Resource
Research & Reporting |
In Rousing Minds to Life, Gallimore and Tharp describe "providing assistance to learners" as the heart of the teacher's vocation. I think it is the heart of my vocation as a researcher and reporter as well. The difference is that I am most interested in the learning that takes place away from school, and out in the field. Like Ed Hutchins, I am mostly interested in "cognition in the wild". When I was studying library science, I took a course called Tools for Decision-making. That's where I first learned how useful the tools and techniques of basic research could be to managers and administrators of a large enterprise like public library. Since then I've learned that this value extends to all kinds of enterprises, both private and public sector. That's because few enterprises have information/reporting systems in place that are designed to respond to changes in their environments. Change comes to an enterprise for many different reasons. Demand for a products grows or shrinks. They move location. They take on new workers, and retire the old. The resources they depend on become more abundant, or in shorter supply. Technology requires changes to the way things are done. The needs and preferences of customers change. The value of the dollar rises or falls. Global warming requires change in the production of CO2. Peak oil means higher cost and less reliable supply of oil and gas. Responding to change requires learning and decision-making. As someone trained in economics, education, and environmental studies, I am interested in helping managers learn what they need to know to adapt to changes in their environment. In order to respond to coming energy challenges, managers of organizations are going to need good information. Generally, this will be information that is not readily or easily available, such as information about their organization’s current pattern of energy use. Managers will need information about their options open to them in terms of reducing consumption, reducing costs, and obtaining energy from other sources. Some of this information will be needed on a one-time basis. Some of it will be needed on a continuing basis, thereby requiring development of an data gathering and reporting system. Some of it will be needed to support investment decisions. Some of it will be needed to provide commitment-building feedback to manager and staff about the effects that their energy-conserving are having on energy consumption. Some of it will be needed to build resilience in the organization for facing serious disruptions. I can be of assistance to managers are looking for some assistance around meeting those information needs. The assistance I can provide comes in the form of reports on specific, one-off studies, and in the form of systems that reliably generate reports on a regular basis. |
I have been reporting to clients about their economic and environmental situations -- or helping them create systems for generating such reports - for over twenty years. My clients have included:
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