Program Overview
We are currently offering both online and in-person Speakers Bureau events. Find an event near you, or learn how to host a Speakers Bureau event.
You don’t need to be a student or live near a college to hear an intriguing talk from a scholar or expert. In communities throughout Washington State, Speakers Bureau presenters give free public presentations on history, politics, music, philosophy, spiritual traditions, and everything in between.
Our roster of over 30 Speakers Bureau presenters is made up of professors, artists, activists, historians, performers, journalists, and others—all chosen not only for their expertise, but also for their ability to inspire discussion with people of all ages and backgrounds. Hundreds of Speakers Bureau events take place each year.
To reach as many Washingtonians as possible, we partner with a wide range of nonprofit organizations, including libraries, schools, museums, historical societies, community centers, and civic organizations. Any nonprofit organization is welcome to apply to host a speaker.
Speakers Bureau is made possible with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the State of Washington via the Office of the Secretary of State, the City of Seattle Office of Arts and Culture, the Thomas S. Foley Institute of Public Policy and Public Service at Washington State University, The Pacific Power Foundation, and generous contributions from other businesses, foundations, and individuals.
Upcoming In-Person Events
IN PERSON: An Appetite for Film: Food in the Movies
A film can build tension through editing, just like a simmering stew builds flavor through a slow dance between ingredients. Putting food and film together, however, opens movie lovers up […]
- When
- 3:00 pm, Saturday
April 1, 2023 - Where
- Orcas Island Public Library
500 Rose Street
Eastsound, WA 98245 United States
IN PERSON: The River That Made Seattle
Once teeming with bountiful salmon and fertile plains, Seattle’s Duwamish River drew both Native peoples and settlers to its shores over centuries for trading, transport, and sustenance. Unfortunately, the very […]
- When
- 6:00 pm, Thursday
April 6, 2023 - Where
- Kent Commons – Olympic Room
525 4th Ave N
Kent, WA 98030 United States
IN PERSON: Hidden Histories: The South Vietnamese Side of the Vietnam War
The Vietnam War is seen by much of the Western world as being fought between the Americans and North Vietnamese Communists, with the South Vietnamese largely absent. Yet many Vietnamese […]
- When
- 7:00 pm, Thursday
April 6, 2023 - Where
- Clark County Historical Museum
1511 Main St
Vancouver, WA 98660 United States
IN PERSON: Whiskey and Wiretaps: The Northwest’s Rumrunning King
On Thanksgiving Day, 1925, Roy Olmstead was trapped by federal prohibition agents and their Tommy guns on a lonely Puget Sound dock. His reign as the Northwest’s most prolific bootlegger […]
- When
- 10:30 am, Wednesday
April 12, 2023 - Where
- Wesley Homes Des Moines – Terrace
816 South 216th St
Des Moines, WA 98198 United States
IN PERSON: What Laughter Tells Us: Asian Americans, Comedy, and Belonging
Laughter shapes the way we listen to each other, and can be a signal of who belongs—and who doesn’t. While everyone finds different things funny, we all have experienced laughter. […]
- When
- 6:00 pm, Wednesday
April 12, 2023 - Where
- Anacortes Public Library
1220 10th St
Anacortes, WA 98221 United States
Upcoming Online Events
ONLINE: Telling Your Story: A Personal Essay Workshop
Our life stories are a means for connection—a tender offering in a troubled era. Part reportage and part reflection, personal essays can reveal hidden truths about ourselves, our families, and […]
- When
- 10:00 am, Saturday
April 1, 2023 - Register
- Click here to register
ONLINE: Redefining Protest through Music
Acts of protest tap into layers of our heritage and identity that strengthen the foundations of what we are fighting for. So how can we root ourselves more deeply in […]
- When
- 12:00 pm, Thursday
April 13, 2023 - Register
- Registration info to come
ONLINE: Atomic Washington: Our Nuclear Past, Present, and Future
At the center of every nuclear weapon in the United States is a small pit of radioactive material manufactured at a top-secret facility in Eastern Washington, a facility which today […]
- When
- 6:00 pm, Thursday
April 13, 2023 - Register
- Click here to register