In a world reliant on technology, people are increasingly using data to help explain the world around them.
Because of this new trend, research and mapping skills are necessary for civic and nonprofit groups.
In order to better serve their citizens, many are now choosing to learn this field for themselves.
Two upcoming workshops by New Urban Research, a nonprofit based in Portland, will teach participants the basic knowledge necessary for mapping and researching one's community.  The first workshop is in Olympia on ...

The Washington State Department of Social and Health Services has named Troy Hutson as assistant secretary. 
Hutson joined the state's largest agency as the head of the Economic Services Administration ...

What's happening for you in your City this week? Read here a day-by-day diary of free community events to fill your spare time. For a full calendar please click on "Read the complete article" below.

Top track athletes from Special Olympics Oregon have been invited to the U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene. A men's and a women's team composed of eight athletes each will put on a 100-yard-dash exhibition at Hayward Field at the University of Oregon between noon and 1 p.m. on Saturday, July 5, at the Trials. Most of these athletes competed at State Summer Games June 28 and 29. Athletes throughout the Special Olympics Oregon track and field program competed for spots on these rosters. Above, Robert Neyland, of Multnomah County, fourth from left, will compete in the 100 meter sprint  on Hayward Field this weekend.

Former Blazer Antonio Harvey helps mascot Blaze plant some of the first plants in Woodlawn Park as part of the Woodlawn Children's Garden Project. Volunteers will help tend the garden which serves as an educational tool for children to learn about volunteerism, gardening, harvest and nutrition. At harvest time, volunteers will cook food from the garden's yield and serve it to the children of Woodlawn School.

My Mini City [http://myminicity.com/] Bloon…

Safeway officials and state lawmakers were on hand in Troutdale to announce a frequent shopper card program at Safeway to help people cope with fuel prices. Safeway gave $10,000 to Loaves and Fishes to help the organization offset fuel costs. Left to right, Steve Frisby, president of Safeway; State Senator Laurie Monnes-Anderson; Joan Smith, director of Loaves & Fishes; and Safeway spokesman Dan Floyd.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Democrats bent on showing they can govern and Republicans anxious about a sour re-election climate are pushing a pared-down summer agenda in Congress. Lawmakers want to try to save homeowners from foreclosure, avert Medicare cuts and give the government power to spy on suspected terrorists.
Gasoline prices have emerged as a chief concern among voters. But lawmakers probably will not put aside their partisan blame-fest and compromise on an energy measure that could offer some relief, either immediately or down the road.
The Senate planned to return Monday and the House on Tuesday. Their abbreviated election-year calendar leaves little time to cut deals. Lawmakers will scatter again in August for their annual month-long break and the two parties' presidential conventions.
With their attention turning increasingly to re-election campaigns, not to mention the White House race, members of Congress will be away from Washington much of the ...

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) _ Jesse Helms forever changed North Carolina politics and the conservative movement. The former senator did it without ever changing much about himself.
There is perhaps no better example of Helms' unwavering commitment to his beliefs than on the issue of race. Helms was a staunch opponent of the nation's civil rights movement, where he joined the likes of Alabama Gov. George Wallace and South Carolina Sen. Strom Thurmond in a fight to keep outsiders from meddling in what he called "the Southern way ...

Some say it looks like a space ship, others a Rose festival parade float under construction, but S.S.H. Bell calls it a "transportation revolution." He is building a 24 ft. electric boat, at Jantzen Beach. The zero emissions boat framework is constructed of commercial grade polyfoam, which makes it about less than 1/3 of the weight of its traditional fiberglass counterpart. Bell says that he designed the craft with family safety in mind. It has two pontoons that will house bedrooms and a salon with a kitchen. He projects the boat will get its "skin" and be seaworthy in a few short weeks. Bell says the boat, when completed, will be able to travel in the open ocean. He plans to take it from Jantzen Beach to Europe to prove just that.