The Comprehensive Organic Gardener (COG) program offers new and experienced gardeners a chance to hone their organic gardening skills. During the 7 class series, COG students will investigate organic practices through a curriculum that emphasizes practical knowledge and hands-on learning. Topics include: Garden Planning, Seed Starting, Soil Amending, Year-Round Harvesting, Seed Saving, and more! That's why our students call it the "Everything You Need to Know about Organic Gardening" class!

Offered by Oregon Tilth March 4th - March 25th, Thursdays 6:30pm-8:30pm and Saturdays 10:00am-3:00pm, $260 or $234 for Lake Oswego residents & Tilth members

Living Earth’s spring series of First Friday Community Evenings will begin on Friday, March 5. Our veg/vegan potluck will be followed by a presentation by Dr. Sharif Abdullah, outlining elements that are central to creating conditions of cooperation, justice, sustainability, and peace for our world. Mark your calendar and join the conversation! www.livingearthgatherings.org.

First Friday: Seven Seeds for a New Society

Awakening Heart Retreat

All details and registration are online at www.livingearthgathering.org.

Join Living Earth in the full beauty of spring at Breitenbush Hot Springs, for a retreat to integrate heart, mind, and body as we ground our awareness in the spacious field of compassion. We will share silent sitting, contemplative practices, interactive processes, and dharma reflections--as well as hikes, soaks, great food, and laughter--to enrich all we do to bring peace, justice, beauty, and balance into our world.

For more information, see

Passive House? 90% energy consumption reduction? No mechanical system? Got Questions? We've got answers!

Northwest EcoBuilding Guild * Western Columbia Chapter

* * Passive House Oregon * *

WHEN: Wednesday, February 24th Meet & Greet 6 PM * 6:30 - 8:30 PM

WHERE: Zion Baptist Church * Community Room * NE 9th & Fremont

COST: Non-members $5 donation suggested * NWEBG Members FREE * Refreshments *

Community Outreach of Our United Villages invites you to an interactive afternoon to connect with people and discover shared interests.

FLOCK TOGETHER SOCIAL GATHERING: meet new folks with common interests on Saturday, March 13th from 2:00pm-4:00pm. This social gathering will be held at Humboldt Gardens Opportunity Center at 5033 N. Vancouver Avenue (at Alberta)in Portland, Oregon 97217.

FREE and open to anyone interested. RSVP to [email protected] or 503.546.7499 by Monday, March 8th. Snacks provided. Child care, interpretation, and transportation provided upon request. Please share this invitation with family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors.

Tao Soup opens this weekend

From the creators of Hopeless, opening this Friday, The Brooklyn Bay presents, Tao Soup.

The LA Times called Tao Soup “ Food for the soul... Entertaining and penetrating.... a matchless opportunity for creative spiritual nourishment.”Using nothing but their bodies, voices and 5 chairs, a 5 person ensemble explores the tension between ancient eastern wisdom and modern western sensibilities with humor, insight and clarity. 

Next Thursday, March 4, find out what is on our top ten list for living well and staying healthy. Join Leonard Mankin, M.D., and Kathy Hefflinger, R.D., C.D.E., as they share recomendations and strategies that will have the greatest impact on your overall health and wellbeing. A question and answer period will follow, so bring your diabetes related questions.

Free. Preregistration required at 503-335-3500 Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center, Building 2, 1040 NW 22nd Avenue. Thursday, March 4, 6-7 p.m. Refreshments will be served. www.legacyhealth.org

This program made possible through the support from the Richard D.Hohl Diabetes Patient Education Fund of Good Samaritan Foundation.

The IRCO Upward Bound Program is seeking tutors to provide after school academic support for students at David Douglas High School.  Upward Bound is a college preparation program for low-income and first generation students. Tutors will assist Upward Bound participants in completing homework, understanding course content, and reaching their academic goals. 

Qualifications:

·        Experience tutoring, teaching, and/or mentoring youth.

The Northwest Service Academy/LINKS program has dozens of great part-time and/or short term positions in environment, education and public safety open now! Portland Parks & Rec is looking for 2 Urban Forest Specialists, the Vancouver Housing Authority is looking for a Work Opportunity Program Assistant, Friends of Tryon Creek State Park is looking for a Nature Day Camp Intern, an Interpretive Education Intern, and a Summer Team Leader, just to name a few. All positions earn an education award of $1,000 or more, include loan forbearance, and some include additional perks.

Check us out at:

Yoga Calm for Children

Feb 27-28, 2010

$245 Course Fee (Includes textbook)

Info/Register: www.yogacalm.org

This workshop is for school teachers, counselors, occupational therapists,

Connecting Across Cultural Differences Workshop

Friday, February 26, 2010 8:30 AM – 4:00 PM Location: Portland Building, 2nd floor, Room B, 1120 SW 5th

This interactive workshop will explore cultural dynamics around communication and conflict that are sometimes hidden and uncomfortable to surface and discuss. Workshop leaders will help us understand how our different experiences of oppression and privilege impact us in intercultural interactions and will help us develop and practice skills to engage effectively across ethnic, gender, and other differences.

Registration Costs $45 for students and community dispute resolution center staff and volunteers $85 for Non-profit staff and volunteers $165 all others

TACS Workshop | Management & Planning

DATE: March 17, 2010

TIME: 4:00 - 7:30 p.m.

COST: $75.00 General Admission, $67.50 NAO Nonprofit Member

LOCATION: Center for Architecture; 403 NW 11th Avenue; Portland, Oregon 97209

Learn more about the Nonprofit Association of Oregon (NAO) at:

Register now at:

EVENT DESCRIPTION

March 4th, 6-7pm

You can’t escape it, you must sell! Learn practical sales strategies for small business. Watch practical real-life sales demonstrations to really learn how to sell. You will learn the following and more:

* Identify customer needs. * See benefits * Varied sales approaches that work. * Creating a Sales Manual. * Exhibits and documentation. * Handling sales objections. * Secrets to closing the sale.

Tom Howe has been a practicing attorney for over 25 years and owns two technology companies. He has written four books (law and software programming) and speaks at legal conferences throughout North America and technology conferences around the world. His practical and entertaining presentation style makes him a highly sought after speaker.

Do you have interest in helping to select AmeriCorps projects for the upcoming 2010-2011 service year? If so, here’s a perfect opportunity for you to get involved and with a minimum time commitment. (@ 8 hours) Be an NWSA Community Reader!

Northwest Service Academy (NWSA) is an environmental service organization with two centers: Lower Columbia Center (LCC) in Portland, Oregon and Mt. Adams Center (MAC) in Trout Lake, Washington. We place AmeriCorps members into schools, local government agencies and community-based organizations to carry out projects primarily focused on ecological restoration, environmental education, volunteer mobilization and community strengthening.