Abundance by Design - Rocky Mountain Institute

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Strategic InfluenceTHE LATE GREAT SYSTEMS THINKER DONELLAMeadows said 1 that the least effective way to intervenein a complex system is changing the numbers (taxes,subsidies, standards); then changing the materialstocks and flows; then regulating negative feedbackloops; then driving positive feedback loops; thenchanging information flows; then changing the rules ofthe system (rewards, penalties, constraints); thenchanging the patterns of self-organization; then shiftingthe goals of the system. The most powerful intervention,she said, is to change the mindset of the peoplewho make the rules. At RMI, we call this “strategicinfluence,” and we do a lot of it.About two-thirds of the Institute’s staff is involvedin all manner of publishing, from reports and clienttargetedadvice to books, magazine, and newspapercontent, to in-house pieces (including this one and ourthrice-a-year RMI Solutions newsletter). Our op-eds,commentaries and analyses are seen worldwide. Wemaintain a website with thousands of pages of content,hosting 630,000 visitors in the past year. Each week,staffers field more than 100 email and 25 phoneinquiries from the general public, many mediainquiries, and several visitors, and offer tours of RMI’ssuperefficient headquarters building (to an estimatedtotal of more than 70,000 visitors so far). But evenmore effective than all these “wholesale” and “retail”activities may be our thought leaders’ one-on-one andsmall-group private interactions with the world’smovers and shakers.What sorts of folks do we influence? Heads of state,leaders of some of the world’s largest companies, topjournalists, senior civilian and uniformed military leadership.A sampling from our CEO’s speaking venuesfor the past fiscal year includes Fortune’s AspenBrainstorm, TED Conference, FiRE Conference,Cosmos Club, U.S. Department of State, Aspen andMontreux Energy Fora, Brookings Institution, PacificCouncil, Council on Foreign Relations, Baker Institute,Maguire Energy Institute, Houston Forum, HighlandsGroup, numerous senior Pentagon briefs, NavalPostgraduate School, International Energy Agency,Tokyo University, Japanese Diet, Hong Kong Universityof Science and Technology, Engineering andConstruction Contracting Association, and MerrillLynch’s network of 200+ automotive financial analysts.Now mix in senior meetings with a half-dozen each ofmajor automakers and oil companies, noted financiers,White House officials, Senators and senior Capitol Hillstaffers of both parties, governors andpolicymakers from many states, cities,and countries. Add new publicationsin such places as Time, Newsweek, Scientific American,and Encyclopedia of Energy. Season with interviews andstories ranging from Reader’s Digest to Rolling Stone andfrom The Economist to the German magazine Focus. Stirwell. And now remember that RMI has not one personbut 40–50, many with deep expertise, strong reputations,extensive networks, and diverse venues. Just onWinning the Oil Endgame, for example, their talksincluded Pentagon engineering conferences, a dozendays of three-continent financial-community events forCLSA (the research arm of Crédit Lyonnais), Harvardand Stanford Business Schools, World Presidents’Organization, CALSTART, AltTrans, and more. That’swhy, as a thought leader and influencer, the Institutecan punch above its weight.Much of RMI’s credibility, especially in the privatesector, comes from its business results. An academicthink-tank’s work would appear in Energy Policy,Science, Nature, and Annual Reviews but probablynot Harvard Business Review and Fortune (we do allthe above). It’s because our work yields solid profitsfrom new solutions to old problems that businessleaders, and the civil society with which they coevolve,take note.Saint Francis of Assisi is credited with saying:“Preach the Gospel continually. If necessary, use words.”Rocky Mountain Institute communicates its solutionsin many ways, but it’s the practical manifestations ofand the business buzz from our fieldwork, more thanany eloquence of our words, that most changes themindset of the people who make the rules.121 “Places to Intervene in a System,” Whole Earth, Winter 1997,www.wholeeearth.mag.com/ArticleBin/109.html.
National Solutions CouncilSolutions, National and BeyondRMI’S NATIONAL SOLUTIONS COUNCIL HASits own mission within the context of RMI: supportingthe ideas and research developed at the Institute,and sharing them with like-minded individuals intheir communities and around the world. As part ofthe NSC’s mission, and its commitment to be part ofthe solution, each year members sponsor a specificRMI project. The RMIQ lecture series (RMI’s Questfor Solutions, whose attendance has grown from 30to 400 people) was selected for 2004–2005.The Council and several other sponsors co-presentedfour RMIQs. In August 2004, Amory Lovinsgave the audience a preview of Winning the OilEndgame a month before its release; in February2004, nationally renowned biomimicry expert DaynaBaumeister presented a new way to look at the buildingindustry; in March 2005, RMI Senior Fellow Dr.Eric Rasmussen (a serving Commander in the U.S.Navy Medical Service and instructor in humanitarianmedicine for the United Nations) lectured on tsunamirelief; and in April 2005, RMI Trustee Dr. David W.Orr, professor and chair of Environmental Studies atOberlin College, gave an Earth Day talk on environmentaleducation. NSC member Charles Cuniffe,FAIA, has been especially involved in the lectures,independently cosponsoring two RMIQs through hisfirm, Charles Cuniffe Architects.A unique feature of the RMIQ lecture series hasbeen the wine-and-cheese receptions following thepresentations, where the public can engage thespeakers and RMI staff in in-depth discussions.Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.NSC salons havebecome another highlightof the Council’sactivities. Membersgather together tolearn about RMI over aglass of wine and abite to eat, often in the lovely homes of NSC members.In July 2004, before the release of Winning theOil Endgame, NSC Co-Chair Doug Weiser and hiswife Linda hosted an important salon at theirSnowmass home, where Amory discussed histeam’s findings and RMI’s corporate work.Council members also act as ambassadors byintroducing Amory and RMI staff to members oftheir own communities. In December 2004, NSCmembers Bud Konheim and Nicole Miller introducedWTOE to their friends in New York City; inNovember 2004, NSC member Margie Haleybrought Amory to Texas to speak at the SustainableDallas Conference. As part of this conference, NSCmember David Henry arranged for Amory to speakto the Chancellor’s cabinet for the influential DallasCommunity College District, which is gearing up tobuild new green facilities.In February 2005, NSC member Mac McQuownarranged for Amory to give a special presentationon natural capitalism at the Scripps Institute ofOceanography, in La Jolla, California, then hosted areception. Finally, in April 2005, NSC membersparticipated in a “Blue Sky” session with RMI’sBoard of Trustees and staff, where Richard Kidd ofthe U.S. Department of State spoke on SoutheastAsian de-mining efforts.The NSC has grown to more than 70 members,and continues to make a big difference in explainingRMI’s work. We thank Council members, CouncilCo-Chairs Doug Weiser and Elaine LeBuhn andHonorary Chair Kathy Farver, for their continuedefforts, and we welcome prospective new members.Criteria for NSC membership• Interest and willingness to supportand promote the mission of RMI• An annual contribution totaling at least$1,500 (individual or couple)To learn more about the NSC, contact:Ginni Galicinao (ginni@rmi.org)Rocky Mountain Institute1739 Snowmass Creek RoadSnowmass, CO 81654-9199tel: 970-927-3851fax: 970-927-4178www.rmi.orgRocky Mountain Institute Annual Report: 2004–0513
Page 1 and 2: Abundance by DesignRocky Mountain I
Page 3 and 4: From the Executive DirectorRMI’s
Page 5 and 6: “trimtabs” in heavy trucks, mil
Page 7 and 8: helping to integrate supply and dem
Page 9 and 10: ing their persistent inefficiencies
Page 11: erature on how they do it, research
Page 15 and 16: BALANCESHEET - AUDITEDthousands of
Page 17 and 18: VISIONARIES -$100,000 & AboveRachel
Page 19 and 20: SupportersBarbara & Peter B. Flemin
Page 21 and 22: SupportersDale & Linda F. LevyJim &
Page 23 and 24: RMI StaffChief Executive OfficerAmo

Abundance by Design - Rocky Mountain Institute

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?