Dates:
May 19-21, 2025
Location:
Four Points Sheraton in Bellingham
714 Lakeway Dr.
Bellingham, WA 98229
Special thanks to our 2025 sponsors:
Western Washington University, College of Business and Economics
Northwest Power and Conservation Council
Chair: Hart Hodges, PNREC President, Western Washington University
Speakers:
Craig Weichel, Consulate General of Canada, Seattle, Consul General
Tony Stillo, Director of Canada Economics, Oxford Economics
Chair: Massoud Jourabchi, Greenway Research
Speakers:
Massoud Jourabchi, Greenway Research
Steve Simmons, Northwest Power and Conservation Council
"Forecasting Long-Range Energy Demand in the Pacific Northwest"
Dr. Mark Weimar, Argonne National Lab
"Does Matching Pumped Storage Hydropower with Offshore Wind in Southern Oregon Make Economic Sense?"
Chair: Felicia Mutheardy, City of Edmonton
Speakers:
Kathiravan Thangavetu, Independent Researcher
Cole Smith, Amneet Pawar, and Hayden Hobbick, Central Washington University
"1st Security Bank of Washington Case Study"
Brittany Tarufelli, PNNL
"A Comprehensive Impact Evaluation Framework for EERE’s Small Business and Startup Investment"
Wilfried Kabre, PNNL
Chair: Gail Krumenauer, Oregon Employment Department
Speakers:
Scott Bailey, Independent
"A Historical Look at Economic Outcomes by Race and Ethnicity in the US Pacific Northwest"
Dr. Anneliese Vance-Sherman, Washington State Employment Security Department
Richard Acquah-Sarpong, Oregon State University
"Widening Gaps: Regional Inequality in Credit Defaults under Tiered Minimum Wage Policies"
Chair: Tom Potiowsky
Speakers:
Billy Leung, REMI
Lewis Lem, Port of Portland
"Port of Portland Auto Cargo Imports & Exports Estimates, 2025-2045"
Lizbeth Martin-Mahar, Chief Economist, King County
Emilie Jackson, Michigan State University
The Impacts of Privatization: Evidence from the Hospital Sector
Chair: Massoud Jourabchi
Speakers:
Mike Brady, Washington State University
"Rules versus Discretion in the Management of Multi-purpose Dams"
Dr. Mark Weimar, Pacific Northwest National Lab - retired
"Economic and Social Aspects of a Run of the River Powerhouse on the Nuyakuk River"
Brittany Tarufelli, Pacific Northwest National Lab
"EverGreen 2045: An Energy Mix to Decarbonize Washington State"
Chair: Scott Bailey
Speakers:
Dr. Anneliese Vance-Sherman, Washington State Employment Security Department
André Bernard and Josée Bégin, Statistics Canada
"Changes in the labor market in Canada (virtual)"
Anna Johnson, Oregon Employment Department
Chair: Evan Rogers
Speakers:
Abigail King, PNNL, Idaho National Lab
Kenneth Annan, Oregon State University
"The Economic Impacts of Wildfires on Agricultural Land Markets"
Eric Stuen, University of Idaho
"The Importance of Vintners’ Quality"
Jeff Lucksteed and Magda Kondaridze, WSU and Gonzaga University
Chair: Jenny Liu
Speakers:
Dr. Jenny Liu, Portland State University
William Jaeger, Oregon State University
Cortney Cortez, The Balmoral Group
Chair: Matt Roelofs, Dept. of Economics, WWU
Speakers:
Sylvain Leduc, FRBSF
Chair: Dr. Deanna Kennedy, Dean, College of Business and Economics, WWU
Speakers:
Duane Bratt, Mount Royal University (Calgary, Alberta)
Laurie Trautman, WWU
Ted Alden, Council on Foreign Relations and WWU
Chair: Massoud Jourabchi
Speakers:
Massoud Jourabchi
Robert Young, Managing Director, Economists.com
Chair: Dr. Mark Weimar
Speakers:
Hans Radtke, Natural Resource Economist
Wisnu Sugiarto, Whitman College
Evan Rodgers, Oregon Department of Transportation
"The Resilience of Diesel Use Relative to Gasoline in Post-Pandemic Oregon"
Chair: Felicia Mutheardy
Speakers:
James Mark Gbeda, Western Washington University
Brad James, WSU, Green Transportation Program
"Doing the Math: The Economics of Electric School Bus Adoption"
Chair: Tennicia Dacas
Speakers:
Darius Martin, Department of Economics, Western Washington University
"Hallmates Like Me: Social Network Formation and College Outcomes"
Hayden Hobnick, Central Washington University
Emily Trautman, Montana Department of Labor and Industry
Chair: Nick Beleiciks
Speakers:
Gail Krumenauer, Oregon Employment Department
"Employment in Health Care"
Anneliese Vance-Sherman, WA Employment Security Department
Rebecca Grady, WA Employment Security Department
Chair: Hart Hodges
Speakers:
William Jaeger, Oregon State University
Chris Collier, Housing Authority of Snohomish County
Chair: Chris Lawless
Speakers:
Jennifer Bettis (WWU) and Rosaline Leung (UBC)
Jennifer Withington, Statistics Canada
Codrin Nedita, University of Washington at Bothell
"Trade Woes in the Pacific Northwest"
Chair: Ethan Sharygin
Speakers:
Ethan Sharygin, Portland State University
"Migration in the PNW Region"
Benjamin Gurrentz, Branch Chief, Small Area Modeling and Development Branch Social, Economic, and Housing Statistics Division, U.S. Census Bureau
"Community Resilience Explorer (Virtual)"
Alyson Plumb, Team Lead, Business Formation Statistics Program Economic Indicators Division, U.S. Census Bureau
"Business Formation Patterns (Virtual)"
Robert McLeman, Wilfrid Laurier University
Climate Migration (virtual)
Chair: Scott Bailey
Speakers:
Amy Bainbridge, The Balmoral Group
"Cost-effectiveness of Natural Resource Based Adaptation Strategies"
Toni Sipic and Neven Sipic, Central Washington University and Zagreb School of Business
"University Sustainability and Student Enrollments in the PNW"
Adam Wilson, Jake Wagner, and Hanouf Alhunayshill, Transportation Research Group at Washington State University
"Port Performance in the Pacific Northwest: Insights for the Maritime Freight Economy"
Chair: James McCafferty
Speakers:
Amneet Pawar and Cole Smith, Central Washington University
Chair: Tom Potiowsky
Speakers:
Laurie Trautman, Border Policy Research Institute, Western Washington University
Halley French, Cascadia Cross-Border Law
Edward Alden, Council on Foreign Relations and Western Washington University
Greg Boos, Cascadia Cross-Border Law
Chair: Tom Potiowsky, Portland State University
Speakers:
Dan Stickel, State of Alaska
Felicia Mutheardy, City of Edmonton
Chris Lawless, Mystic Vale Economics
John Nordstrom, Boise State University
Emily Trautman, Montana Department of Labor and Industry
Carl Riccadonna, Chief Economist , State of Oregon
Dave Reich, Washington State Economic and Revenue Forecast Council
