About Us
Students at Portland State University have come together to integrate a resource and connection based website for our unhoused neighbors in Portland and the surrounding area. PDX Skill Swap Source provides options and alternatives to regain self-agency, housing opportunities and potential job growth.
While Portland faces a growing housing and economic crisis, many people in the community already possess valuable skills. The challenge is not always a lack of ability, but rather a lack of opportunities, resources, and spaces where those skills can be shared and developed.
The Skill-Swap and Micro-Enterprise Incubator is a community-based idea designed to address this gap. The goal of this initiative is to create a welcoming space where individuals can exchange practical skills, learn from one another, and explore small income-generating opportunities.
At its core, the program focuses on skill sharing and collaborative learning. Participants bring skills they already have, such as bike repair, sewing, cooking, crafting, or small appliance repair, and share them with others in the community. In return, they are able to learn new skills from other participants.
Over time, these shared learning experiences can help individuals develop confidence, practical abilities, and connections within the community. For some participants, these skills may also lead to small business ideas or micro-enterprises, such as offering repair services, handmade goods, or community workshops.
What is Skill Swapping?
Skill swapping is a process where individuals and/or groups team up with businesses or local programs to create a product or conduct a service. Thus creating a mutually beneficial arrangement between parties.
How it Helps
This program would provide access to shared tools, mentorship opportunities, and community events where participants can practice and showcase their skills. By lowering barriers such as tool access and training opportunities, the incubator encouragesindividuals to experiment with new ideas in a supportive environment. This approach recognizes that solutions to economic instability do not always require large institutions. Community-based programs that encourage collaboration, learning, and creativity can help people build resilience while strengthening local networks.
Why it Works
Since 2013, Repair PDX has served the Portland community. Each repair keeps waste out of landfills, a sustainable initiative. It promotes community engagement, by fostering learning and rebuilding. Free Bike Repair Cafe in Portland. Volunteers fix items brought by the community, from small appliances to significant items, the program opens doors to community learning and shared joy.
If you want to learn a new skill, the Bike Repair cafe will reach out to you asking what you’re most interested in and they will offer teaching opportunities paired with experienced fixers. Beyond regular repair events, Repair PDX also offers workshops like textile repair and kintsugi (restoring pottery with visible seams), and partners with nonprofits to salvage items like lamps and donate them to families in need.
Why it Matters
Programs like skill swaps and repair cafes don’t solve homelessness alone, but they can help address some of the economic and social barriers that keep people stuck. These programs create low-pressure spaces where people can:
-----•Access tools they may not be able to afford
-----•Build confidence learn practical, income-building skills
-----•Connect with supportive community networks
Small, community driven initiatives like these encourage learning, sustainability, reduce isolation, and help people participate more fully in the local economy. Repair Cafes do more than help individuals fix broken items! They also help reduce environmental waste. Every item repaired is one less item that ends up thrown away. Electronic devices, appliances, and clothing are often discarded even when they could still be repaired. Community repair programs help extend the life of these items while promoting sustainable consumption.
Contributors
Client Liaison & Research
Alec Donn
Britta Adler
Jiwon Park
Shelby Olson
Content Development
Britta Adler
Eric Linderme
Larissa Eufrazio de Oliviera
Nithish Thomas
Rodney Garcia-Goubert
Technical
B. Chase Whitted
Christopher Andersson
Matias Martin Mendoza
UX/UI
Anthony Gordon
Britta Adler
Claire De La Mare
Crystal Clements
Eduardo Rangel
Rodney Garcia-Goubert
Shelby Olson
Marketing
Emma Ridle
Journey Caoili
Sydney Stenson
Mathias Uribe