On Saturday, October 8th, 1000 Friends of Oregon's Land Use Leadership Initiative (LULI) began a 9-month training program with a tour of the Southwest Corridor area in the Portland metro region.

I didn't know Hector Macpherson Jr., so some might say I'm an odd choice to write a tribute to him.

Everyone who loves Oregon, however, owes tribute to Hector Macpherson Jr., who, as noted in obituaries and honors across the state, passed away on March 21, 2015. In fact, many farmers wrote to us to share what Hector meant to them (and we share one of those memories in the images below). This is especially pointed considering what our co-founder Henry Richmond said of the farming community:

Our Land Use Leadership Initiative recently took its final tour, a visit to the Jade District of East Portland, centered on SE Division and 82nd Avenue. LULI fellow Aaron Brown reflects on the experience and what it teaches him about neighborhood-led urban renewal.

Our Land Use Leadership Initiative drove out TV Highway on Friday, May 17, to visit the diverse, unincorporated Washington County community of Aloha. We met with local organizers and planners working for a better community transportation system. Here, participant Tony DeFalco reflects on what he learned.

In April, our Land Use Leadership Initiative met for a frank afternoon discussion of a conflicted history of race, discrimination, and exclusion in Oregon. In this post, participant Aaron Brown reflects on the intersection of this history with his personal history and advocacy passions.

Our Land Use Leadership Initiative (LULI) took a tour of North Portland and Cully neighborhoods on Thursday, March 21. LULI Program Coordinator Tara Sulzen reflects on what we learned and discussed.