Peak Oil Conference Coming Up

The ASPO 2009 International Peak Oil Conference will take place in Denver from October 11 through 13th. This year the conference title is “System Reset: Global Energy and the New Economy.” Registration information is here; I’ll be attending.

I attended the conference two years ago when it was in Houston, and I was the only person from Hawai‘i to attend. It was getting cold in parts of the nation then, and I did not have the heart to tell some of the folks I met that I was going back to Hilo where I would wear shorts right through the winter. Or that our crops grow all year round.

I could not bring myself to tell people there that we had an abundant source of geothermal energy, but that we do not move seriously to harness its potential. Had I told them, I think I might have been ostracized.

It’s why I am in favor of the Thirty Meter Telescope, geothermal production and Hilo’s E Malama ‘Aina Festival. As soon as I returned from that trip, I began to do things to transform our farm and to help all of us transition.

From the website:

It’s been a tumultuous year for the price of oil and the worldwide economy in general. While the signature issue of oil depletion has faded from the headlines, and demand dropped due to economic malaise, the bottom line remains unchanged: our world may be at, or very close to, peak oil production. What are the next steps for the industry and for peak oil advocates?

“Peak oil on a worldwide basis seems to have taken place in early 2008…reaching peak oil still represents a transformative moment in the history of the oil market…it is only a matter of time before prices begin to reflect the reality that oil scarcity may become a fact of life in the not-too-distant future.” – Raymond James investment report, 5/4/09

Marshalling the expertise of key financial analysts, international oil industry executives, and peak oil observers, the 5th annual ASPO-USA 2009 International Peak Oil Conference presents three days of information-packed events plus a Saturday pre-event workshop designed to stimulate discussion amongst a wide audience of people in business, public policy, and anyone concerned with resource supply issues.

Kevin Phillips, conservative commentator and author of Bad Money: Reckless Finance, Failed Politics, and the Global Crisis of American Capitalism, and American Theocracy: The Peril and Politics of Radical Religion, Oil, and Borrowed Money in the 21st Century, will kick off an extended and continuing discussion of the economic consequences of constrained world oil supplies with his keynote address. ASPO will also feature an extensive roster of presenters, including economists and financial analysts, agricultural and water experts, editors and journalists, contributors to The Oil Drum, and advocates for peak oil mitigation strategies such as energy efficiency, renewable energy, and population control.

ASPO-USA invites your attendance and participation in our signature event!