U.S. Government cutting public analysis of the future of energy

We are going headlong into a new era of increasingly scarce energy resources. The impact on economies will no doubt be dramatic.

The United States Government, "in order to save money," is evidently cutting funds to the agency that makes energy trend data public to analysts like myself and thousands of others. This will include monthly supply reports and their flawed but still useful scenarios and forecasts

What is the future supply of oil? What role will coal play? Will renewables increase in prominence in our economy? In the near future, we will have a little less data on which to rely.

This, incidentally, is the great challenge for futurists, strategic planners, and analysts of all kinds. To make any kind of reasoned analysis requires data that you can get without necessarily hiring a team of twenty grad students to do original research over three years. You need information in published form, available free to the public or at a reasonable cost.

That we're headed into peak oil and someone would choose to blind the public as to the trends in energy just seems inexplicable.

About the author
Eric Garland is the founder and managing partner of Competitive Futures. He is a recognized expert in competitive intelligence and futures studies with over fifteen years experience in the field. His latest book is How to Predict the Future...and Win!!!, a satirical look at the world of strategy consulting and why most organizations fail to see the future coming. Web site http://www.competitivefutures.com.