PDXTalks

When was the last time you heard a story that made you think? Or moved you to action? Or left you in tears and laughter? That's the idea behind PDXTalks, a showcase of powerful stories from PSU students and faculty. Hear speakers talk passionately about topics close to their hearts.

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A Love Letter to the Future

Laura Burney Nissen

10-16-2019

Laura Nissen, professor in the School of Social Work, sees the future coming at us fast but also worries how little we all seem to be ready for it. As ...Read More
Designing a Better Nighttime City

Jeff Schnabel

10-16-2019

Jeff Schnabel, director of PSU’s School of Architecture, thinks we’d better start designing cities for their increasingly 24 hour, 7 day a week futures. As one of the founders of ...Read More
Let Your Future Surprise You

Blake Turner

10-16-2019

Blake Turner, a junior mechanical engineering student in the Maseeh College of Engineering and Computer Science, believes you shouldn’t have to buy an expensive new Tesla to have a car ...Read More
A True You is the Most Powerful You

Santiago Valenzuela

10-16-2019

French hornist and College of the Arts junior Santiago Valenzuela wants to show you how classical music can be just as accessible as the songs on your favorite Spotify playlist. ...Read More
David Bangsberg, MD, MPH, Founding Dean, OHSU-PSU School of Public Health

David Bangsberg

10-18-2017

Portland native David Bangsberg defines the social determinants of health and explains the impact on various lifestyles. Drawing on his previous works at the Johns Hopkins Medical School in drug- ...Read More
Christina Ebersohl, Violist, Honors '19

Christina Diane Ebersohl

10-18-2017

When she started going blind five years ago, Christina Ebersohl had to learn how to do everything differently: walking, reading, listening – and her passion: playing the viola. The US ...Read More
Mariana Garcia Medina Assistant for Policy & Community Affairs, City of Portland CLAS '17

Mariana Garcia Medina

10-18-2017

One of Mariana Garcia Medina’s earliest memories was of her mother waking her up in the middle of the night and telling her they were going to Disneyland. What they ...Read More
Brad Robertson, Partner at On Your Feet, Business '98

Brad Robertson

10-18-2017

Taking risks, saying yes, making mistakes—applying these ideas from improvisational theatre can crank up the joy and dial back the fear at work and in life. Robertson will share how ...Read More
Getting Personal with Food Insecurity: Amelia Pape

Amelia Pape

10-13-2016

Amanda Pape is the founder of My Street Grocery, a community market-on-wheels, and also served as the first Food Access Coordinator for Whole Foods Market. Pape touches on social entrepreneurship, ...Read More
Understanding Muslims in Portland

Wajdi Said

10-13-2016

Education and acceptance: Against the backdrop of world events and the U.S. presidential campaign, Wajdi Said speaks from personal experience about the Muslim community in Portland. Said is the President ...Read More
The Color of Friendship

Gretchen Schauffler

10-13-2016

Connecting science and art: Artists and psychologists have much in common, says Gretchen Schauffler, founder of Devine Color, a line of vibrant interior paints that have transformed countless living spaces. ...Read More
The Power of Storytelling: Kevin Truong

Kevin Truong

10-13-2016

Gay Men Project: Kevin Truong, a photographer and NBC News contributor, traveled the world to tell stories in words and pictures about the lives of gay men. He shares the ...Read More
The Social Roots of Health and Disease

Lawrence Wallack

10-13-2016

Health Matters: Is your ZIP code more important to your health than your genetic code? That's the intriguing question explored by Lawrence Wallack, director of PSU's Center for Public Health ...Read More
Why Aren’t There More Black People in Oregon? A Hidden History

Walidah Imarisha

10-23-2015

Why aren’t there more Black people in Oregon? That’s the provocative question Imarisha poses – and then proceeds to answer. Start with the state’s original constitution, which banned blacks from ...Read More
Jack Ohman: Fearless Cartoonist

Jack Ohman

10-23-2015

The world reacted with revulsion and condemnation when terrorists murdered 12 cartoonists and staff members of Charlie Hebdo, a French satirical magazine. For U.S. cartoonists, the attack was a tragic ...Read More
Lee Shaker: Fearless Communicator

Lee Shaker

10-23-2015

Those cast-off flip phones we all used before replacing them with smart phones have made their way to developing countries in Africa, where even the poorest residents use them. Shaker, ...Read More
Portlandness: A Cultural Atlas

Hunter Shobe and David Banis

10-23-2015

You can learn a lot about a city by mapping it – especially if the maps go beyond streets and delve into everything from the best way to avoid surveillance ...Read More
Evan Thomas: Fearless Inventor

Evan Thomas

10-23-2015

Every minute, a child under the age of five dies from diarrhea, while another child dies of pneumonia, Thomas begins his somber yet uplifting talk. These aren’t problems to be ...Read More
The von Trapps: Fearless Vocals

Amanda von Trapp, Melanie von Trapp, Sofia von Trapp, and August von Trapp

10-23-2015

Descendants of the original Trapp Family Singers, made famous by The Sound of Music, Sofia, Melanie, Amanda and August von Trapp continue the tradition. (Melanie and Amanda are PSU students.) ...Read More
Brian Michael Bendis: Fearless Comic Creator

Brian Michael Bendis

10-17-2014

Anyone who has gone to the movies or picked up a comic book lately probably has encountered Brian’s work. He has been a consultant on such blockbusters as Guardians of ...Read More
Kate Bingaman-Burt: Fearless Illustrator

Kate Bingaman-Burt

10-17-2014

Kate is an illustrator, educator and collector whose work focuses on the things we buy and the emotions we attach to our stuff. A professor of Graphic Design at PSU, ...Read More
Cornel Pewewardy: Fearless Advocate

Cornel Pewewardy

10-17-2014

Cornel is professor and director of Indigenous Nations Studies at PSU, whose research explores issues of Native American identity, decolonization, reconstruction of sovereign nations and indigenous urban and reservation-based teacher ...Read More
Mark Weislogel: Fearless Space Researcher

Mark M. Weislogel

10-17-2014

Mark was a grad student at Washington State University when he saw footage of bubbles flowing through fluids in micro-gravity. His thought: “That’s just too cool.” His fascination led to ...Read More
Claire Wheeler: Fearless Psychologist

Claire Wheeler

10-17-2014

Fearless physician/psychologist Claire is a clinical psychologist and former emergency room doctor. As a full-time instructor at PSU’s School of Community Health she teaches classes in disease physiology, mind-body medicine, ...Read More

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