Restore Oregon recognizes the need to acknowledge past failures and actively address patterns of injustice, systemic racism, and inequity throughout Oregon’s history and in our own work.

While the field of historic preservation has evolved in recent years to recognize many forms of heritage -- built, natural, cultural, tangible and intangible -- such advances have been insufficient. Moving beyond out-of-date thinking and the constraints of traditional preservation practices has been an ongoing challenge for the preservation field and Restore Oregon has not been immune to this challenge. However, we are committed to listening, learning, and doing better. 

As Oregon's only statewide nonprofit historic preservation organization, we are committed to preserving the urban, suburban, and rural cultural resources that embody Oregon's history in all its complexity, from multiple time periods and perspectives. We believe that by protecting reminders of our shared past in direct and impactful ways, we can connect Oregonians of all ages, economic levels, cultural backgrounds, and gender identities with the places that tell the multifaceted story of our state.

External Goals

  • Our staff and board are committed to honoring, preserving, and passing forward an inclusive record of Oregon’s cultural heritage that acknowledges historical realities - even when these realities are difficult and uncomfortable to process, especially given the well-documented history of White Supremacy in Oregon.
  • We recognize the need to reach out intentionally to populations that have experienced bias and discrimination, to engage in dialogue and collaboration. We also acknowledge the necessity of increasing diversity within our community of partners, donors, and supporters.

 

 

Internal Goals

  • We strive to make equity and inclusion more intentional and prominent by increasing the diversity of our staff and board of directors
  • We endeavor to identify, engage with, and employ people of all backgrounds, and build a workplace that values respect, openness to new ideas, fairness, and honesty.

 

Restore Oregon is committed to ongoing progress to boost cultural equity within our historic preservation work.

Our organization is working to build accountability and transparency in our efforts to help our region’s diverse communities safeguard their heritages, and support architectural and cultural-preservation initiatives that help tell their full stories. We recognize the devastation that racism and white supremacy has inflicted in all aspects of society, including the field of historic preservation, and to refocus our work with equity at the center.

If you are interested in this journey, reach out to Nicole Possert at nicole@restoreoregon.org.