Chevron and the Sierra Club both see renewable fuels as a growing part of our future. Yet as the world transitions to a low-carbon economy, they have different views on how that change should occur and who should bear the costs.
Higher taxes? Voluntary conservation and efficiency? Government mandates?
In their first-ever public conversation, O'Reilly and Pope discuss balancing energy and the environment in the 21st century.
Bio
Alan Murray
Alan Murray is deputy managing editor and executive editor, online, for The Wall Street Journal. He has editorial responsibility for the Journal's web sites, including WSJ.com and MarketWatch and the Journal’s books, conferences and television operations.
Prior to his current position, Mr. Murray was assistant managing editor of The Wall Street Journal, and author of the paper's "Business" column, which runs every Wednesday.
Previously, he served as CNBC’s Washington, D.C., bureau chief and was co-host of “Capital Report with Alan Murray and Gloria Borger." While working at CNBC, he also wrote the Journal's weekly "Political Capital" column. Prior to that, he spent a decade as the Washington bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal.
Mr. Murray joined The Wall Street Journal in 1983, as a reporter covering economic policy. He was named Washington deputy bureau chief in January 1992 and became bureau chief in September 1993. During his tenure as bureau chief, the Washington bureau won three Pulitzer Prizes, as well as many other awards.
Mr. Murray is the author of three best-selling books: “Revolt in the Boardroom, The New Rules of Power in Corporate America,” published by HarperCollins in 2007; “The Wealth of Choices: How the New Economy Puts Power in Your Hands and Money in Your Pocket,” published by Random House in 1991; and “Showdown at Gucci Gulch: Lawmakers, Lobbyists and the Unlikely Triumph of Tax Reform,” co-authored with Jeffrey Birnbaum and published by Random House in 1987. “Gucci Gulch” received the American Political Science Association’s Carey McWilliams Award in 1988. Mr. Murray also garnered two Overseas Press Club awards for his writings on Asia, as well as a Gerald Loeb award and a John Hancock award for his coverage of the Federal Reserve.
David O'Reilly
David J. O'Reilly, age 62, has been chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Chevron since January 2000.
Prior Positions Held: O'Reilly was vice chairman of the board of Chevron from 1998 until 1999. He was a vice president of Chevron from 1991 until 1998. He was president of Chevron Products Company from 1994 until 1998. He was a senior vice president and chief operating officer of Chevron Chemical Company from 1989 until 1991.
Other Directorships and Memberships: American Petroleum Institute; Peterson Institute for International Economics; the Business Council; the Business Roundtable; JPMorgan International Council; World Economic Forum's International Business Council; the National Petroleum Council; the American Society of Corporate Executives; the King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals International Advisory Board.
Carl Pope
Carl Pope is the Executive Director of the Sierra Club, an American environmental organization founded by conservationist pioneer John Muir in 1892.
Pope was appointed to his position as Executive Director in 1992, the club's centennial.
I like the point that O'Riley made about the Ecuadorian government making 72 billion dollars from the Texaco drilling contract. Everyone loves to blame the corporations. But where is Ecuador's government in all of this? Don't they bear the responsibility for the people of Ecuador? That government could have done alot for it's people with 72 billion dollars.
I have personally drilled for oil in Africa, Indonesia, Alaska, Louisiana, and many other places. What I have have seen, with my own eyes, is that communities where oil companies operate have a higher standard of living. The energy industry creates jobs in places that would otherwise be very poor. I have also seen very greedy and corrupt governments allow their people to live in filth while they get rich off oil revenues. Corporations' goals are obvious; they want to turn a profit, and it's in their interest to make that profit in a responsible way. In my very real and personal experiences drilling around the world, governments are the problem...consistently.
i could be wrong, but doesnt natural gas give less BTUs than petrolium? Wouldnt have to use more to get the same result? I feel that all new tectnology should be use so there would be more insentive to improve them. diversity is important for change. Also, does plant life improve carbon levels?
The earth does not have a fever. There is no meaningful "global average temperature" Our planet is wonderfully balanced. While it's summer in one hemisphere, it's winter in the other. +100 degrees in Chicago will not melt ice where it's -100. It's time to get back to common sense.
member. 
