When President Bush said in his State of the Union Address that the U.S. is "addicted to oil," energy issues came to the forefront of the American consciousness. And thanks to increasing attention to climate change, such as the Time cover story Be Worried. Be VERY Worried, Americans are increasingly aware of global warming. This has spurred widespread and accessible dialogue on the state of our energy and environmental policies, one that used to take place among a highly specialized group using complex and technical language. More than ever, energy and environmental policy is a highly public and nonpartisan issue.
Americans for Informed Democracy hosted a young global leaders summit in New York City on August 18th entitled Oil, Climate Change, and Security. At the conference, participants heard from top experts and discussed in breakout sessions our energy and environmental future. The conference brought together talented young professionals and students from across the world and across the political spectrum and served as a convening body for this diverse group of young leaders to think long-term about how their generation can deal effectively with international energy security and global warming. The conference is co-sponsored by Americans for Informed Democracy and the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Americans for Informed Democracy (AID) is a nonpartisan 501(c)(3) organization working to raise global awareness and civic participation through town hall forums and conferences focused on the U.S. role in the world. Through these efforts, AID seeks to build a new generation of globally conscious leaders who can shape an American foreign policy appropriate for our increasingly interdependent world. AID will hold more than one hundred fifty Securing the Future town-hall meetings and two international videoconferences in 2006 on the changing global environment.
Bio
Peter C. Faruso
Peter C. Fusaro is the Chairman and Founder of Global Change Associates, an energy and environmental risk management consulting firm. Mr. Fusaro is the best selling author of What Went Wrong at Enron and is an energy industry thought leader noted for his keen insights in emerging energy and environmental issues. He recently completed the first studies on energy hedge funds as well as co-created the Energy Hedge Fund Center, an energy hedge fund directory and newsletter Energy Hedge (www.energyhedgefunds.com).
With over 30 years experience in the global energy industry, Peter has been at the forefront of energy industry change. He coined the term “Green Trading†as well as created the annual Green Trading Summit held in New York each spring. His experiences and insights have lead him to the leading edge of energy consulting including carbon & emissions trading, renewable energy project finance and venture capital, LNG market developments, coal trading, and hedge funds. He founded Global Change Associates in 1991 to focus on the interplay and convergence of energy and environmental financial markets.
Klaus Lackner
Klaus S. Lackner is the Ewing-Worzel Professor of Geophysics in the Department of Earth and Environmental Engineering and a member of the Earth Institute at Columbia University. He received his Ph.D. in 1978 in theoretical physics from the University of Heidelberg, Germany.
After postdoctoral positions at Caltech and Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, he joined Los Alamos National Laboratory in 1983, where he held various positions including Acting Associate Director of Strategic and Supporting Research until 2001. Presently, he is developing innovative approaches to energy issues of the future focusing on environmentally acceptable technologies for the use of fossil fuels.
David Nissen
David Nissen is a professor of Practice in International and Public Affairs and director of the Program in International Energy Management and Policy at the Center for Energy, Marine Transportation and Public Policy.
Nissen's publications include numerous articles in Econometrica, Review of Economic Studies, Management Science, and various energy journals. Nissen's recent publications include "LNG: An Increasing Project Financing Role in a Growing Business" in International Project Finance Annual (2002).
Nissen holds a BS from the California Institute of Technology as well as an MA in Statistics and a PhD in Economics, both from the University of California at Berkeley. For 12 years prior to joining SIPA, Nissen managed the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and the gas strategic consulting practice at Poten and Partners, Inc., a leading commercial and energy consulting firm. He has held senior positions with Exxon's Corporate Planning Department and Chase Manhattan's Corporate Lending Group.
Nissen also served in the U.S. Federal Energy Administration (precursor to the Department of Energy) during the Carter Administration, where he directed the quantitative assessment of the Carter Administration's National Energy Plan. Professor Nissen has held faculty positions at the Rutgers School of Business and the Rice University Department of Economics.
Max Schulz
Max Schulz is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute. His work focuses on the practical application of free-market principles in energy debates at the international, federal, and state levels.
The center for energy policy examines the intersection of energy, the economy, and the environment, with particular focus on the national-security aspects of energy in the 21st century.
Prior to joining the Manhattan Institute, Mr. Schulz served as Senior Policy Advisor and Director of Speechwriting for United States secretaries of energy Samuel Bodman and Spencer Abraham. At the Department of Energy, Mr. Schulz was involved in the rollout of President George W. Bush's National Energy Policy in 2001.
In four and a half years at the DOE, he worked extensively on issues ranging from energy supply and demand to nuclear security and nonproliferation. In 2004, he was a member of the United States delegation to the International Atomic Energy Agency's 47th General Conference in Vienna.
Mr. Schulz had earlier served as editorial director at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, as a book editor at Regnery Publishing, as an advisor to Steve Forbes's 1996 presidential campaign, and as managing editor of Forbes MediaCritic magazine.
He received his BA in history from Vanderbilt University. Mr. Schulz lives in Washington with his wife and son.