Andrea organizes a weekly poetry group that supports poets through peer critiques, one-on-one editing, and by providing other resources. She has worked as a journalist for nearly a decade, and has received a Wisconsin Community Papers Second Place award for her work. Andrea holds a BA in Writing from the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater.

Donovan oversees The People’s Colloquium’s finances and budget. He writes and directs plays, and muses on whether or not existence can be distilled down into utterances burped from meat holes. If not, maybe we’re just here to seek growth, embrace change, and be kind to others—and above all, reallocate all the money and resources used on war to shelter, feed, and educate every human being on this planet.

Hannah oversees The People’s Colloquium’s internal documentation and communication. She also acts as a weekly poetry critique facilitator. During the day, she’s a project manager for a logistics company, and during the evening, Hannah enjoys reading and writing poetry, watching basketball, and eating any food a dear friend will cook for her. She holds a BA in English.

Ian facilitates the Portland Association of Deleuze Studies’ weekly seminar and is exploring experimental film projects with other Portlanders. He spent 15 years in Japan, where he worked as a translator and earned a PhD in American Literature at Osaka University. His dissertation investigated the influence of psychedelics on science fiction and comics.

Jared hosts and facilitates The Critiquery, a weekly writer’s critique group. He’s also an editor for Typehouse Literary Magazine. He’s driven by a love of creative writing and a strong belief that all other forms of art should be accessible to all. He holds a BA in English from the University of Southern California, and a JD from Loyola Law School Los Angeles.

Kristen organizes The People’s Colloquium’s board of directors. She attends various creative writing critique groups and philosophy groups. She holds degrees in political science and the visual arts, has taught at the college level, and serves on the boards of several Portland-area nonprofits.

Lily (she/her) hosts and facilitates Write to Publish, a weekly writer’s critique group for short stories and personal essays. She is an editor for Typehouse Literary Magazine and a graduate of Portland State University. She holds a BA in English with a focus in creative writing. Her work can be found in World Literature Today, Little Fictions | Big Truths, JMWW and more.

Raven assists with organizing The People’s Colloquium’s board of directors. She’s an enthusiastic facilitator of multiple seminars in philosophy and religion on Meetup.com and Discord.com. She holds a BA from The Evergreen State College where she studied Evolutionary Biology and Multimedia Art. She is continuing her education in philosophy through a growing repertoire of online offerings.

Rich is responsible for strategic planning for the nonprofit as a whole and for organizing its volunteers. He’s passionate about offering free educational events, including seminars and critique groups, in creative writing, philosophy, and literature on Meetup.com and Discord.com. He holds a BA in philosophy from Kent State University, and a MS in Traditional Chinese Medicine from The Oregon College of Oriental Medicine.

Shannon is a regular participant in the Write to Publish critique group. She holds BAs in English and Spanish and is a freelance writer. Her short stories and creative nonfiction have been published in The Forge, Hobart, Entropy, X-R-A-Y, and elsewhere.

Tyler is a mediator between The People’s Colloquium and various philosophy groups. He is a co-organizer and regular participant in philosophical close-reading groups focused on, but not limited to, authors such as Plato, Kant, and Hegel. He also has an interest in the arts in general, more particularly visual art, and has participated in traditional art groups. Pen, ink, and watercolor are his mediums of choice.