Arguably, the oil and gas industry has never been in such a state of flux. And, as so often tends to happen during times of significant change, really important stuff-which at one time might have taken precedence over other not-so-important stuff-is reassessed and placed into its proper position in the hierarchy of industry issues.
Unfortunately, for some energy companies, one matter that commonly receives the damning "back burner" label is the public's education about the industry. But, luckily, there are organizations around to take up the slack.
School days
At the third annual Maguire Energy Institute's Oil & Gas Education Initiative, held in June at Southern Methodist University's Edwin L. Cox School of Business in Dallas, about 25 or so individuals participated in a 4-day overview of the industry. The program is funded by private and energy industry donations. Drawn from a pool of educators, journalists, and government officials and regulators, the attendees were schooled in oil and gas exploration, production, processing, transportation, and marketing, just to name a few topics covered.
The goal of the initiative is simple, says the institute's director, Allen Mesch: "We really want to get into the public's hands the correct information about the industry."
His aim is to clear up any misconceptions that exist. "We present the facts and leave it up to the audience to draw their own conclusions," Mesch added.
The intensive program, conducted by Mesch and a varied collection of industry experts, also allows the students to attach faces to the oil and gas industry, which is often depersonalized by its sheer enormity.
"The audience gets to see that people who work in the energy industry are conscientious and hardworking and have positive values," said Mesch.
The proper mix
The success of this year's program, according to many of those who attended, lay in the combination of disciplines from which the attendees are drawn. After all, it's not every day that these three groups congregate.
According to Mesch, each group has something to gain from attending, and each asks its own types of questions.
The academics are asking, "How does this information fit into the overall scheme of business?," he said. Meanwhile, the policy makers are questioning, "How can we make this industry stronger and, at the same time, more beneficial to the public?" And the journalists are noting, "What trends are being presented here?"
For at least one journalist, the seminar served a dual purpose: "I learned that the industry is a lot bigger than I ever thought," said Stephen Spivey, business writer for the Tyler Morning Telegraph. "The 4-day seminar is also an excellent resource for journalists in search of reliable contact sources," he added.
Despite already having a working knowledge of the oil and gas industry, this writer benefited greatly from the experience, for sure, and felt privileged to have been chosen to attend.
