Being let go is rarely just about a paycheck; it is a profound disruption of your identity and security. When managers aren't trained to handle these moments skillfully, the result is often "termination trauma." Even in the best-case scenarios, losing a job triggers a unique form of grief that can leave you feeling stuck, paralyzed, or resentful. Why This Matters for Your Career The weight of a bad exit doesn't stay at your old desk; it follows you. If left unaddressed, that "trauma energy" can leak into your interviews and follow you into your next role, impacting your confidence and how you show up for new opportunities. To be truly marketable, you have to work through the baggage. In this class, we will talk about the trauma, understanding that you aren't alone, that the person who had to let you go might also be struggling, and some ways to overcome so you don't bring it into your next job. This form is a google form that let's us know what class you are intrested please fill it out https://luma.com/lgdzr48d

​Core Defender returns with student (age 6-14) showcases in AI and Robotics.

​More details to follow

​This was a wonderful event back in 2025 and we are happy to see them return.

​Schedule:

​5:00 - 5:30: Snacks and networking ​5:30 - 6:30: Presentations ​6:30 - 7:00: Wrap up and networking

​Get involved:

​Present your work at a future event: Email us at [email protected] to discuss sharing your project or insights

​Provide feedback: Help shape our community by sharing your ideas and suggestions

​Sponsor an event: Contact us to discuss partnership opportunities

​For more information and to join our community, visit portlandai.engineer

​Thank you to our amazing sponsors

​Portland Incubator Experiment (PIE) ​Silicon Florist ​AlteredCraft ​O'Reilly

Think & Drink Trivia Night is back at OBI and we’re kicking off the year strong.

Join us at the Oregon Bioscience Incubator for an evening of dinner, drinks, and smart competition. Whether you roll in with friends or show up solo, you’ll be placed on a team of four or fewer to keep things fair and fun. No trivia steamrolling allowed.

Your ticket includes a hearty catered dinner and two drink tickets to fuel both your brain and your confidence.

Expect classic pub-style trivia covering a wide range of general knowledge topics. Nothing too obscure, nothing too easy, and just challenging enough to spark a little trash talk.

Doors open at 5:30 PM for networking and mingling. Trivia starts promptly at 6:00 PM and yes, there will be prizes worth bragging about.

Come for the trivia. Stay for the community. Leave with bragging rights.

The Portland Linux Kernel Meetup for February 2026 will be at...

• Date: Thursday, February 19, 2026
• Time: 06:00 PM to 09:00 PM US/Pacific
• Location: Lucky Labrador Beer Hall, 1945 NW Quimby St, Portland, Oregon 97209 US

Come enjoy a beverage and chat with other people who are interested in the Linux kernel. All experience levels are welcome. This is a friendly and casual meetup.

Look for a table with the plush Tux penguin.

To get timely reminders of Portland Linux Kernel Meetups, see https://ikluft.github.io/pdx-lkmu/subscribing-to-pdx-lkmu-events.html.

Please note different location at Multnomah Arts Center. Also, please RSVP on MeetUp as space is limited: https://www.meetup.com/pdxpug/events/312977438/

PostgreSQL 18 was released September 25, 2025.

We will review freely available presentations available on the internet.

Come learn what's new, share experiences, or just meet with local peers! Casual, informal.

A meeting of folks interested in BSD operating systems and related technologies to get together, eat pizza, drink beer, and talk about what interesting things have been going on.

Note: We are likely using our backup location Roseline Cafe for 1 more month, which is just a block away from Capital One Café and we should be back their next month Please check meetup for the exact location https://www.meetup.com/portland-code-coffee/events/312436808/

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

The Venue is at Capital One Café, who is graciously allowing us to host a space. WIFI, power outlets Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Coffee:

Capital One Café has drip coffee and fixings available for it

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival: Head to the top by the glass rooms 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

​​​​​​​​​A free, public workshop—no technical background needed

​​​​​​​​​In just the past 8 months, AI has advanced at a pace that stunned even leading experts. These systems aren’t science fiction anymore—they’re reshaping work, relationships, and even crime in real time.

​​​​​​​​​This workshop explores where AI may be in the next 1–5 years and what that means for your daily life. Together, we’ll tackle urgent questions like:

​​​​​​​​​Jobs: Could AI lead to mass unemployment—or entirely new kinds of work?

​​​​​​​​​Crime: How might AI supercharge scams, hacking, and even physical crime?

​​​​​​​​​Companions: Will people form deep emotional bonds—or even romantic relationships—with AI assistants?

​​​​​​​​​Society: How do top researchers think these trends will shape our future?

​​​​​​​​​What you’ll get:

​​​​​​​​​A fast-paced, beginner-friendly overview of today’s most powerful AI systems

​​​​​​​​​Live demos that reveal both the breakthroughs and the risks

​​​​​​​​​An interactive forecasting exercise where you’ll test your own predictions about AI’s impact

​​​​​​​​​Come ready to explore a future arriving faster than most people realize—one that could transform not just how we work, but how we trust, connect, and even love.

​AI isn't "good" or "bad" but in the moment we're in, it's directly hitting literacy rates, critical thinking, and the safety of our resources. We need to shift our resources, including time, money, and energy, and what better way to do that than an arts and crafts party?

​You do NOT need any experience. You don't need to be "good" at art. Just come, hang out, use your hands, and have fun.

​More details announced soon!

​​Please arrive by 5:30pm so you have time to eat before the programming begins.

In the final installment of our series, we’re taking a page out of the Animaniacs playbook to master the art of standing out. Whether you are a small business owner trying to catch a break or a professional looking for your next role, success often comes down to recognizing the difference between a "Good Idea" and a "Bad Idea", in the art of standing out. In this high-energy session, we use the classic "Good Idea, Bad Idea" format to break down modern branding and professional presence. This class will start with stories of good and bad ideas for standing out, and then we will be creative together and generate ideas and ways you can personally stand out in your business or employment search. Please fill out the Google form so we can know what kind of classes you are interested in https://forms.gle/Gqb71tuVZ3SVQtrT8

PDXOSGeo connects again this week, Wednesday February 25, 6:30p Hot Lips Pizza @ the Natural Capital Center 721 NW 9th Ave, Portland OR. Join us for some show and tell and good open geo discussion!

We're striving to post our speaker a couple weeks in advance of the meeting, so watch this space!

All things DevOps. Please check out our speakers listed in the meetup

Zig Days are single day, in person events dedicated to collaborative programming with the Zig programming language, and socialization in order to inspire you to make Software You Can Love. Generally, that means working in pairs or groups to write some code and share it at the end of the day.

Please RSVP on Luma: https://luma.com/q5i7rd34

Our next AI Safety Portland Meetup is here! It’s been so great to see this community gather for our very first event. Way to stay on your toes for that last one! 😂 We’re excited to get everyone back together on March 4th at 6:00 PM to continue our work in raising awareness around AI safety here in Portland. What to expect this time: We’ll kick things off with a short presentation to set the stage, but the heart of the evening is about conversation. Our goal is to give everyone space to engage, ask questions, and connect with one another. We want to hear your thoughts and keep the dialogue going.

We'll have some snacks and refreshing drinks for you as well. Meet us in the large Community Room 1A (right by the main entrance on the right).

Whether it is your first time or you are coming back, we’d love to have you! Spyder & Cristina

Join us for OBI’s Accelerate Biotech Happy Hour on Thursday, March 5, from 5:30 to 7:00 PM.

You’ll find a welcoming mix of familiar faces and new ones, easy conversations, and a relaxed setting that makes it simple to jump in, whether you’re catching up with old friends or meeting someone for the first time. No agenda, no pressure. Just a chance to be present and enjoy being part of a community that shows up for each other.

Whether you’ve been part of OBI for years or are joining us for the first time, you’re invited.

When: Thursday, March 5 | 5:30 to 7:00 PM Where: OBI Event Space | Suite 230

RSVP and join us for an easy, welcoming evening built around connection and good company.

Summary:

AI coding assistants are everywhere now, but how well do they actually work for open source? This talk shares lessons from using AI on two Linux networking projects: DPDK and iproute2.

The good: documentation, test writing, and debugging. The bad: awkward code suggestions, formatting errors, and false positives in code reviews. The ugly: trying to get AI to write new features like RSTP or FQ-CoDel — after too many failed attempts, I gave up and moved on to more useful things.

A frank look at where AI helps, where it wastes your time, and what to watch out for.

Bio:

Stephen Hemminger is a longtime Linux kernel networking developer, maintainer of iproute2, and contributor to DPDK. Now retired, he continues contributing to open source as a volunteer.

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

The Venue is at Capital One Café, who is graciously allowing us to host a space. WIFI, power outlets Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Coffee:

Capital One Café has drip coffee and fixings available for it

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival: Head to the top by the glass rooms 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

PDXOSGeo connects again this week, Wednesday March 25, 6:30p Hot Lips Pizza @ the Natural Capital Center 721 NW 9th Ave, Portland OR. Join us for some show and tell and good open geo discussion!

We're striving to post our speaker a couple weeks in advance of the meeting, so watch this space!

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

The Venue is at Capital One Café, who is graciously allowing us to host a space. WIFI, power outlets Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Coffee:

Capital One Café has drip coffee and fixings available for it

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival: Head to the top by the glass rooms 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

TokioConf 2026

hosted by the Tokio Project ( https://tokio.rs )

Tax day is in the rear view mirror!

PDXOSGeo connects again this week, Wednesday April 22, 6:30p Hot Lips Pizza @ the Natural Capital Center 721 NW 9th Ave, Portland OR. Join us for some show and tell and good open geo discussion!

We're striving to post our speaker a couple weeks in advance of the meeting, so watch this space!

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

The Venue is at Capital One Café, who is graciously allowing us to host a space. WIFI, power outlets Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Coffee:

Capital One Café has drip coffee and fixings available for it

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival: Head to the top by the glass rooms 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

PDXOSGeo connects again this week, Wednesday May 20, 6:30p Hot Lips Pizza @ the Natural Capital Center 721 NW 9th Ave, Portland OR. Join us for some show and tell and good open geo discussion!

We're striving to post our speaker a couple weeks in advance of the meeting, so watch this space!

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

The Venue is at Capital One Café, who is graciously allowing us to host a space. WIFI, power outlets Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Coffee:

Capital One Café has drip coffee and fixings available for it

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival: Head to the top by the glass rooms 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

The Venue is at Capital One Café, who is graciously allowing us to host a space. WIFI, power outlets Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Coffee:

Capital One Café has drip coffee and fixings available for it

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival: Head to the top by the glass rooms 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

The Venue is at Capital One Café, who is graciously allowing us to host a space. WIFI, power outlets Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Coffee:

Capital One Café has drip coffee and fixings available for it

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival: Head to the top by the glass rooms 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

The Venue is at Capital One Café, who is graciously allowing us to host a space. WIFI, power outlets Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Coffee:

Capital One Café has drip coffee and fixings available for it

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival: Head to the top by the glass rooms 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

The Venue is at Capital One Café, who is graciously allowing us to host a space. WIFI, power outlets Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Coffee:

Capital One Café has drip coffee and fixings available for it

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival: Head to the top by the glass rooms 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

"DigiMarCon South – The #1 Digital Marketing, Media and Advertising Conference & Exhibition in Southern U.S.

Get ready to be inspired and informed at DigiMarCon South, the premier annual conference and exhibition for digital marketing, media, advertising and business professionals in Southern United States, returning October 29-30, 2026 to The Westin San Antonio North Hotel in San Antonio, Texas. Experience two action-packed days including keynotes, master classes and panels from experts and thought leaders with cutting-edge strategies and numerous networking opportunities. Also check out the next generation of technology & innovation; Internet, Mobile, AdTech, MarTech & SaaS Technology. Attend in-person or online to access the next wave of digital innovation, including insights in AI and ChatGPT, marketing automation, content creation, growth hacking, social media marketing, SEO, and more.

Highlights:

 •   Top Industry Keynotes: Hear from visionary speakers who push the boundaries of digital marketing.
 •   Networking Opportunities: Connect with thought leaders, reunite with your peers, and expand your professional network.
 •   Emerging Trends: Discover strategies and latest technologies to move your business to the next level.
 •   Hands-On Learning: Master classes, case studies, and strategy sessions to equip you with practical solutions for immediate impact.

This year’s edition will feature topics such as:

 •   Artificial Intelligence, ChatGPT, and Marketing Automation
 •   Content Marketing, Email Marketing, Social Media Marketing, and Influencer Marketing
 •   Conversion Rate Optimization, Mobile Marketing, and Video Marketing
 •   Data Science, Big Data, Programmatic Advertising and Predictive Analytics
 •   UI / UX Design, User Experience, Omnichannel Marketing, and much more!

Challenge traditional ideas, gain actionable insights, and discover how to thrive and succeed as a marketer in a rapidly evolving digital world. See why people keep coming back year after year to this must-attend event for any marketer wanting to stay ahead!

Register and secure your seat today at https://digimarconsouth.com. "

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

The Venue is at Capital One Café, who is graciously allowing us to host a space. WIFI, power outlets Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Coffee:

Capital One Café has drip coffee and fixings available for it

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival: Head to the top by the glass rooms 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

Show & Tell with Geoff Rhoads (Transformative Optics Corporation)

Join us for an interactive, behind-the-scenes look at cutting-edge optical technology with Geoff Rhoads, founder of Transformative Optics Corporation.

Rather than a traditional slide deck, Geoff will lead a show-and-tell style presentation featuring images of array cameras, sample outputs, and the company’s unique lens designs. The format is intentionally informal and conversational, with plenty of opportunities to ask questions as the visuals unfold. We’ll wrap up with an open Q&A session (about 5–15 minutes) for deeper discussion.

If you’re interested in robotics, computer vision, imaging systems, or novel optical hardware, this will be a great chance to see real technology in action and engage directly with some of the inventors behind it.

As always, all experience levels are welcome—come curious and ready to ask questions!

Step into the Portland small business community’s best-kept secret: a team of seasoned volunteer mentors who’ve seen—and solved—almost every challenge a business can face. For more than 60 years, SCORE has been matching entrepreneurs with one‑on‑one advisors from every sector you can imagine: tech, retail, food, creative, nonprofits, professional services, trades, and more. Whether you’re just sketching an idea or scaling a growing company, you can tap into that experience for free, as often as you need it.

Our mentors reflect Portland’s diversity across industries, career stages, and lived experiences. At this event, you’ll meet some of them, hear how they work with clients, and get a feel for what a confidential, tailored mentoring relationship could look like for you. You’ll also get plugged into workshops, webinars, and a deep library of practical tools—all at no cost.

Need funding? An SBA representative will speak and be available to answer your questions about financing, loan programs, and how to position your business to qualify for capital. If you’ve ever wondered how to actually get money in the door to grow your business, this is your chance to ask directly. This, combined with conversations with a free mentor, can set your business up for success.

Come if you’re serious about moving your business forward and want a trusted, long‑term ally on your side, without adding another line item to your budget.

Portland Metro Chamber is thrilled to host the first EPOP Exclusive of the season with The Performing Arts Scene in Portland! Come enjoy a talk about the performing arts scene and enjoy complimentary breakfast bites.

Panelists:

Luke Burbank : Host / LiveWire Radio & Correspondant / CBS Sunday Morning Paul Snyder : President & CEO / Oregon Symphony Dani Rowe : Artistic Director / Oregon Ballet Theater Poison Waters : Drag Performer / Darcelle XV Showplace

Moderator: Jessi Duley: Founder & CEO / Burncycle & the Reckless Optimist

You may be familiar with our monthly signature EPOP Last Tuesday events, and after a 4 year hiatus, we are excited to bring back our EPOP Exclusives.

EPOP Exclusives are geared toward connecting professionals and community members with established civic and business leaders in the Portland region. EPOP Exclusives include a moderated Q&A session with a featured panel of experts as well as an opportunity to network with like-minded emerging professionals.

Join us at ShowBar at Revolution Hall!

Complimentary breakfast bites.

Summary:

A few things like the recent update to the Certificate Transparency ecosystem to allow the “static CT API”, which is much cheaper to operate; and the new IETF working group PLANTS for Merkle Tree Certificates and why it’s relevant to Post-Quantum cryptography. I’ll provide an intro about what Certificate Transparency is.

Bio:

Jacob Hoffman-Andrews leads EFF's work on the Let's Encrypt project, which assists over 400 million domain names in providing HTTPS encryption to their visitors. His areas of interest also include AI, online authentication (in particular multifactor authentication and passkeys), trusted execution environments and attestations, browser security, DNS, and memory safety. Besides Let's Encrypt's Boulder software, he is a maintainer of the go-jose package, rustdoc, and ureq.

Join the Computer-Human Interaction Forum of Oregon for a Talk on Digital Futures by author, activist, and professor Alexander Reid Ross

“Imagine All the People”: Socio-Ecological-Technical Imaginaries and Utopian MovementsJohn Lennon’s famous directive to “imagine all the people” is virtually impossible for social movements that require enemies and scapegoats to foster egalitarian visions of the future. Building on research into the far right, this talk describes the emergence of powerful socio-ecological-technical imaginaries in the 21st Century and their relation to social movements and community organization. Discussing the rising movement against data centers and right-wing social media, it locates imaginaries in the complex, mimetic struggles for freedom in which technology seems to threaten as much as it promises. In the contexts of theories like “abundance,” accelerationism, and eco-modernism, it possible today, as utopianism and pessimism surge, for “all the people” to fit into our imagined past, present, and future? 

Alexander Reid Ross is an award-winning geographer working at the intersection of human-natural systems, focusing on climate, water, and the political far right. He holds a doctorate from Portland State’s Earth, Environment, Society program, and his work has appeared in the Oregon Historical Quarterly, the Hydrological Sciences Journal, The Public Historian, and the Annals of the American Association of Geographers Review of Books. He has produced three books, with a forthcoming work on Shakespeare and the concept of the sublime due out later this year.

All are welcome. Free to enter, small donations to cover expenses encouraged. Feel free to bring a bottle of wine, some snacks, or seom refreshments to consume and share.

NTEN's Tech Clubs are local gathering spaces for folks who are interested in putting technology to work for missions and movements. Whether you work in a nonprofit, foundation, or community group, or maybe provide technology products, services, and strategies to those group, this is the space for you. In future events, we plan to cover a diversity of topics from AI to security, open source development to the future of the web.

Come to the launch event to network with others who care about technology for good, and help us identify topics for future events, nominate yourself or other folks you know as presenters, or even join us in volunteering to ensure we build a strong network this year. Help us launch the Portland Tech Club together!

Come join Community Broadband PDX to talk about building a publicly owned broadband network here in Portland.

RSVP to be added to our mailing list!a

There will be Snacks! This is a kid friendly event!

​Make friends who care about stuff at Soapbox Portland, the city's most fun community space for climate action! ​We're having a party for people who care about the planet. Same time, same place, every week. You're invited. Request a reparative ticket here if you need one.

​Every first Tuesday of the month, Soapbox Project presents Dream Sessions, an evening of food, live music from a diverse range of local artists, conversations, and new connections.

​​This month, our theme is AI x Sustainability, and we'll be focusing on understanding what it means in terms of people power, good and bad. Join us in making friends who care about reimagining what a safe, sustainable world could look like in the context of new technology.

​The artist: alt-pop songstress Kingsley

​​The plan

​​5~5:45 pm | arrive, eat dinner, chit chat

​​5:45~7 pm | our moderator and artist will weave together music and a conversation about how to create the change to you want to see in the world. This isn’t just entertainment; it's an interactive experience ✨

​7-8 pm | the vibes will continue; pick up the conversation with new people and make friends

​​Please arrive by 5:30pm so you have time to eat before the programming begins.

Portland Design Thinkers are excited to welcome Leksi Kostur, Ephemeral by Design.

This talk explores the role of biodegradable materials in the future of design. Drawing from work in festivals, weddings, and funerary contexts, Leksi examines design situations where short-lived and single-use objects are not failures, but appropriate and even advantageous choices. Rather than positioning biodegradability as a universal solution, she focuses on material logic and circular design practices, aligning purpose with lifespan. She also looks at whimsy, imagination, and references to nature as intentional design choices, framing optimism as a designer’s responsibility at a time when environmental fatigue and resignation are widespread. Designing with nature becomes a way to counter eco-nihilism and imagine more regenerative futures

Join Assessed Intelligence for an end-of-January AI networking happy hour bringing together professionals working in artificial intelligence, data, and intelligent systems. This relaxed, after-hours gathering is designed for thoughtful conversation, new connections, and idea sharing in an informal setting. Whether you’re building, deploying, or guiding AI initiatives, we’d love to have you join us.

Happy New Year geo-nerds!

PDXOSGeo connects again this week, Wednesday Jan 28, 6:30p Hot Lips Pizza @ the Natural Capital Center 721 NW 9th Ave, Portland OR. Join us for some show and tell and good open geo discussion!

Topic for January: David Percy “Percy” has been doing research on applying Reconstructability Analysis (RA) to categorical raster datasets since 2012, and is preparing to defend his dissertation on Spatial Reconstructability Analysis soon. RA is a form of machine learning that works exclusively with discrete data, so categorical data such as the National Land Cover Database is a perfect source of data for it. These NLCD data have been analyzed in attempts to predict forest dynamics (clearcuts), and wildfire size, specifically looking at how historical vegetation affects these outcomes. Results will be presented that show how these data are useful in modeling future events. All of the extraction for analysis was done in Python using open source GIS libraries Shapely and Rasterio. Code will be shared and discussed.

This is an in person meeting

Agenda

5:30 pm - 5:45 pm - Pizza and Intro 5:45 pm - 6:45 pm - Presentation

Details

So you have a new Workflow in your application. Let's say that it has 20 steps in the workflow

What happens if the instance handling the workflow goes down What happens if a remote service that is invoked in one of the Workflow steps is down This is where a durable workflow comes in. DBOS is a durable Workflow engine that provides this capability along with many other features.

Come learn about the durable workflow space and how you can add such a capability to your Java application

Speaker

Harry Pierson is a Software Engineer at DBOS and is responsible for the Java implementation of DBOS Peter Kraft is the Co-founder of DBOS

As part of the start of the PNSQC 2026 Call for Papers, we’re excited to invite the community to a full day of free, in-person workshops in Portland. Held the day after the PNSQC Quality Jam, this Free Workshop Day is designed to sharpen practical skills, spark new ideas, and bring the QA community together for hands-on learning and connection.

Join us for an interactive day led by experienced practitioners and thought leaders, featuring two workshop tracks with sessions offered in both the morning and afternoon. Whether you’re strengthening your core testing skills or exploring how AI is shaping modern quality practices, there’s something here for you.

Registration on the PNSQC website is required.

You can register for the full day, or choose only the workshop options that fit your schedule. Space is limited, so we encourage you to register early and help spread the word.

Morning Workshops (8:30 AM – 12:00 PM)

AI Orchestration: Dual Stewardship with John Cvetko. Explore how humans and AI can collaboratively manage quality, risk, and decision-making in modern systems. QA Re-Bootcamp with Heather Wilcox & Bhushan Gupta. Refresh foundational testing skills and examine modern quality practices through engaging, activity-based learning.

Afternoon Workshops (1:00 PM – 4:30 PM)

Integrate MCP into your workflow with Joe Petsche. We will work with a variety of MCP servers to connect your quality apps and find ways to do your job better and faster. Come with your apps and we will connect in to your scenarios too. Writing Practical Test Plans, Fast and Easy with Wayne Roseberry. This workshop teaches a pragmatic, lightweight approach to writing effective test plans—fast.

There will be morning refreshments, and we'll take a group lunch, giving you plenty of time to connect with fellow quality professionals throughout the day.

Let’s kick off 2025 with another great evening of cloud-native learning, real-world talks, and hallway conversations with Portland’s platform-engineering community.

Date: Thursday, January 22 Time: 5:30–7:30 PM Location: Reperio Health, 4784 SE 17th Ave Suite 120, Portland, OR Recording: Talks are typically recorded (opt-in by speakers)

The Observability Reset: 4 Foundational Principles for O11y That Scales by Noam Levy, CTO at groundcover

Let’s face it, collecting metrics, logs, and traces isn’t enough anymore. Most o11y stacks today are drowning in telemetry, buried in cost overruns, and spread so thin across tools that they’ve become more noise than signal. The classic SaaS-based model is cracking.

This talk lays out 4 foundational principles for building a sustainable observability posture - that scale with infra and budget:

• Bring Your Own Cloud (BYOC): SaaS o11y is financially unsustainable at scale.
• Consolidate or Bust: DevEx suffers when visibility is fragmented- consolidation isn’t a luxury - it’s a requirement.
• Standardize Everything: Open protocols, pluggable pipelines, and vendor-neutral APIs are the only way forward, or your o11y is a ticking liability.
• Self-Reliance: You can’t rely on app-level instrumentation forever - eBPF enables scalable o11y without complexity

This session pulls from real-world deployments and lessons learned helping engineering teams scale visibility without compromise.

#

“What It’s Like to Learn Cloud-Native Today — A Beginner’s Kubernetes Story” by Kelis Hightower

When given the chance to explore cloud-native development, I chose not to avoid the unfamiliar. With no prior Kubernetes experience and only a few weeks to learn, I took a hands-on approach by building a small burnout-aware study tool to ground abstract concepts in something tangible.

This talk shares what it’s like to learn cloud-native technologies today from a beginner’s perspective. Through experimentation with containers, Kubernetes, and cloud services, I’ll reflect on the mental model shifts, early misconceptions, and “aha” moments that emerged from learning by building. Rather than focusing on expertise, this would offer an honest look at what beginners actually take away from a short, modern introduction to cloud-native systems.

Agenda

5:30–6:00 — Check-in, snacks, networking 6:00–6:30 — The Observability Reset (Noam Levy) 6:30–7:00 — Beginner’s Kubernetes Story (Kelis Hightower) 7:00–7:30 — Networking (and games if anyone wants to bring some!)

Who Should Attend

Platform engineers, SREs, DevOps, app/platform teams, OSS maintainers, beginners learning cloud-native, and anyone curious about observability, Kubernetes, modern infra, or developer experience.

Sponsors

Venue Sponsor — Reperio Health F&B Sponsor — groundcover

It’s time to kick off the 2026 Call for Papers with a Quality Jam! This will be an evening of lightning talks to inspire and be inspired for new proposals on software quality — a jam session to get together as a group and hear a variety of perspectives.

The speaker lineup for this year is:

"Testing the Future: From Testing Code to Testing Intelligence" with Premi Vinayagam from Jama software "The OWASP Top 10 Isn’t a Vulnerability List—It’s a Mirror: What 2025 Tells Us About Supply Chain Security" with Caroline Wong "Test Plans Made Easy: Saying a Lot By Saying Very Little" with Wayne Rosenberry "Data-Driven API Test Case Generation Using AI and Model Context Protocol" with Joseph Petsche "Formally Secure Hardware with Rust" with Calvin Deutschbein "Lessons Learned in AI Engineering" with Mitch White "Software Quality by Example as a Senior Engineer" with Mark Kleinhaus

Make a New Year's resolution to build your career by increasing your quality know-how and skills, and make some new connections with other software quality professionals.

The first hour will provide time for networking and a chance to share some food and drink.

This event is hybrid - we'll be returning to the University Place Hotel, and we'll also stream it online, all for free!

Topic

This talk explores the incredible power of tiny CSS snippets that create big accessibility improvements, proving that sometimes the most impactful code is measured in lines, not libraries. We'll dive deep into practical, copy-paste-ready CSS solutions that require minimal implementation time but deliver maximum inclusivity. Each snippet comes with real-world context, showing exactly how these small changes impact actual users.

Agenda

The event begins at 6 pm; join early, starting at 5:45 pm for networking.

• 5:45–6:00pm Networking
• 6:00–6:15pm Introductions and announcements
• 6:15–6:45pm Presentation
• 6:45–7:15pm Q&A and discussion

About the presenter

Mike Mai is an expert in design systems, web accessibility, HTML/CSS, and typography. His design philosophy is rooted in a fundamental understanding of the web. Mike's passion for typography, cultivated during my BFA in Graphic Design at Massachusetts College of Art and Design, directly informed my decision to pursue web design professionally. He considers typography to be the most critical foundation of any website, given its text-centric nature, making typeface selection and typesetting my first order of business on any new projects.

Mike firmly believes that design is about solving problems, a principle instilled by a formative mentor. This conviction drove his path to specializing in accessible web design. While strong typographic forms are important, they must be balanced with robust function and an intuitive user experience. He is committed to ensuring all his designs are usable, useful, and truly inclusive.

RSVP

Please RSVP for the Zoom link:

• Meetup
• Eventbrite
• email

Accommodation requests

If you have any accommodation requests, don't hesitate to get in touch with us before the event to discuss.

Join the Portland AWS User Group for an evening of technical learning with other tech professionals!

Starting networking at 5:30 PM, Presentation at 6:00 PM

Enjoy drinks & PIZZA provided by ProFocus.

That PLUG Clinic you like is coming back into style!

The PLUG Clinic returns again this month on January 18th, from 1pm-5pm, at Willamette University's space on the 2nd floor of the Ecotrust Building. If you need help with your Linux computer, or want to offer help, you are welcome!

Volunteer helpers are as desirable as helpees. Helping is fun and rewarding. If you've ever helped out at a PLUG Clinic before, come checkout the space!

Thank you Willamette University, for hosting us!

Details

What to Expect:

Code and Coffee is an inclusive, informal co-working session. Drink some coffee, bring your laptop, and have engaging conversations. This is a great opportunity to learn from others, share your knowledge, and possibly collaborate on side projects, online courses, or even your day-to-day work tasks. Still uncertain? Let's chat on Discord!

Venue:

Roseline Coffee -- inside the Woodlark Hotel

Parking

Recommended Parking: Smart Park, $7 all day https://www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/smartpark

Agenda:

10 AM - Arrival 10:15 AM - Introductions: Share your name Discuss your current projects or interests. If you don’t have a specific project, share what intrigues you! Mention your expertise and how you can assist others. Are you job hunting or hiring? Let us know! Community events you wanna plug. If none, that's cool too. 12:30 AM - Wrapping Up: You can stay longer, but we'll officially be done! We usually grab lunch as a group at near by food carts

The Portland Linux Kernel Meetup for January 2026 will be at...

• Date: Friday, January 16, 2026
• Time: 06:00 PM to 09:00 PM US/Pacific
• Location: Lucky Labrador Beer Hall, 1945 NW Quimby St, Portland, Oregon 97209 US

Come enjoy a beverage and chat with other people who are interested in the Linux kernel. All experience levels are welcome. This is a friendly and casual meetup.

Look for a table with the plush Tux penguin.

To get timely reminders of Portland Linux Kernel Meetups, see https://ikluft.github.io/pdx-lkmu/subscribing-to-pdx-lkmu-events.html.

A meeting of folks interested in BSD operating systems and related technologies to get together, eat pizza, drink beer, and talk about what interesting things have been going on.

Event Agenda: There will be a main talk between 30 minutes to 1 hour followed by optional lighting talks.

Main Talk by the Lake Monsters Robotics Team

The Lake Monsters Robotics Team competes in FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics every year. They will give an overview and demo of their robot and how they prepare for competition. They are also always looking for mentors to help assist the students in the program-so they'll provide information for that too if you are interested in getting involved!

Lightning Talks: Lightning talks are talks up to 5 minutes in length on any topic that might interest other Python people. See PyCon’s Lightning Talks description for more details.

Let’s get together for an informal BEAM PDX (formerly the Portland Elixir & Erlang User Group) hangout: coffee, conversation, and light co-working.

This is a low-key monthly meetup for folks working with Elixir, Erlang, Gleam, and other BEAM languages, aimed at reconnecting the local community and rebuilding momentum after a long quiet stretch.

There will be opportunities to:

• Ask questions about Elixir and other BEAM languages
• Share what you’ve been working on (or stuck on)
• Get help with programming or design problems
• Co-work: get things done with like-minded folks nearby
• Brainstorm ideas for future talk-based meetups and identify potential speakers
• Bring your laptop if you’d like. It's totally optional.

New to BEAM languages, or just curious? You’re very welcome.

Please RSVP so we know roughly how many people to expect. If your plans change, un-RSVP when you can.

This meetup is also part of our transition away from Meetup to a new home for the group, where we’ll be organizing future events.

This month we will have in depth technical presentations from AI builders looking for feedback and diverse perspectives our amazing community can always be counted on for.

Schedule:

5:00 - 5:30: Snacks and networking 5:30 - 6:30: Presentations 6:30 - 7:00: Wrap up and networking

Presenters

Beyond the Demo: Building Reliable AI with LLM Evaluations

Speaker: Randy Olson, Co-Founder and CTO of Goodeye Labs

Randy has a PhD in Computer Science and 15+ years of experience across software engineering, ML, and AI product development. His work has been featured in the New York Times, Wired, and FiveThirtyEight, and he created the widely-used open source tool TPOT.

LLM evaluations (evals) have become one of the most talked-about topics in AI engineering, but for many teams, they remain abstract or intimidating. This talk cuts through the noise and gets practical: What are LLM evals, why should you care, and how do you actually implement them? Whether you're an AI engineer shipping models, a product manager defining quality bars, or anyone working hands-on in the AI space, you'll leave with a clear understanding of why evals matter and how to get started.

Get involved:

Present your work at a future event: Email us at [email protected] to discuss sharing your project or insights Provide feedback: Help shape our community by sharing your ideas and suggestions Sponsor an event: Contact us to discuss partnership opportunities For more information and to join our community, visit portlandai.engineer

Thank you to our amazing sponsors

Portland Incubator Experiment (PIE) Silicon Florist AlteredCraft O'Reilly Instrument

Built an app that needs real user feedback? Tired of testing in isolation?

Break - It! brings Portland founders together to stress-test each other's applications and get honest feedback before launch.

This edition will be led by Beth Fuller, a professional software product manager who specializes in helping teams refine their products before release.

To kick things off, we’ll be starting with one brave volunteer: TBD — a local startup ready to be really broken. It’ll set the tone for how deep and constructive we’ll go with feedback throughout the session. 😉

App Creators - Whether you've been hand-coding, AI-coding, or no-coding your way to success, get your app in front of fresh eyes who understand the founder journey.

Everyone Else - Here's your chance to break something for good! Channel your inner chaos agent, find those sneaky bugs, and give feedback so insightful it makes founders weep tears of gratitude.

What You'll Do

Demo your app (5 minutes) - Show what you've built Test others' apps (rotating 15-minute sessions) Give & receive real-time feedback from fellow builders Discover bugs before your users do Connect with Portland's founder community

Perfect If You Have

Apps in development or beta testing Prototypes needing concept validation Launched apps wanting UX optimization Side projects that need a sanity check All platforms welcome: Web apps, mobile apps, browser extensions, PWAs All dev approaches welcome: Hand-coded, AI-assisted, no-code, hybrid

What to Bring

Your app (any stage, any platform) 2-3 specific feedback questions Laptop/device for testing others' apps Open mind for constructive input

Event Flow

11:30 AM-12:00 PM: Arrival & casual networking 12:00-12:30 PM: Quick app intros (2-3 minutes each) 12:30-1:30 PM: Testing rounds (4 sessions, 25 minutes each) Work from the space all day! Come early or stay late to enjoy our downtown workspace.

Ground Rules

Constructive feedback only - We're here to help each other win Respect IP - No screenshots or sharing without permission Meet apps where they are - Rough prototypes to polished products all welcome Come to give AND receive - Your fresh perspective helps everyone

Join us for drinks and friendly conversation at Tap Union Freehouse in downtown Vancouver for our monthly social gathering! Meet fellow designers and engineers from the north side of the PDX metro and talk about your craft over tasty pints and good eats.

This is a casual social meetup for the people in tech who build products to network and get to know their local community. While we are new, there are no scheduled talks, but we're interested in meeting people who want to share their knowledge with others! We meet every second Tuesday of each month.

We've chosen Tap Union as our meetup location because of its friendly staff, wide variety of rotating craft beer (including numerous Non-Alcoholic and Gluten-Free options!), and its cozy atmosphere. There are also board games and a mini arcade on-site to enjoy!

People doing strange things with electricity! Along with the usual freewheeling chaos, the quick talks continue this month with Joe FitzPatrick (aka SecurelyFitz), presenting:

"Probing Pins for Protocol Polyglots" This talk explores stacking multiple protocols, like UART, SPI, and I2C, onto the same GPIO pins by exploiting undefined “don’t care” regions. Learn how to bitbang several devices at once, creating protocol polyglots without extra hardware.

DorkbotPDX is a relaxed, informal show-and-tell for electronic artists, circuit designers, microcontroller programmers, retro computing enthusiasts, video game designers, digital archaeologists, and mod synth gearheads in Portland, Oregon.

Bring your electronic wonders, monsters, and works-in-progress for others to see, or come see what others have been working on! Whether it's code or circuits, electronic creativity of all sorts is welcome here.

Table space with power will be available for project show-and-tell; we'll have a table for drinks and snacks, feel free to contribute to the communal cache/BYOB. The Free cart is back, take or leave some components (don’t leave TOO much, if you have big stuff, maybe check the Discord/mailing list to see if anyone is interested in taking it first!)

Info and links to our Discord and other social channels are at https://dorkbotpdx.org

This 3-hour workshop uses the Portland Art Museum as a setting to slow down and look at how you think. It is designed for those feeling mentally overloaded or under sustained pressure who want a structured way to step back.

We use the museum as a quiet, neutral environment to slow down observation. Using art as a shared reference point for reflection, we look at patterns of thinking without requiring personal disclosure or art knowledge.

Advanced registration is required to keep the group size small. The exact meeting location within the museum will be sent upon registration.

The Format:

90 minutes in the museum: Moving through galleries using simple observation prompts.

90 minutes of conversation: A facilitated discussion afterward at a nearby coffee shop to talk about what resonated and why.

Follow-up: Includes an optional one-hour Zoom check-in two weeks later.

Cost: $85. Note: Museum admission is $27.50, paid directly to the museum (free for members).

Facilitator: Ryan has worked in the arts for over 20 years and serves as a business coach and mentor. This workshop uses art as a practical tool to create perspective on how we think and work.

Venue: Portland Art Museum 1219 SW Park Ave, Portland, OR 97205

Tags: workshop, mental-health, wellness, professional-development, art

An object-relational mapping (ORM) is a layer that lets you work with a database using native types instead of writing queries directly. In Rust terms, an ORM maps tables to structs, rows to struct instances, and columns to fields, handling serialization, deserialization, and query construction for you.

Toasty is an experimental new ORM for Rust that prioritizes ease of use. It supports both SQL databases as well as some NoSQL databases, including DynamoDB and Cassandra. Rather than hiding the database's capabilities, Toasty exposes features based on the target database.

Carl Lerche, Toasty's designer, is also the original designer of the Tokio asynchronous runtime library.

From data centers to grid intelligence, the future of AI depends on energy and the future of energy depends on AI— especially here in the Pacific Northwest.

Join founders, investors, and operators for a conversation at the Energy and AI Nexus. We will explore where AI and energy intersect today and where the biggest market opportunities are emerging across the Pacific Northwest for how we better manage, understand, operate and report on energy use for the grid, mobility, buildings and computational power.

This interactive webinar will cover market trends, investment signals, and what entrepreneurs should know if they’re building AI for energy, energy for AI, or infrastructure that connects the two. We want to hear from you on your experience and insights in this rapidly changing landscape.

Together, the panel will unpack what investors are paying attention to, industry signals and thoughts on what founders in the Pacific Northwest should be building next.

Moderated by Katherine Juengel, with insights from leaders across AI, energy, and climate tech.

Panelists include:

Katherine Juengel (moderator), Green Cities Industry Liaison at Prosper Portland

Jim Huston, venture capitalist and longtime clean tech investor, member E8 Angels

Other panelists TBD

Together, the panel will unpack what investors are paying attention to, industry signals and thoughts on what founders in the Pacific Northwest should be building next.

📅 Date: January 8, 2026

⏰ Time: 12:00pm - 1:00pm

📍 Location: Virtual (Zoom link provided upon registration)

🎟️ Registration: Attendance is free, but registration is required!

This Hub programming is supported by funding from Business Oregon & supported by Prosper Portland.