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There is no information on current Jefferson Center events to share. Scroll down for information on some previous Jefferson Center events. Cross Community Gathering 2006 Shelton, WA On October 8th, 2006 the Jefferson Center facilitated a Cross-Community Gathering in Shelton, WA. The gathering brought together nearly twenty rural workers and their family members from over 5 different communities, representing 5 different language groups (Spanish, Mam, Kanjobal, Triqui and English). Workers had the chance to analyze current legislative proposals dealing with immigration reform and to share and compare strategies for addressing injustices throughout the region. 
• How do we organize workers in a context where labor protections are weak, not enforced, and constantly threatened by the sheer numbers of an unorganized workforce? • How can we create a united front to tackle employer power and exploitation? • What are the effects of immigration on low-wage workers in the United States? • What are the consequences of an economy based on contingent labor for public process, civic democracy, environmental and public health and well-being? To facilitate learning and strategizing on these issues, the Jefferson Center has joined with the Evergreen State College Labor Center to co-sponsor a bilingual Forum for grassroots groups engaged in autonomous, but related, efforts within the area of Contingent Labor. The first meeting of the Forum, in October 2003 in Portland, OR, brought together representatives from 12 different community groups, unions, and worker centers, from both rural and urban sectors in western Oregon and Washington. Since that first meeting, we’ve held Forums every two months in locations such as Seattle, Shelton, and Olympia, WA and Cornelius, OR. We’ve addressed the precarious dimensions of contingent work across industries, the history of contingent labor in the United States, joint employer status, safety nets for undocumented workers here and in other countries, strategies for organizing contingent workers in rural and urban areas, and possible collaborations between unions and workers’ centers. Download the History of Contingent Work in the US pdf 
November 19-21, 2004 Centro Cultural of Washington County, Cornelius, OR In November of 2004, the Jefferson Center sponsored a bilingual Popular Education Conference at the Centro Cultural in Cornelius, OR. Nearly 50 community leaders and representatives from non-profit organizations and community-based groups, from both rural and urban areas of the Pacific Northwest, came together to develop their skills as popular educators. Some had years of experience in popular education. Others were learning about it for the first time. All of us came as learners, committed to improving our ongoing practice in the struggle for social justice. The conference had several main goals: • First, it tried to provide participants with grounding in the historical development and philosophical underpinnings of popular education, as well as an overview of some of its basic tenets, principles and methodologies. In addition, participants contributed to and received a copy of the “Popular Education Tool Kit,” a compilation of popular education tools, activities, dinámicas and processes as described by their facilitators/participants. • Second, the conference tried to engage participants in exploring the tensions, challenges and contradictions that can arise in the practice of popular education, while recognizing the multiplicity of definitions and conceptions of popular education that we hold, and the reality that no matter how much experience any of us may have in facilitating popular education processes, we are all still learning, still struggling to improve our practice. • Finally, we hoped the conference would serve as a starting point for continued dialogue and conversation, for the building of relationships; as the beginning of a network of groups and individuals engaged in an ongoing process of reflection and criticism, developing ways to support each other in their work and contributing to the maturation and spread of popular education in the region. The diversity of participants’ cultures, language groups, ethnic backgrounds, areas of work and collective experiences made for an incredibly rich and unique learning environment. In our brief time together, we only just began to share our stories, knowledge and skills. We were all inspired by these initial dialogues and will continue to stay in touch, and share and learn from each others’ experiences throughout the region! While the Jefferson Center took the lead in planning this event, many other individuals and organizations were key to its success. We’d especially like to thank: the Ford Foundation, Forest Community Research and the Aspen Institute’s Community-Based Forestry Demonstration Project for their financial support, Centro Cultural for hosting us, session facilitators, folks who helped out with the logistics, food and more, and, most importantly, all the participants who shared their experiences, questions, and reflections in a spirit of cooperative learning! Conference Notes pdf Popular Education Tool Kit pdf 
University of California, Berkeley, CA The Jefferson Center has been a catalyst for developing the theme of natural resource labor issues as part of rural community well-being. Analyses pertaining to these issues in rural areas have, for the most part, ignored the historical and critical labor-related relationships among employees (as a category of civic as well as economic actors), employee benefits (or none), community health, immigration, and civic participation in natural resource areas. In September, 2004, the Jefferson Center cosponsored a think-tank gathering of thirteen culturally diverse academics, lawyers, researchers and community activists to further our collective analysis on these subjects. A primary goal was to sketch out the development of a new synthesis: How do conceptual assumptions behind natural resource-related labor intersect with civic well-being (and its many dimensions) for culturally-diverse rural resource communities of the Pacific West? Crossing the boundaries of traditional disciplines and stretching beyond our normal conceptual categories, we worked to come up with a new narrative of the complex dynamics in rural communities. Beverly Brown (Jefferson Center founder and former Executive Director), wrote the reflection piece below as a starting point for the discussion. For more information on this group and the results of the gathering, please contact us at: info@jeffctr.org. 
Reed College in Portland, OR In 2004, after 10 years of accompanying rural workers in their struggles for justice, the Jefferson Center reached a critical juncture of its development. The news of Beverly Brown’s cancer prompted the Board and Staff to take a close look at our goals and make some critical decisions regarding our future. Entering this pivotal and transitional moment in the Center’s history, the Board felt the need to take a moment for reflection - to think about how the Center came to be, the different roles it played throughout time, the strengths and weaknesses of the work and the values and vision behind it. The evolution of the JC has very much been a “people’s process,” driven by the shared interest, values, and ideals of the many individuals and communities who have participated in the work. By inviting friends and allies of the JC to reflect on and share their involvement and connection to the JC, we hoped to end up with an “historical mirror” to help us better understand and appreciate the values, ideals, and struggles that have motivated the development of the Center. It is this “mirror” that we will refer back to when making decisions about how to move forward into the future, facing new contexts and challenges, embracing new opportunities. Thank you to all of you who participated in this special gathering. We appreciate your ongoing support and involvement! |
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