

What began with conversations among Portland’s leading public educational institutions — Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), Portland State University (PSU), Portland Community College (PCC) — and the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) as an effort to better align pursuits — from workforce development through physical infrastructure — has grown to incorporate a wealth of other collaborators, including corporations, entrepreneurs, incubators, healthcare institutions, industry organizations, signature research centers, and other innovative companies at every stage and scale.
Now more than ever, we need a more strategic, intentional, and coordinated approach that brings a constellation of innovation assets together to make big leaps forward. The Portland IQ embraces the opportunity to cultivate the spaces, networks, resources, and talent required to solidify Portland’s position as one of the most effective hubs of innovation in the world.
Some examples of collaborations already underway include:
But it’s far more than helping companies and organizations. The Portland IQ is designed to ensure collaboration as we build the infrastructure of Portland’s future. The Portland IQ exists at the intersection of economic growth and city-shaping, transformative real-estate development opportunities, including but not limited to OHSU on the South Waterfront, OMSI at the east bridgehead of the Tilikum Crossing, the ODOT Blocks in the Central Eastside Industrial District, and Zidell Yards at the west bridgeheads of Tilikum Crossing and the Ross Island Bridge.
Investments made in the Portland IQ in the next few years will shape the city for generations. These investments and the projects they spawn must be made with proper and measured intent. We stand ready to help inform this development for the good our city, for the good of innovation and creativity, and for the good of the people who call Portland home. That’s why we are collaborating with EcoDistricts to ensure that social equity, community resilience, and climate adaptation and mitigation strategies are front and center for the Portland IQ.
But in many ways, we’ve been here before. We’ve risen to realize opportunities like this before. We’ve been here when we chose to enhance the density of the city with an urban growth boundary, eschewing the popular concept of urban sprawl and suburban living. We’ve been here when the promise of a new highway gutting eastside residential areas was faced down by the people of those communities. We’ve been here when we decided that, rather than blighting the center of the city’s retail environment with a garage, we would instead make that city block into Portland’s living room. We’ve been here when we chose economical and equitable transit options to connect our citizens ahead of wider roads and more freeways.
But Portland is far from perfect. We’ve made more than our fair share of mistakes. We’ve failed to effectively collaborate. We’ve ignored or silenced the voices of those affected by development decisions. We’ve allowed the ease of gentrification to supersede the difficult path of collaboration and shared equity.
We know that Portland is capable of being better. More thoughtful. And more collaborative. That’s why we’re building a hub that makes those conversations and potential collaborations more intentional, pervasive, expansive, and impactful across a variety of industries and influencers.
When it comes to quality of life, few cities can compete with Portland’s walkable neighborhoods, world-class restaurants, dynamic cultural scene, and proximity to outdoor adventure. Portland’s rare combination of professional opportunity, vibrant culture, and progressive values is attracting more skilled workers every day. The costs of living and doing business remain lower than in other major tech centers like San Francisco, Seattle, and Boston. In aggregate, these features and assets make Portland an ideal home for innovation.
While talent is today’s greatest business asset, demand is high and supply is limited. Portland-based companies are able to draw from a highly skilled workforce that’s growing every day as people continue to move to the city and our local schools and universities connect students with the skills and networks to build careers and companies of their own.
People stay in jobs in Portland three to five years longer than in other leading innovation centers. That means companies can put fewer resources toward recruiting and training and more toward growing their business. And by preserving affordable office space and creating incentives to support businesses led by women and people of color, Portland is prototyping a way of working that fosters opportunity for all.