Harvard University Club of Houston

In the heart of the oil patch, an energy shift is underway. Fossil fuels -- coal, oil, and natural gas -- still power the overwhelming majority of the economy, and they likely will for years. Yet changes, at once subtle and sweeping, are underway. Concerns about climate change and air pollution are forcing the state's biggest energy producers to change the way they do business. Renewable energy from the wind and sun is declining in price and rising in popularity. And a public forced to pay more at the pump is beginning to value energy efficiency. Texas isn't the only energy-rich locale undergoing this transition; so are petroleum powerhouses in the Middle East and coal country in Germany. In Texas, the consequences could be monumental for an economy, a way of life and a built environment all predicated on cheap fossil fuel.

On Nov. 17 in Dallas, the Harvard Graduate School of Design and the Harvard Club of Dallas will host an evening exploring these nascent changes and their potential implications: "The Oil Patch Beyond Petroleum?"

The evening will begin with a talk by Matthias Schuler, a German-based engineer and adjunct professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. He crafted the energy-reduction principles behind Masdar City, a zero-carbon development under construction in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, and he has engineered energy-efficient buildings in Dallas and around the world. After dinner, a panel discussion will include Hunter Hunt, senior vice president of Dallas-based Hunt Oil Co., which is diversifying its own portfolio to include renewable-energy projects it expects to be profitable; and Jim Marston, regional director of the Environmental Defense Fund, which works with Fortune 500 corporations and has campaigned against building new coal-fired power plants in Texas. The panel will be moderated by Jeffrey Ball, a scholar-in-residence at Stanford University and the former environment editor for The Wall Street Journal. The evening will leave plenty of time for audience comments and questions.

If you have any questions or need additional information on this event, please contact Jen Halloran at halloran@gsd.harvard.edu or call her at 617-495-8830.