Our Industry’s Most Valuable Asset: Its People
July 21, 2025
Changing the oil and gas narrative starts with each of us
I've worked in the [oil and gas] industry for over 20 years and I've always struggled with it," said one attendee at an industry event where I was speaking in Colorado. "However, today is the first day I truly feel proud to be a part of the industry."
She is not alone. I've traveled through several states challenging every person working in our industry to become an advocate for our industry. We cannot hope to turn the current tide of favorability back towards our industry unless we first have pride in our work. Everyone in the industry should be proud of the way oil and natural gas have shaped our world and made America the greatest nation on earth.
Kansas Strong runs ad campaigns every year to help improve the industry's favorability in the state. This is important and valuable. Yet the likelihood of an advertisement changing someone's opinion about our industry is extremely small. Ads are conversation starters more than they are agents of change. The goal is to pique someone's interest, make them ask questions and guide them to more information through engagement.
Those conversations are critical, and we need advocates willing to speak, educate and stand up for our industry.
I'm not talking about launching a public relations campaign or forming a team of high-profile pundits to advance our position or increasing lobbying efforts to shore up our standing. While all of those are important, the most valuable messenger the industry has on deck is you!
When people are proud of the work they do, they share it with others. That makes you our industry's most valuable asset.
We have not worked hard enough to educate our own industry about the quality of life provided by petroleum. Our industry is highly technical and diverse. Many people are experts in their job, but they may not know how to talk about the benefits of the industry or explain how their job helps advance society.
There is much to be proud of when it comes to the U.S. oil and gas industry. I could fill this magazine with examples of how petroleum has shaped our world for the better. While I'm not going to do that, I do want to share just a few examples.
Petroleum provides about 56% of the world's total energy consumption. In recent years, the U.S. became the No. 1 oil producing nation in the world. We also led the way in cutting CO2 emissions. Methane emissions continue to drop year over year.
In other words, the U.S. does a better job than any other nation when it comes to producing and utilizing petroleum in the most environmentally responsible way. The world needs petroleum and if you care about the environment, you want petroleum produced here in America.
But oil and natural gas are more than just energy. Petroleum is used to produce over 6,000 raw materials from which millions of products are made. From the extraordinary to the mundane, we depend on these products to drive innovation, make our lives easier, provide the tools for us to conduct commerce and protect us from the environment.
On the mundane side, polymers, plastics and synthetic rubber cover cups to tires, shoes to hair clips and everything in between. Phones, computers, gaming systems and smart TVs are all largely made from petroleum products. Synthetic fibers like nylon, spandex, polyester, etc. give us moisture wicking clothes for the heat, and thermal protection for the cold. The vast majority of clothing produced today includes synthetic fibers made from petroleum. Toys, adventure gear, food containers and sterilized individual packaging are all made from petroleum.
Walk into any emergency room and take note of the top 13 machines used in the room on a regular basis. All are primarily composed of parts made from petroleum products. Syringes, scrubs, masks, thermometers and even stethoscopes are made from petroleum products. Over 85% of medications are made utilizing products from petroleum.
A couple of years ago, my youngest granddaughter had a heart transplant shortly after her birth. They had to transplant her heart and rebuild part of the aortic system. As we went through the almost yearlong process, I was amazed by the medical advances. I was fascinated. The tools, equipment, monitors and virtually everything they used to help my granddaughter was made at least in part from petroleum.
I could write on and on about how petroleum products have improved technology, gaming, construction, space exploration, cosmetics and more. I could talk about how the majority of parts in an electric vehicle are made from petroleum, or how solar panels and the blades on wind turbines are dependent on petroleum.
Every aspect of our life is improved by the products that come from petroleum. Often when I am standing in a classroom of students talking about the industry, I will challenge them to find something in the room that is not made from petroleum products. Every group has a very difficult time finding something. Most never find anything. It is that pervasive in our lives.
Oil is good! It improves our life and our society. It protects us from the environment. Climate related deaths are at historic lows as a result. It increases GDP. It provides energy and products — energy that can be transported anywhere in the world without diminishing and products that protect us, shape our world and save lives.
That is something to be proud of, and those within the industry should be proud!
However, all of that is meaningless unless people know it. Marketing and advertising can introduce the conversation to our communities. Changing perceptions is going to take a movement and require every person working in the industry to become an advocate for the industry.
I'm not suggesting that everyone should become a public speaker like me, but we do need to increase our efforts to educate our own teams. Every team member needs to know how beneficial the industry is to society and understand how petroleum positively impacts our daily lives through energy and products — and be able to communicate those facts in our own homes, communities, clubs and elsewhere. So when an ad campaign effectively hits the mark and raises questions, those within our industry need to be willing and equipped to continue the conversation.
Our industry remains in a precarious position. There are those who would love nothing more than to legislate us out of business. The tide rising against oil and gas is strong and backed by much of the media, political groups, activist investors and educational curricula, resulting in waves of misinformation among the general public.
No ad campaign alone is going to change it. Yet our greatest asset can. You can.
It starts with one person choosing to learn about the industry and stand as an energy advocate. However, we often fall into the trap of thinking "someone else" will do it, and then ultimately no one does.
This is a time for all hands on deck. During the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, Benjamin Franklin famously said, "We must, indeed, all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately."
There has never been a more important time in our industry for us to "hang together." Even though we are a competitive industry, we are all on the same side when it comes to our energy future. And if we remain silent now, we may find that there is no one left to speak for us and we "hang" alone.