Columbia’s Tim Boyle on Free Trade and Global Engagement at the Old Church

Directly and indirectly, Oregonians depend on free and fair trade. Whether it is Oregon farmers exporting their goods, workers on the docks loading and unloading imported or exported cars and other products, or innovators in the apparel and footwear industries creating the next hit for global markets, Oregonians benefit from global engagement.

From restrictions on international travel and legal immigration to tax reform to pulling back from international trade agreements, how have the uncertainty created by recent policies effected the rules of global engagement and the ability to create economic opportunity?  What can we do to inspire a deeper investment in education at all levels so that Oregonians are prepared to understand and engage in the global economy? And how might we reinvigorate the idea that economic growth and quality of life are the direct beneficiaries of global engagement and free trade– a notion that is too often lost in political debates on all sides of the political aisle?