American Oil and Gas Reporter - June 2014 - 143

ConventionSection: Western Energy Alliance

Western Alliance Aims
At Effective Advocacy
By Dan Larson
Special Correspondent
DENVER-The Western Energy Alliance is on a roll. As the association prepares to gather for its annual convention,
June 23-25 in Colorado Springs, Co., it
boasts an engaged membership, solid finances and a place in the vanguard of the
oil and gas industry's effort to connect
with the public on difficult energy topics.
As he nears the conclusion of his
term, Alliance Chairman Brad Miller,
general manager for Anadarko Petroleum
Corp. in Colorado, says he feels both
pride and humility from the opportunity
to work closely with so many of the industry's talented and dedicated people.
Miller points to a number of Alliance
initiatives that he says provide value to
its members, including the group's Common Ground Campaign and Coloradans
for Responsible Energy Development.
"Working as a team, we are engaged in
our communities and with each of our
stakeholder groups," he reflects. "I am
excited to say we are seeing the value of
that engagement as we work to change
the conversation, and we are recognized
as a reliable and credible source of information."
The Alliance's role as the voice of oil
and gas in the West is a top priority for
Tim Wigley, now in his third year as Alliance president. "With the rise in influence
of social media, we must bring our traditional strengths in research and messaging
to new communications channels," he
ponders.
During his first months on the job as
president, Wigley recalls, he worked with
the board of directors to develop a fiveyear plan for the Alliance. That exercise
continues to influence the group's goals,
he notes. "We want to expand our membership to 700 by 2017," he details. "Increased membership increases our effectiveness with politicians and regulators.
We also intend to increase the revenues
available to our political action committee
to increase our influence outside the West.
For that to happen, we need membership

Western Energy Alliance
Annual Meeting and Summer Conference
Colorado Springs, Co.
Monday, June 23
7 a.m. Optional Golf Outing, Broadmoor
West Course
Additional Charge Applies
2-5 p.m. Registration Open, The Broadmoor
Hotel
5-9 p.m. Opening Reception

Tuesday, June 24
7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Registration Open, The
Broadmoor Hotel
8:30 a.m. General Session
Opening Remarks, Welcome, Tim Wigley,
Western Energy Alliance President
Membership & Board Meeting
10 a.m. Break
10:30 a.m. General Session
Advocacy Update, Kathleen Sgamma,
Western Energy Alliance Vice President
of Government and Public Affairs
Social Media Workshop, Jay Natoli, Gallatin Public Affairs
12:30 p.m. Family Lunch, Lakeside Terrace
and Dining Room
1:30 p.m. Protecting Species or Land Grab?
How to Ensure Science-Based ESA Decisions, Julie McDonal, Center for Environmental Science, Accuracy & Reli-

numbers."
Wigley describes himself as a firm
believer in both the power of public perception and the necessary methods for
ascertaining it. "I cannot go to the membership and ask for more support without
having a base of polling data to back our
request," he relates.
He goes on to emphasize how important
it is for the Alliance to craft effective
messages by knowing how to move public
opinion on important issues. That, he reflects, "gives our political positions a
backbone."
Many of those issues have come to
the forefront in Colorado, Wigley notes,
with supporters and opponents of more
than a dozen upcoming ballot initiatives
attracting significant financial support.
Wigley vows to make sure the Alliance
is in the fight and out to win. "Colorado

ability
2:30 p.m. Break
2:45 p.m. International Security and the Oil
Field, Jim Davis, Ascent Risk Solutions,
Former Colorado Chief of Public Safety
3:45 p.m. Break
4-4:45 p.m. Colorado Ballot Initiatives &
Polling Update
5 p.m. Shuttles to Dinner at the Cheyenne
Mountain Lodge

Wednesday, June 25
7:15-9 a.m. Registration Open, The Broadmoor Hotel
8:30 a.m. Government & Public Affairs
Awards and Recognition, Tim Wigley
and Kathleen Sgamma
9 a.m. Big Green Radicals: Exposing Environmental Groups, Rick Berman, Berman
& Co.
10 a.m. Break
10:30 a.m. TBD
11:30 a.m. Closing Remarks
Noon: Closing Luncheon, West Tower Lawn
1 p.m. Optional Golf Outing, Broadmoor
East Course
Additional Charge Applies

has become the bellwether in the antifracturing debate," he observes. "That is
why it is so important to engage the
public. Our polling shows that if people
get the facts on fracturing, support for
energy development increases."
To help fund reliable public polling,
advocacy programs and legal assistance
projects, the association notes that it relies
on a few, well-coordinated events. According to the Alliance, its major revenue
generators are the annual Wildcatter of
the year gala, annual convention, and a
golf tournament. Even so, membership
dues remain important as ever, the group
says, providing the bulk of the association's
operating revenue.
Public Opinion
With a history stretching back to 1974,
the Alliance says it champions policies
JUNE 2014 143

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