The Big One: Facing Oregon’s Coming Financial Challenges Together

Despite a strong and growing economy, the coming two decades hold magnitude 8.0 challenges for public services for nearly every community in Oregon—schools, water, fire protection, public safety, mental health, and more. The key difference between the big earthquake predicted in our future and this coming financial crisis is simple: Oregon governments and voters have the tools to determine when (or if) the financial hardships will hit, how deeply they will impact communities today and in the future, and which Oregonians will carry the heaviest burden—by income level, geography, race and generation.

In a series of three events this spring, City Club presents new data, questions, and perspectives to offer a path for understanding this complex issue and our roles in shaping a hopeful future for all of Oregon. For some, this series will present a new way of talking about a host of issues that have been simmering for decades; for others it may be a wake-up call. Either way, this series is an appeal for new action and engagement. 

Part 1: Defining the Challenge - April 5
Jesse Beason, Caitlin Baggott Davis, and John Tapogna will share new data and discuss how philanthropic leaders in Oregon can work together and with communities to center the voices and experiences of community members in both defining the challenges and designing solutions. (Register below.)

Part 2: How Oregon's Coming Financial Challenges Impact Communities - May 17
Let's look at how the coming crisis might affect specific communities in Oregon. We'll especially focus on those who are often most impacted during economic downturns and examine the underlying assumptions that cause some communities to carry heavier burdens when public budgets shrink. Get tickets for part 2 >>

Part 3: Solutions to Oregon's Coming Financial Challenges - May 24
Let's talk about solutions that won't leave communities or generations behind. Get tickets to part 3 >>

Speakers

Jesse Beason is Northwest Health Foundation’s President and Chief Executive Officer. He leads the Foundation in pursuit of its vision of health for everyone in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Before becoming President in January 2019, Jesse served as Northwest Health Foundation’s Vice President of Strategy & Public Affairs. He has also been Executive Director of Proud Ground and Senior Policy Director of Housing, Culture and Planning for then-Commissioner Sam Adams. In all this time, Jesse keeps saying yes to serving on boards—too many to list here. He moved from Denver, Colorado to Portland to attend Lewis & Clark College two decades ago. Jesse is a proud uncle, a semi-closeted sci-fi geek and a middling beekeeper.

Caitlin Baggott Davis is the founding executive director of the North Star Civic Foundation, a private entrepreneurial foundation focused on crisis-level wealth inequality in our region. The Foundation has supported research, economic analysis, and innovative policy development related to poverty and self-sufficiency in Oregon, as well as housing affordability and, recently, the fiscal health of local governments throughout the state.  

John Tapogna is President of ECONorthwest and oversees the firm's overall business strategy. Since his arrival at ECONorthwest in 1997, he has built consulting practices in education, healthcare, human service, and tax policy for clients including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Lumina Foundation, Idaho’s Albertson Family Foundation, and Oregon’s Chalkboard Project. He recently completed a widely-circulated study on homelessness in the Portland region for the Oregon Community Foundation. Prior to joining ECONorthwest, Tapogna served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Chile and was an analyst at the U.S. Congressional Budget Office, where he estimated the cost of Clinton-era welfare reform legislation.