Several weeks ago, Street Roots vendor Mark Rodriguez made headlines for getting a $175 ticket for forgetting to tap his pass to activate the fare to ride a TriMet MAX.
After hearing the story, neuroscientist Bill Griesar picked up the phone and called TriMet.
Griesar is a co-founder of the nonprofit neuroscience outreach group NW Noggin, a volunteer group of art and neuroscience undergraduates and graduates of Oregon Health & Science University and Portland State University. The program gets students out into the community to talk about what they’ve been studying.
Each year since 2012, they’ve engaged with about 35,000 young people with activities such as building neurons out of pipe cleaners and examining real human and animal brains. Mark’s story resonated with Griesar as a teachable moment on the mental impact of homelessness. TriMet invited Griesar to speak briefly at their monthly public forum at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 11.
NW Noggin is a periodic guest at p:ear, a comprehensive homeless youth program on the edge of Old Town. Recently, NW Noggin hosted “Landscapes of the Brain” there and stimulated powerful conversations in which adolescents shared their personal experiences.
Homelessness is not just something that affects those living it, but research suggests it negatively affects everyone who comes in contact with it.
Research shows how people with an abundance of resources and privilege may not actually see those less fortunate standing right in front of them, Griesar said. So when they pass by someone homeless, it’s possible they may be unaware of their presence.
“They turn off networks in the brain that would normally be active when you’re appreciating the circumstances of another person,” Griesar said. “It’s damaging everybody’s brain if you don’t see other people. That’s a major problem.”
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The NW Noggin work combines art and neuroscience. Co-founder Jeff Leake is an artist who developed ways to portray neuroscience to engage a wider audience. They discovered how art helps switch those networks back on and forces people to reevaluate their surroundings.
It was at one of p:ear’s annual fundraisers, where their art coordinator, William Kendall, met Griesar and Leake and immediately wanted to bring NW Noggin and their educational art projects to p:ear.
The adolescents who come to p:ear are going through a lot emotionally, socially, mentally and physically, Kendall said. To be able to talk about what is going on in their brains and understand how it’s developing with NW Noggin volunteers has given them tools to understand what’s happening to them.
“You have to listen, and you may find where your stories connect,” Griesar said. “There’s a lot to learn by listening to other people.”
Having knowledge of how the brain functions is powerful, Griesar said.
“Brains are an essential fact and adventure in our lives, especially for young people,” he said. “They really want to know that where they’re learning has some relevance or value so they can do something.”
A familiar area of concern is sleep deprivation. Most people understand that sleep deprivation affects the ability to perform basic daily tasks, but what about those living on the streets who don’t have consistent access to adequate sleep?
Griesar said sleep deprivation can severely impair the brain and is even linked to mental health disorders and other disadvantages. In the case of public transportation, Griesar said, organizations like TriMet may not realize that due to their own biases.
The transportation system should be designed for easier access to avoid further traumatizing individuals, Griesar said. Having the option to tap once aboard would be a step in the right direction, he said.
Major organizations can be very beneficial when they focus on serving those who need them, Griesar said.
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“(These vendors) are getting from point A to point B to earn money and trying to get someplace, and TriMet physically gets them there,” Griesar said. “We should be celebrating that.”
John Phillips, p:ear program director, said having access to transit is less of a convenience and more of a safety issue for the youths he works with. He believes transit should be a basic right.
“Criminalizing (someone) for not having a fare then restricts access to shelters,” Phillips said. “If you have a warrant for not being able to pay (the fare), then you can’t get into the shelter.”
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NW Noggin intends to bring youths to the TriMet meeting to share their personal experiences.
Kendall said he is glad NW Noggin is going to TriMet’s public forum to shed light on the mental impact of homelessness. He feels many minority groups are left out of policies.
“How do we make people experiencing poverty feel a part of the community? We have to reflect as a society whether or not if this (transit) policy reflects our beliefs,” Kendall said. “I think we will find it doesn’t.”