This initiative will bring together members of the House and Senate as well as representatives of the Administration, representatives of the all facets of the Energy Industry (including both domestic and international participants), and various stakeholder groups in an effort to begin a serious dialog regarding the development of a National Energy Plan.  The project’s moderator, Aaron Harber, and “The Energy Roundtable” team are uniquely positioned to do this due to their extensive relationships with all of these entities and the fact the programs always have been seen as unbiased and nonpartisan.

“The Energy Roundtable Summit” is part of meeting America’s need for a nonpartisan forum where the nation’s most critically important issues can be discussed and debated in a civil, mutually-respectful, and fact-based manner.

Today the reality is various energy-related policies have been developed and modified over time from one Administration to another, with Congress having its own changing agendas which often were not synchronized in any way with whatever Administration was in control of the Executive Branch of government.  As a result, not only has there rarely been agreement on what America’s plan and strategy should be but policies often have been adopted which were in conflict.

“The Energy Roundtable Summit” presentations, debates and discussions being proposed will address these challenges in a manner which helps educate both policy-makers and the public about the key aspects of Energy issues.  The event also will seek to improve the communication among diverse stakeholders and government officials with the intent of helping to find ways for those with conflicting views to work together to find common ground.

Unlike other forums, which tend to either be dominated by one perspective and which avoid resolving conflict, one of the goals of “The Energy Roundtable Summit” will be to identify common ground and develop actual solutions to America’s most pressing energy and environmental problems — all in the context of the nation’s long-term economic challenges.

With President Barack Obama’s “All of the above” declaration asserting the United States needs to move forward on every energy front, the Administration now could be poised to align itself with many segments of the Energy Industry as well as environmental interests in a manner unforeseen by anyone on any side of the issues which have been contentious for years.

The principal question now is “What does and what should ‘All of the above’ mean for (1) the providers, regulators, and consumers of different energy resources in the USA and (2) those who have interests in and serious concerns about Energy Policies in the United States (including environmental and conservation groups)?”

The television series will take on the most challenging issues related to the development and efficacious use of all energy resources and will include environmental ramifications.  The principal programs are scheduled to be taped at the Congressional Auditorium in the nation’s Capital for the convenience of the members of the U.S. House and Senate, their staff members, and members of the Administration and their staffers, all of whom will be invited to attend.  Historic Ford’s Theatre also has been offered as a taping location and also is being seriously considered as is the Morton Auditorium at The George Washington University.

The latter was built for television productions and was created for the original version of CNN’s “CROSSFIRE” series.  The Morton Auditorium was the location used by USA Talk Network for the production of “The Great Economics Debate: What Is America’s Financial Future?” featuring Senator Alan Simpson and former White House Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles as well as U.N. Foundation President Tim Wirth, former CBO Director and OMB Director and Federal Reserve Vice Chair Alice Rivlin, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Executive Vice President & Chief Economist Marty Regalia, AFL-CIO Chief Economist and Economics Professor William Spriggs, Economics Professor and former U.S. International Trade Commission Chief Economist Peter Morici, and CATO Institute Tax Policy Director Chris Edwards.  These programs can be viewed at www.bit.ly/FiscalDebate.

The initiative is being advised by(1) Richard Newell, Director of the Duke University Energy Initiative and the former Administrator of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration,  (2) Michael Schwartz,, the CEO of New Wave Energy Capital Partners (and former Senior Vice President at DUKE Energy), and (3) former Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, the Executive Director of the Center for the New Energy Economy, among others.

The series will consist of several half-hour programs which engage key stakeholders — serving to open new lines of communication throughout the country.  Guests will include energy industry leaders and experts, energy rights owners, government regulators, other public officials, environmental groups and key environmentalists, consumers, academicians, the media, energy trade associations, labor associations, citizen activists, and other stakeholders.  Fred Krupp, President of the Environmental Defense Fund, already is one of the confirmed participants.

All aspects of the world of energy — such as energy development, energy use and conservation, energy sources (including renewables), energy independence, population growth, energy economics, environmental issues, energy demand, sustainability, tax policies, energy security, and government regulation (including some of the most specific controversial issues such as hydraulic fracking, emissions controls, energy subsidies, et cetera) — will be considered for inclusion in the series.