Introduction of T. Boone Pickens

Remarks by John J. DeGioia
Introduction of T. Boone Pickens
Gaston Hall
Georgetown University
September 22, 2008

It’s a pleasure to welcome you all to Gaston Hall. For over a century, this has been one of Washington’s most important places for public discussion and discourse on the most important issues of our time. And we continue that tradition today.

We are privileged to have with us this afternoon noted entrepreneur and businessman, T. Boone Pickens, who will speak about his plan for reducing our dependence on foreign oil. In this time of globalization and—as the events of last week have shown—this moment of volatility and unpredictability in our economy, we must adapt …we must reconsider those practices which have become “business-as-usual”…and we must listen to the voices of innovation so that we may invest meaningfully in our future.

It’s also fitting that we hold this discussion today. One hundred fifteen years ago—on this very day—and before there was a Ford or Chrysler, Charles and Frank Duryea debuted the world’s first automobile in Springfield, Massachusetts. And on this date in 1953, the first four-level freeway interchange was opened in Los Angeles, California. These two events not only revolutionized transportation and technology, they also mark major milestones on our road to foreign energy dependence.

Perhaps no one understands the issues, dangers, and repressions surrounding our dependence on foreign oil better than T. Boone Pickens. Born in Oklahoma, his father was a landman, managing oil company business arrangements. Our guest later graduated from Oklahoma A&M, now Oklahoma State University, with a degree in Geology in 1951. By 1956, he had founded Mesa Petroleum, an independent exploration and oil production company.

By 1981, Mesa Petroleum had grown into one of the largest independent oil companies in the world. T. Boone Pickens was named CEO of the Decade in 1989 by Financial Times… he founded BP Capital Management in 1997 to develop clean energy initiatives…was listed as one of the “100 Most Influential People of the Petroleum Century” by Oil and Gas Investor in 1998…and is currently on the New York Times bestseller list for his book, The First Billion is the Hardest.

Throughout his career, he has worked to reform corporate accountability and responsiveness to shareholders. In short, Mr. Pickens is an innovator, motivator and entrepreneur. His longtime associate Bobby Stillwell said it best in 2004, “The thing you have to understand about Boone is that it’s all about action.”

Besides being very much a leader for our time, T. Boone Pickens has also been recognized for his generous philanthropy. He is a major contributor to his alma mater—and the Oklahoma State University School of Geology is named for him. He has also provided significant donations to Hurricane Katrina relief; University of Texas health care centers; and various other causes. Over the course of his career, he has donated nearly a half billion dollars to philanthropic causes…

In response to our national dependence on foreign oil imports and the growing world demand for new oil reserves, he has introduced a plan to move our country toward cleaner and greener sources of energy. The “Pickens Plan,” as he will explain to you in today’s lecture, identifies wind-energy, natural gas, and bio fuels as the fuels of the future.

We welcome T. Boone Pickens—a leader and visionary—in energy reform, to our campus for the second time this year to share his ideas and to engage our community in the growing national dialogue about energy. It is now my pleasure to introduce to you, T. Boone Pickens…