If you sit in the first few rows at the Oct. 29 and 30 RE:Conference you get free candy.
At least that was the case at one of the sessions I moderated last year. Cassie Russell from Bradley Angle was trying to prove a key point about being a human being– our environment shapes our decision making in strong, sometimes hidden ways.
Cassie was trying to solve the dreaded conference problem of no one sitting near the speaker by enticing people with a subtle little treat and at the same time teach a lesson about the session topic – behavioral economics.
As it happens, she didn’t really need the chocolate because the room was packed. For more than an hour Cassie and her co-presenter Molly McGlone from Reach CDC engaged a conference audience with interesting, experienced-based and actionable tidbits. The attendees were moving and having fun. They asked great questions. They wrote on the walls (on giant sticky pads). What could have been a boring, professorial lecture about behavioral economics became a wonderful, interactive learning and collaboration experience.
I mention this session not just because we’re doing it again at the 2015 RE:Conference, but because it exemplifies what we’re trying to do with all the RE:Conference sessions.
We want to spark conversation, collaboration and action long after the conference is over. And now we have the outline of the conference agenda so you can start to pick out what sessions you’ll be attending.
Conference Agenda: October 29th
On Oct. 29 we will focus our thinking on Assets. “Asset” is a broad term but we mean: something that will bring lasting benefit to individuals and potentially build a better future for them, their children and their children’s children. Assets improve quality of life and improve prospects for financial security and wealth building.
Wealth is the single best indicator of economic opportunity, security, and capability. There are and have been significant barriers to wealth building for people with low incomes and communities of color. We need to change that.
We are organizing the day into three tracks:
· An introduction to asset building concepts and tools starting with ideas about helping clients move out of crisis, Individual Development Accounts and behavioral economics.
· An equity track, which will look at how Oregon communities are doing financially, provide support in thinking about creating culturally competent programs, and discuss specialized strategies to work with communities such as lending circles.
· A growth track featuring exciting new asset building developments in Oregon including: Children’s Savings Accounts, credit building innovations and consumer protection.
We will also have exciting plenary speakers and close the day with a celebration and the third year of the Oregon IDA Marketplace where vendors with small businesses supported by IDAs will sell their unique goods. This is a great place to get some early holiday gifts and support entrepreneurs who are building their wealth for themselves and their communities.
Conference Agenda: October 30th
On Oct. 30th our emphasis will be on the opportunity that housing creates. Oregon is in the throes of a statewide housing conversation that impacts everyone in the state. Increasingly homes are unaffordable for too many. This 2015 Legislative Session saw big wins for housing advocates and we need to keep the momentum going.
Here’s what the day’s agenda will look like:
· A track about nurturing inclusive and equitable communities. This includes sessions on the state of housing opportunity in Oregon communities; sharing of strategies to create inclusive communities, reverse gentrification, end displacement; and how we ensure equitable access to housing opportunity.
· An innovation track : Specifically we’ll be discussing how we align systems for Housing First models in Oregon; what it will take to create more innovative housing development approaches and models; and how we manage the increasing costs of housing production
· A track about how we can continue to use policy advocacy to increase housing opportunity in the state. This includes a session on strategic communications and advocacy; discussion of how we prioritize investments in housing; and looking ahead to the 2016 and 2017 legislative sessions.
You’ll be able to enjoy a great morning plenary discussion and at lunch hear Margaret Van Vliet, Director of Oregon Housing and Community Services, and panelists discuss creating inclusive communities.
We hope you’ll plan to join us! Register today for $25 off
Check out the agenda, our main conference page and register for one or both days. Our early bird pricing will save you $25 on each ticket.
Also, if you are interested in becoming a RE:Conference sponsor, there are still spots available. Contact Jill Winsor (jwinsor@NeighborhoodPartnerships.org) for more information or check the sponsor section of our RE:Conference webpage.
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