20th Birthday Bash & Benefit

Brigette Sarabi is the founder of Partnership for Safety and Justice, formerly Western Prison Project (WPP). With a child in prison, she sought to build an organized grassroots movement for reform led by people directly affected by the justice system. Under Brigette’s leadership, WPP supported organizing and advocacy in six western states and later honed its focus to Oregon with the new name, Partnership for Safety and Justice. Under this banner, Brigette helped bring together survivors of crime, people convicted of crime, and the families of both to advance reform. This holistic approach is the foundation of our work today and continues to serve as an innovative model for reform across the nation.

Brigette received the Gloria Award from the Ms. Foundation in recognition of her fierce and bold determination to this work. She has also spent over 20 years working for a variety of non-profit and social justice organizations in Portland, including KBOO-fm, The Media Project, MRG Foundation, and River Network.

Arwen Bird is the founder of the Crime Survivor Program at Partnership for Safety and Justice, which began as Survivors Advocating for an Effective System (SAFES). As a community organizer and human rights advocate, she helped develop PSJ’s groundbreaking approach to criminal justice and public safety reform – one that amplifies the voices of people who have been harmed by crime and violence. Arwen’s vision for survivor-centered reform has planted seeds for change in Oregon and across the country and continues to inspire local and national work.

Today, Arwen is the principal of Woven Strategies, an educational consulting company providing support and evaluation for climate change planning. She also has a background in natural resource planning; loves being on, in, and around water; and competes in Hawaiian outrigger canoe paddling.