The Resilient Skills Series is a once a month opportunity to explore different skills through a rewilding lens. It is accessible and open to the public, and no previous experience is necessary to attend.
Our Resilient Skills Series has one core ethic behind it:
All people must have access to creating resilience in their lives.
Contemporary life finds us completely dependent on a very fragile network of global connections and technologies. We have become disassociated from the land where we live: our food comes from hundreds and thousands of miles away, we spend countless hours indoors, interacting with screens in human-created virtual worlds instead of the natural other-than-human reality that surrounds us. This has many negative effects on our physical and mental health, as well as making us less prepared for the inevitable failure of these systems. Yet access to learning any other way often comes with a high price.
Rewild Portland urgently works against this trend. Since 2010 we have hosted the monthly Free Skills Series (our first program ever). Now rebranded as the Resilient Skills Series, the program includes a limited number of free seats, as well as subsidized pricing to cover our operating costs, and full price seats to support keeping this program available and accessible into the future.
The Resilient Skills Series ensures participants of all ages and levels of experience are introduced to various skills and knowledge. This is an inclusive space for people of all abilities and backgrounds to learn and share with each other. We are queer-friendly, straight-friendly, race-friendly, gender-friendly, age-friendly, family-friendly—just plain friendly! All of the skills we practice come with a set of ethical principles for environmental sustainability through reverence and regeneration. These offerings include limited free seats in service to the community, and we welcome donations to offset our costs as well as to support the continuation of this vital program.
These classes work to build resilience on multiple levels. On the surface, they enhance each participant’s skills and knowledge, showing them how to get what they need from their own place rather than relying on global systems. Our participants learn, for example, how to find, identify, sustainably harvest, and prepare foods that grow all around them; how to start a fire without matches or lighters, but by rubbing sticks together harvested from the trees in their own neighborhood; how to increase their physical and mental health through connecting to nature using their body and senses; and how to make medicine from the plants that grow in their own backyard.
But while the Resilient Skills Series may seem at first glance like a skills class, it’s actually a community-building program. When someone attends the Resilient Skills Series, they are surrounding themselves with people who are seeking the same skills and the same connection to place. Here, people make friends and create communities together. This leads to participants teaching and learning from one another outside the context of the Resilient Skills Series, or even Rewild Portland. This is our ultimate goal: to create robust social connections that exist without need or input from us, that ultimately make the Resilient Skills Series obsolete. While skills are certainly important for resilience, these social connections are the most important and valuable aspect of our program.
So, what are you waiting for? Check out all our exciting themes for this coming year, and RSVP by clicking on the link below. All themes, dates, times, and locations are subject to change. Thank you for you interest in and support of our programming!
Support the Resilient Skills Series
This program is made possible through regular donations from individuals we call recurring supporters. Are you someone with an income who can give a little to make this program possible? Become a recurring supporter today! And thank you for making the Resilient Skills Series accessible and an ongoing core offering of Rewild Portland.
Become a Sustaining Donor
Community Partners
The Resilient Skills Series is in part made possible with our local business sponsors. We are always looking for business sponsorships for the Resilient Skills Series. You can read more about that here.
The best way to make sure you register on time is through our e-newsletter! In order to be reminded to register, you must be subscribed and follow the link in the monthly e-mail. Sign up to our newsletter below and make sure that the confirmation does not go to your spam filter. We send one or two e-mails a month with all of our upcoming programs and a link to register for the next Resilient Skills Series.
2025 Resilient Skills Series Themes
October: Roadkill Processing & Laws
Saturday, October 18 2–4 pm @ Location to be announced, N. Portland
Picking up roadkill in many states is now legal. However, there are still many regulations around this process. In this class we will the benefits and uses of roadkill, what do you do once you have the roadkill, what you need to make the most of it, and the hazards of picking up roadkill. Join us for an informative talk that will answer all these questions and more: we will also demonstrate how to process small game.
November: English Ivy Basketmaking
Saturday, November 15 2–4 pm @ Green Anchors, N. Portland
Invasive species get a bad rap, but there are many amazing qualities to these plants that we can benefit from. Rewild Portland is famous for our work in creating new relationships with invasives, with basketry in particular. Come pull some ivy and learn how to weave a quick little basket. No experience necessary! This is a great one to work on with children.
December: Friction Fire
Saturday, December 20 2–4 pm @ Green Anchors, N. Portland
Humans began to utilize fire potentially over a million years ago. Friction fire is a common method of starting a fire by “rubbing two sticks together.” At this Free Skills Series we will demonstrate how this works, give attendees the opportunity to try it out, and help those who have some experience troubleshoot their own kits. We will also cover how to work with fire in a safe way. As the climate warms, fire is becoming an increasing concern. We’ll cover what you need to know before, after, and while tending fire.
2026 Resilient Skills Series Themes
Join our newsletter to be the first to hear about our themes for 2026. We are currently planning next year’s programs, and will announce them on this web page in December 2025.
Past themes have included conflict resolution, animal tracking, basket weaving, botanical dyes, disaster preparedness, cordage, basic wound care, tin stoves, bicycle care, safety outdoors, shelter, sandals and footcare, acorn processing, foraging, and more.
Would you like to volunteer as a Resilient Skills Series instructor? Send us an email at info@rewildportland.com and introduce yourself, let us know what you’d like to teach, and give us a sample class itinerary to teach your subject for approximately 90 minutes.
Would you like to volunteer as our Resilient Skills Series Coordinator for 2026? We ask for a commitment of 10 hours per month, for the entire year, including being present at all of our monthly classes, which is typically a time commitment from 1:30pm to 4:30pm the third Saturday of each month. It’s an awesome opportunity to get your feet wet with event coordination, and you can highlight the following skills on your resume: experience working with NeonOne CRM, experience creating social media ads using Canva, experience posting ads on social media, interacting with participants, instructors, and executive leadership, program/project execution experience, public speaking experience, and more. Send us an email at info@rewildportland.com and let us know why you think you’d be a great fit for this role.
Resilient Skills Series
The Resilient Skills Series is a once a month opportunity to explore different skills through a rewilding lens. It is accessible and open to the public, and no previous experience is necessary to attend.
Our Resilient Skills Series has one core ethic behind it:
Contemporary life finds us completely dependent on a very fragile network of global connections and technologies. We have become disassociated from the land where we live: our food comes from hundreds and thousands of miles away, we spend countless hours indoors, interacting with screens in human-created virtual worlds instead of the natural other-than-human reality that surrounds us. This has many negative effects on our physical and mental health, as well as making us less prepared for the inevitable failure of these systems. Yet access to learning any other way often comes with a high price.
Rewild Portland urgently works against this trend. Since 2010 we have hosted the monthly Free Skills Series (our first program ever). Now rebranded as the Resilient Skills Series, the program includes a limited number of free seats, as well as subsidized pricing to cover our operating costs, and full price seats to support keeping this program available and accessible into the future.
The Resilient Skills Series ensures participants of all ages and levels of experience are introduced to various skills and knowledge. This is an inclusive space for people of all abilities and backgrounds to learn and share with each other. We are queer-friendly, straight-friendly, race-friendly, gender-friendly, age-friendly, family-friendly—just plain friendly! All of the skills we practice come with a set of ethical principles for environmental sustainability through reverence and regeneration. These offerings include limited free seats in service to the community, and we welcome donations to offset our costs as well as to support the continuation of this vital program.
These classes work to build resilience on multiple levels. On the surface, they enhance each participant’s skills and knowledge, showing them how to get what they need from their own place rather than relying on global systems. Our participants learn, for example, how to find, identify, sustainably harvest, and prepare foods that grow all around them; how to start a fire without matches or lighters, but by rubbing sticks together harvested from the trees in their own neighborhood; how to increase their physical and mental health through connecting to nature using their body and senses; and how to make medicine from the plants that grow in their own backyard.
But while the Resilient Skills Series may seem at first glance like a skills class, it’s actually a community-building program. When someone attends the Resilient Skills Series, they are surrounding themselves with people who are seeking the same skills and the same connection to place. Here, people make friends and create communities together. This leads to participants teaching and learning from one another outside the context of the Resilient Skills Series, or even Rewild Portland. This is our ultimate goal: to create robust social connections that exist without need or input from us, that ultimately make the Resilient Skills Series obsolete. While skills are certainly important for resilience, these social connections are the most important and valuable aspect of our program.
So, what are you waiting for? Check out all our exciting themes for this coming year, and RSVP by clicking on the link below. All themes, dates, times, and locations are subject to change. Thank you for you interest in and support of our programming!
Support the Resilient Skills Series
This program is made possible through regular donations from individuals we call recurring supporters. Are you someone with an income who can give a little to make this program possible? Become a recurring supporter today! And thank you for making the Resilient Skills Series accessible and an ongoing core offering of Rewild Portland.
Community Partners
The Resilient Skills Series is in part made possible with our local business sponsors. We are always looking for business sponsorships for the Resilient Skills Series. You can read more about that here.
How to Register for the Resilient Skills Series
The best way to make sure you register on time is through our e-newsletter! In order to be reminded to register, you must be subscribed and follow the link in the monthly e-mail. Sign up to our newsletter below and make sure that the confirmation does not go to your spam filter. We send one or two e-mails a month with all of our upcoming programs and a link to register for the next Resilient Skills Series.
2025 Resilient Skills Series Themes
October: Roadkill Processing & Laws
Saturday, October 18
2–4 pm @ Location to be announced, N. Portland
Picking up roadkill in many states is now legal. However, there are still many regulations around this process. In this class we will the benefits and uses of roadkill, what do you do once you have the roadkill, what you need to make the most of it, and the hazards of picking up roadkill. Join us for an informative talk that will answer all these questions and more: we will also demonstrate how to process small game.
November: English Ivy Basketmaking
Saturday, November 15
2–4 pm @ Green Anchors, N. Portland
Invasive species get a bad rap, but there are many amazing qualities to these plants that we can benefit from. Rewild Portland is famous for our work in creating new relationships with invasives, with basketry in particular. Come pull some ivy and learn how to weave a quick little basket. No experience necessary! This is a great one to work on with children.
December: Friction Fire
Saturday, December 20
2–4 pm @ Green Anchors, N. Portland
Humans began to utilize fire potentially over a million years ago. Friction fire is a common method of starting a fire by “rubbing two sticks together.” At this Free Skills Series we will demonstrate how this works, give attendees the opportunity to try it out, and help those who have some experience troubleshoot their own kits. We will also cover how to work with fire in a safe way. As the climate warms, fire is becoming an increasing concern. We’ll cover what you need to know before, after, and while tending fire.
2026 Resilient Skills Series Themes
Join our newsletter to be the first to hear about our themes for 2026. We are currently planning next year’s programs, and will announce them on this web page in December 2025.
Past themes have included conflict resolution, animal tracking, basket weaving, botanical dyes, disaster preparedness, cordage, basic wound care, tin stoves, bicycle care, safety outdoors, shelter, sandals and footcare, acorn processing, foraging, and more.
Would you like to volunteer as a Resilient Skills Series instructor? Send us an email at info@rewildportland.com and introduce yourself, let us know what you’d like to teach, and give us a sample class itinerary to teach your subject for approximately 90 minutes.
Would you like to volunteer as our Resilient Skills Series Coordinator for 2026? We ask for a commitment of 10 hours per month, for the entire year, including being present at all of our monthly classes, which is typically a time commitment from 1:30pm to 4:30pm the third Saturday of each month. It’s an awesome opportunity to get your feet wet with event coordination, and you can highlight the following skills on your resume: experience working with NeonOne CRM, experience creating social media ads using Canva, experience posting ads on social media, interacting with participants, instructors, and executive leadership, program/project execution experience, public speaking experience, and more. Send us an email at info@rewildportland.com and let us know why you think you’d be a great fit for this role.