While I think the oil and gas industry in the US is doing a better job of communicating its message than it has in the past, there is a long way to go. I certainly do not pretend to be an oil and gas expert; however, I have worked in this industry for almost 20 years, and it is something I am passionate about. I think it will make a real difference for more of us to begin speaking out about the many positive aspects of our industry.

This is particularly true for young people who are just beginning to think about their careers. Advocating a career in oil and gas to them might not seem particularly challenging. But we have our work cut out for us.

We’ve all seen negative headlines about the oil and gas industry in the New York Times as well Yahoo News and even the Houston Chronicle. And something we all need to understand is this – the oil and gas industry isn’t misunderstood; it’s under attack.

While many of these headlines are untrue, or half-true, the sources to the media know that if they keep repeating the same lies over and over, the message will stick and the public will think it is our reality.

I believe the average person’s view of the oil and gas industry is that it is full of good ol’ boys and fat cats. What is more frightening is that I think this is the view of some in our industry as well because of everything we hear and read in the news.

Just the facts, ma’am

The simple fact that gets missed by so many is that the energy industry has revolutionized the world. In 1900, the world used no natural gas, very little oil, and a small amount of coal. The UK was the “King of Coal,” the key to the industrial revolution. The rest of the world used manual labor, animals, wood, and dung. Horse manure and dead animals spread horrible disease. Smog caused by dirty coal blanketed London. Air, water, streets, and houses existed in a very dirty environment.

Over the next 100 years, every modern miracle was possible because of fossil fuel energy production, resulting in vast consumption. Technology, food production, healthcare, globalization, and clean air and water are all possible because of hydrocarbons.

Job creation, security

The industry also has created millions of high-paying jobs. I’m a native of Albuquerque, and I love that city, but when I graduated from college there were very few jobs, so I moved to Houston. That lack of jobs continues today, but in cities like Houston, Pittsburgh, San Antonio, Dallas, and Denver, it is a completely different story, and that is because of the oil and gas industry. This also means tax revenue for those locales.

Oil and gas production also is vital when it comes to national security for any country. Increased self-reliance helps minimize exposure to a crippling disruption in oil supplies brought about by turbulence in the Middle East or any other oil-supplying region.

An environmentally friendly industry

Many geologists and geophysicists have entered into this industry because they love the earth. These are truly the real environmentalists, and they are working to ensure that we find and produce oil and gas in the most environmentally safe way possible. Strides made over the past 50 years have made the industry safer and more environmentally conscious than ever before, and young people should realize that efforts in these directions are imprinted on the cultures of the world’s energy producers.

Clearing up the misconceptions

It would be easy to blame our industry’s negative perception problem on documentaries by Al Gore and Josh Fox or on Hollywood, but this is partly the industry’s fault as well. As an industry, we have sat back and let people who hate our industry define our industry.

We should be eager to proudly tell people about our great industry. We should encourage our children to work in this industry as engineers, accountants, or journalists. We should speak to elementary school children about the exciting technologies that power the industry. The oil and gas industry is utterly vital in each of our lives. This is a message worth sharing.

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