The Problem Solvers can’t wait for consensus.
Book a private briefing with me in 2026 to apply the lessons of The Myth and The Moment to your boardroom’s toughest questions for next year.
Why should you—the oil and gas leader—care about an abundance agenda? Because the day is getting closer when your business strategy will have to meet the practical environmentalist halfway… and abundance provides a promising frame to do that.
But for the concept of abundance to break out of elite knitting circles and meet its promise, it must appealto and includethe oil and gas sector—its executives, workers, supporters, and communities. Abundance can hugely benefit us and the world—but only if its expansive enough to include us.
The time is ripe for abundance, because governments across the ideological spectrum are getting serious about the need for more energy. The Problem Solvers are finding themselves wedged between net-zero commitments on paper and on-the-ground reality. What do elected and appointed Problem Solvers need to make the kind of moves that facilitate energy abundance—to manage energy costs and reliability, with a nod to carbon intensity? That’s the subject of my next several Both True editions and solo pods.
Why now? California and Canada get real.
In at least two jurisdictions last month, policymakers tackled the squeeze head on:
- “Drill, baby, drill” to address rising energy costs. The California State Legislature passed a package of bills supported by Governor Gavin Newsom—including measures to expand oil drilling(!). One of them, SB 237, streamlines oil well permitting in Kern County (where I began my career!) to boost production.
- Don’t stop “Drill, baby, drilling.” The Canadian government is in discussions to eliminate a federal cap on emissions for the oil and gas sector—a cap that could have forced companies to cut production.
Both of these things are true:
- The culture wars rage on full tilt, with Democrats and Republicans reliably taking us-versus-them stances in the energy and climate wars.
- To create the permission-to-build reality that both sides can—strangely—agree on, we have to leave the good-guy/bad-guy framing behind.
What do the Problem Solvers need? Two things.
First, they need cover—political and intellectual. This is where the abundance movement comes in. The strange bedfellows (on the left and the right) now coalescing around “Build, baby, build” and permitting reform need to explicitly create that cover, especially for Democrats.
The Problem Solvers are still squeezed by legislation and reality. What do they need from think tanks, academics, and politicians? Permission to support a wide array of energy choices, including oil, natural gas, pipelines(!), and their adjacent decarbonizing solutions, such as hydrogen and carbon capture and sequestration. Abundance proponents can explicitly support broad solutions through an agenda that is
- Nonpartisan, focused on outcomes and dismissive of tribes
- High-energy, because energy enables all other abundance priorities
- Pro-building, in favor of not just more housing, but plants, pipelines, and wires that move molecules and electrons
- Truthful, admitting costs and impacts out loud, explaining how we mitigate them, and naming the tradeoffs we will have to tolerate
Second, they need real energy partners with real solutions. California needs its oil drillers to keep their house in order and produce with best-in-class operations. Canada requires its companies to provide language that prioritizes emissions reductions while ensuring that production remains steadfast or even grows.
Here’s what your company can be doing now:
- Know your Problem Solvers. The more left-leaning your jurisdiction, the more of a pickle the policymakers and regulators find themselves in. What does a path to progress look like for them?
- Bring your partners and your projects. No matter how fed up you are with some of your regulators and legislatures, now is the time to extend a helping hand. How can you help them craft a win? What is an array of projects you could co-create? Who else needs to be at the table to lend perspective and credibility?
News about The Myth and The Moment!
The world seems hellbent on exposing The Myth of an Easy Energy Transition—so what’s your next move? Consider these steps:
- Order The Myth and The Moment if you haven’t already—or, if you have, send a copy to a colleague who could benefit from seeing what you now see.
- The Myth and The Moment talk is ready! It has been warmly received by early audiences, and I’m booking now for Q1.
- Subscribe and share. If this was forwarded, subscribe; if it resonated, tap ❤️.
To energizing over enemies,
Tisha
