You've likely heard of Collective Agency: the place and the group-of-groups. Did you know it's a representative democracy? Want to know how that benefits you and your friends?

Come to the new weekly civics meeting: the first ever is January 4th. It's called "Own Collective Agency" because that's what the goal is. Responsibilities you can have, ways you can be here, actions you can do, long-term planning, things you can know (want to know the budget, not just numbers but the context of what they mean? we want to share that with you). By learning and doing, you'll support what happens here overall.

Coordinating Council members Alex, Fitz, and Emanuel will be there. Alex will start the meeting conversation by saying, "Sometimes people ask me, 'Do you own Collective Agency?' and I hate that question."

What is ownership? Fitz says about what we have here: "To do these things requires ownership." Ownership by who? What does it mean to own the equivalent of a very small city, which is a workplace? Ownership by citizens: by Coordinating Council Members, by Community Workgroup Organizers, by Volunteers ("I can be there for free? What's the catch?"), and Paid Members. We also have paid meetings, visitors, and associations and independent community organizers in Portland, all of whom sometimes become citizens.

Ownership not just by one person who hires employees and makes all the decisions, because that's the simplest way. But ownership (responsibility and autonomy, checks and balances) by each of us, within a structure called a Constitution, with a Bill of Rights called the Community Guidelines, with the workplace layout and signage, and with the website.

You might have heard that you can work here for free, Monday through Friday, 9am-5pm. What's the catch? It's that you can own part of this: you can be responsible for this place and group-of-groups staying and growing.

main organizer: Alex Linsker (503) 517-6900, Twitter: @alexlinsker or [email protected]