the Vice President of News at OPB. And Scott Bruun is the Vice President of Government Affairs at Oregon Business & Industry, a statewide business advocacy group.

As 2023 comes to a close, the staff of OPB's "Think Out Loud" look back on some of their favorite conversations from the past year. Producers Allison Frost, Elizabeth Castillo, Gemma DiCarlo, Sage Van Wing and Sheraz Sadiq joined host Dave Miller in conversation.

Portland artist Yoonhee Choi has been hard at work creating giant glass wall hangings that will decorate the airport security area at the newly renovated Portland International Airport. Choi usually makes tiny collages from found materials, but her first public art commission, funded by the Regional Arts and Culture Council, will be nearly 56 feet long. Choi joins us to discuss what it means to make art for Oregon’s busiest airport.

Earlier this month, the Oregon Health Authority announced plans to offer free naloxone to middle and high schools throughout Oregon. In Oregon City schools, naloxone is already available. The district has also hosted public awareness events about fentanyl, counterfeit pills and drug overdoses.

Michele Stroh is a board member of the Oregon City School District. She’s rallied behind these efforts, she says, to help keep students safe. Her son died from fentanyl poisoning in 2020. And she hopes that young people continue to receive education about these issues. Stroh joins us with more on what she’d like to see from schools in Oregon.

The city of Portland hired Brandy Westerman to oversee its Safe Rest Villages and Temporary Alternative Shelter Sites. Westerman previously served as a senior executive at Mercy Corps, and has led humanitarian response teams in Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and other countries. She joins us to talk more about her new role as the city’s emergency humanitarian operations director, and her vision for homeless services in Portland.

 In September, the newly redesigned Chelsea Anderson Memorial Play Station opened at Marshall Park in Vancouver. But this isn’t your typical playground. For one thing, wood chips have been replaced with smooth surfaces to allow children in wheelchairs easy access to play features, including a merry-go-round and swing, modified for their use and enjoyment. Instead of an abundance of steel and plastic, natural elements also abound, from a sensory garden to water features and a sandy play area for kids to explore and interact with. Harper’s Playground, a Portland-based nonprofit, entered into a partnership in 2018 with Vancouver city officials to design and raise the funds to build the $4 million fully accessible playground. G Cody QJ Goldberg, the co-founder and chief play officer of Harper’s Playground, explains his model for “radically inclusive” playgrounds and the personal motivation which drives his work. 

Tribal governments have used the Endangered Species Act to litigate on behalf of imperiled, culturally important species like salmon and grizzly bears, but the law does not acknowledge tribal sovereignty and hunting rights. Anna V. Smith, associate editor of High Country News, joins us to talk about the complicated relationship between tribes and the 50-year-old law.