The annual Muse Conference brings together local change-makers with internationally recognized artists, authors, athletes, entrepreneurs, activists, and social change leaders to celebrate International Women’s Day and kick-off Women’s History Month. Our 8th annual event will take place March 5th-8th, 2020 in Bend, Oregon.
We hope you will join us for 4 days of art installations, films, interactive panel discussions, keynote talks, live performances, and breakout workshops designed to explore our individual and collective stories and deepen our sense of belonging to each other and our world.
Youth Voices are always a highlight of the Main Muse Conference.
We share inspiring voices, stories, and conversations.
The Muse Hub provides space and time to connect with community.
Muse Salons offer opportunities to listen, learn, and interact.
WHAT OUR MUSES ARE SAYING
Kind words from our Muses about their experience at the annual Muse Conference in Bend, Oregon. If you’d like to submit a comment about one of our programs or events, share your thoughts here.
2020 Schedule
Thursday at Muse Hub (849 NW Wall Street)
Muse Check-In 4:00-6:00 pm
*pick up materials, passes, programs
Muse Youth Summit 6:00-8:00 pm
Friday at Muse Hub (849 NW Wall Street)
Muse Salon Series 8:30am-5:00pm
*series of interactive panel discussions. details below.
Muse Art Show 5:30-7:30pm
Saturday at Tower Theatre (835 NW Wall St)
Muse Conference Main Program
*full day of keynotes, panels, and performances
Conference 9:30am-3:30pm
*with lunch break
Muse Meetups 4:00-5:00pm
Muse Hub Reception 5:00-7:00pm
*open to all at Muse Hub
Private Dinner 7:30-9:30pm
*Presenters & All-Access Pass Holders
Sunday at Muse Hub (849 NW Wall Street)
Muse Workshop 9:30-11:30 am
Muse Check-In 4:00-6:00 pm *pick up materials, passes, programs
Muse Youth Summit 6:00-8:00 pm
We will be screening a special Muse Produced Documentary Short featuring local youth activists, followed by a panel discussion and Q & A.
Muse Salon Series 8:30am-5:00pm
Our Muse Salons are interactive panel discussions on important topics affecting our community. They feature local womxn and provide opportunities for introspection and group dialogue. Our Muse Salon Series will be held in the Muse Hub located at 849 NW Wall St. You register for each salon separately. The cost for each is $15. You can also purchase a full series pass for $60.
8:30-9:30
Community Healing: This salon will feature an interactive ceremony honoring our ancestors and grounding our conference experience in conscious activism.
10:00-11:30
LGBTQIA+2 101: This salon will feature a discussion around the basic understanding needed to be better allies for the LGBTQIA+2 community.
12:00-1:30 *Bring Brown Bag Lunch*
Healthcare in the High Desert: This salon will explore local healthcare options in Central Oregon.
2:00-3:30
A River Runs Through It: This salon will feature a facilitated discussion around local environmental issues relating to the Deschutes River.
4:00-5:00
Community Action: This Salon will feature facilitated process of finding your individual path forward as an engaged member of your community.
Muse Art Show 5:30-7:30pm
Our Muse Art Show will feature local and visiting artists who are using Art as a tool for social change. We will be showcasing photography, painting, sculpture, and student art all created to spark conversation about issues in our community and beyond. Our Muse Art Show will be up throughout the conference weekend, but we invite our attendees to join us for a special reception Friday evening at the Muse Hub located at 849 NW Wall St. You do not need to register. The event is free to Muse Conference attendees.
Muse Conference Main Program
*full day of keynotes, panels, and performances
Muse Hub doors open. 8:00am
Tower doors open 9:00am
Conference 9:30am-12:00pm
**lunch break from 12:00-1:30pm
Conference 1:30pm-3:30pm
Muse Meetups 4:00-5:00pm
Muse Hub Reception 5:00-7:00pm
*open to all at Muse Hub
Private Dinner 7:30-9:30pm
*Presenters & All-Access Pass Holders
Muse Workshop 9:30-11:30 am
Together in Solidarity led by Social Change Activists Liliana Cabrera and Kerri Kelly will explore the following questions:
What is the work to be done?
What is my place in the movement?
How do we move together?
These are some of the questions that are alive for us right now and there are no simple answers. People are suffering and it is critical now more than ever that we find ways to work together towards healing and collective action. The work of solidarity demands that we do the inner work of confronting biases, navigating privileges, healing internalized oppression/supremacy AND the outer work of defining our role and responsibility according to our social location. We need unique spaces for people of color and white people to process how they experience white supremacy culture in different ways that allow for healing while reducing the risk of racial harm. From that place we can engage one another with love and accountability.
Join us for a two part workshop where we will explore the practice of solidarity and skills needed to build resilient power across lines of difference.
**the first part will be held prior to conference. details for that TBD.
PRESENTERS
Each year, we feature the voices, stories and conversations of numerous womxn and girls and those who support them who are creating positive change in their lives, in their communities, and in our world.
Some of our 2020 Presenters:
Activist + Author + Filmmaker
Valarie Kaur
Civil rights activist, award winning filmmaker, educator, author, and Sikh American Voice who leads the Revolutionary Love Project to reclaim love as a force for justice in America. More information.
Activist + Author + Zen Priest
Rev. angel Kyodo williams
Called “the most intriguing African-American Buddhist”by Library Journal, angel Kyodo williams is an author,activist, master trainer and founder of Transformative Change. More information.
CTZN Well Founder
Kerri Kelly
Founder of CTZNWELL who is relentless in her commitment to elevating leaders, groups and projects to next-level social change makers. More Information.
Climate Crusader
Jamie Margolin
Colombian-American community organizer, activist, author, high school student and founder of Zero Hour who is a voice for underrepresented people. More Information.
Roots Music Revolutionary
Sunny War
Street singer, guitarist, and roots music revolutionary who defines her place in the world through music and songwriting. More Information.
Climber + Photographer
Nikki Smith
Climber, photographer, activist who shares insights into being a first ascensionist, guidebook author, and a woman who happens to be transgender. More Information.
Tribal Councilwoman
Brigette McConville
Warm Springs tribal member, council member, teacher, business owner who feels that her duty is to serve and support the interests and concerns of her people as a whole. More Information.
Social Justice Leader
Esperanza Tervalon-Garrett
Queer, Afro-Puerto Rican woman and the founder and CEO of a progressive consulting firm who was the first woman of color to lead a 501c3, 501c4 & PAC collaborative civic engagement formation. More information.
Community Organizer
Ana del Rocio
Community organizer and nonprofit executive director who is spearheading statewide efforts to elect more progressive candidates of color. More information.
Documentary Photographer
Annabel Clark
Documentary photographer who has worked on assignment for The New York Times Magazine, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, etc. More information.
Musician + Activist
Black Belt Eagle Scout
Radical, indigenous, queer, feminist Swinomish/Inupiag musician who creates music with passion and from the heart. More information.
Filmmaker, Climate Crisis Activist
Slater Jewell-Kemker
25 year-old filmmaker who has traveled the globe, chronicling the vibrant, untold story of the global youth climate movement in her film, “Youth Unstoppable.” More Information.
News Reporter
Anyssa Bohanan
Local news reporter who is is a self-proclaimed “Future Oprah” and has been interviewing her teddy bears since she was a toddler. More Information.
Graduate Student, Storyteller
Wafa Almaktari
Born in Sana’a, Yemen, in 1997, arrived in the United States in 2015, when she was 18 years old, compelled to earn an education and get away from the war. More Information.
Author, Educator
Kelsey Freeman
Writer and educator who is passionate about Indigenous rights, immigration policy, social justice, and public policy. More Information.
Journalist
Candice Pires
Feature writer and interviewer whose work can be seen in The Guardian, The Observer, New York Times, Marie Claire, and other publications. More Information.
Activist, Founder
Janet Llerandi-Gonzalez
Latina mother of two who never disregards the challenges they faced as foreigners in this country. More Information.
Artist, Activist
Zarina Kopyrina
Born in the Siberian tundra of the Sakha Republic, introduced to the magic of traditional folkloric music and local Indigenous shamanic cultural practices at a young age. More Information.TRAVEL TO BEND
welcome to the perfect inspiration + recreation destination
The Muse Conference is proud to welcome attendees to beautiful Bend, Oregon where we will gather to celebrate womxn and youth creating positive change locally, nationally and globally.
Nestled between the High Desert and the Cascade Mountains, Bend offers a lovely backdrop for visitors with an intimate setting, ideal for mixing inspiration and recreation.
Centrally located, we highly recommend reserving at the Oxford Hotel. With a luxurious approach and distinctly Oregon touches, The Oxford Hotel is also within easy walking distance of conference venues, premium shopping areas, a diverse collection of restaurants and bars, and a number of other attractions. The boutique hotel has an intimate footprint with 59 eco-friendly, urban decor suites all elegantly appointed.
Find more lodging, attractions, recreation, and a map of Bend at VisitBend.com.
FLYING TO BEND
The Bend Redmond Roberts Field Airport (RDM) Airport is only 20 minutes away from the downtown Bend, host to a number of Muse-related activities.
Flights are provided by Alaska, United, Delta, and American Airlines. These carriers offer arriving and departing flights daily to and from Denver, Los Angeles, Portland, Salt Lake City, San Francisco and Seattle.
DRIVE TIME TO BEND
- Portland: 3 hours
- Seattle: 6 hours
- Boise: 5 hours
- San Francisco: 8 hours
Please allow additional travel time as needed, weather conditions are variable and the views are amazing!
ATTRACTIONS NOT TO MISS
These are just a few of the attractions and beautiful spots to visit while in Bend. Check out Visit Bend’s website for more trip ideas and how to make the most of your stay.
- Mt. Bachelor
- Old Mill District
- Tumalo Falls
- Cascade Scenic Byway
2020 EVENT PARTNERS
If you would like to become a 2020 MUSE partner, please see our partnership opportunities.
We’d like to extend a special thank you to the Bend Cultural Tourism Fund.
The Bend Cultural Tourism Fund (BCTF) is a grant program dedicated to enhancing the local economy through the promotion and cultivation of Bend’s cultural tourism programs. Grants allocated through the BCTF support art and culture based projects and programs that attract tourists to the City of Bend.
Visit Bend established the BCTF with the goal of attracting cultural tourists during the shoulder seasons and winter months – a time of year when the city’s tourism industry struggles, yet a time when cultural tourism organizations are most active.
Muse Conference is supported in part by a grant from the Bend Cultural Tourism Fund.
SUSTAINING PARTNERS
MUSE HUB PARTNER
MUSE YOUTH SUMMIT PARTNERS
SUPPORTING PARTNERS
EVENT PARTNERS
Brooks Resources, Groove Yoga, InFocus, Euijin Gray Designs, Hotbox Betty
COMMUNITY PARTNERS
Wren & Wild, Bellatazza, Lake Creek Lodge, Joolz Restaurant, Bledsoe Winery
MEDIA PARTNERS
LODGING PARTNERS
