Daniel Yergin's Video

   Daniel Yergin is a highly respected authority on energy, international politics, and economics. Dr. Yergin is a Pulitzer Prize winner and recipient of the United States Energy Award for “lifelong achievements in energy and the promotion of international understanding.”

   Dr. Yergin received the Pulitzer Prize for his work The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money and Power, which became a number one best seller and was made into an eight-hour PBS/BBC series seen by 20 million people in the United States. The book has been translated into 17 languages. 

    Of Dr. Yergin’s subsequent book, Commanding Heights: The Battle for the World Economy, the Wall Street Journal said, “No one could ask for a better account of the world’s political and economic destiny since World War II.” Dr. Yergin led the team that turned it into a six-hour PBS/BBC documentary—the major PBS television series on globalization. The series received three Emmy nominations, a CINE Golden Eagle award, and the New York Festival’s Gold WorldMedal for best documentary. His latest book (2011) is The Quest, on the challenges of energy and geopolitics.

   Dr. Yergin plays a leadership role in the global energy industry. He chaired the US Department of Energy’s Task Force on Strategic Energy Research and Development. He is a member of the Board of the United States Energy Association, and a member of the US National Petroleum Council. He recently served as Vice Chair of the new National Petroleum Council study, Facing the Hard Truths about Energy. He also has become the only foreign member of the Russian Academy of Oil and Gas. He is one of the “Wise Men” of the International Gas Union.

    Dr. Yergin is CNBC’s Global Energy Expert. Dr. Yergin was awarded the Medal of the President of the Republic of Italy for combining “an understanding of the dynamics of the market with a broad view of the forces of geopolitics as he seeks to point the way to the positive outcomes for the world community.”

   Dr. Yergin has been named one of the 500 most influential people in the United States in the field of foreign policy by the World Affairs Councils of America. He is a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Center for Globalization at Yale University, a Trustee of the Brookings Institution, on the Board of the New America Foundation, a Director of the US-Russia Business Council, and on the Advisory Board of Energy Initiative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Advisory Board of the Peterson Institute for International Economics. He is also a Member of the Singapore International Advisory Panel on Energy. 

    Dr. Yergin holds a BA from Yale University and a PhD from Cambridge University, where he was a Marshall Scholar.

Speech Topics:

1) The New Energy Future in the New World Economy?
   How will the world change? Daniel Yergin draws on innovative, original scenarios to explore how great changes – in international politics, global economy, technology and the environment – will shape our future. What will it mean for world energy and political power if Asia overtakes North America to become the biggest part of the world economy? Could oil lose its monopoly position in fueling our cars? What would that mean for world politics? What happens if globalization falters, leading to a disappointing economic future, and a “global fissure”? Yergin dynamically addresses the trends that will shape the world and drive us into the future, outlines the conflicting choices and visions for the world economy and addresses what the great battle over globalization is all about. He also identifies key risks and opportunities, and describes the path to a better, safer world where the interests of competitive nations can come together—and the encouraging signposts along the way.

2) Oil, Power & Money: The Age of Energy Insecurity
   The great struggles over oil and energy—particularly how they interact with geopolitics and the future of society—are of a growing concern to everyone. Indeed, anxiety about energy is practically a part of daily life, prompting numerous questions about our energy future: What are the risks of conflict over energy resources and “a new energy crises.” What will be the impact of high prices on the global economy—and on our own lives? Is the world really running out of oil? Will wind, ethanol and other renewable resources fill the gap? How will the energy needs of a growing world match up with rising concerns about carbon and climate change?

3) Globalization and the New Geopolitics
   Today’s era—“The Second Age of Globalization”—is proving much more challenging than was thought a few years ago. Balances of power have been constantly shifting, resulting in new alliances. The U.S., China and Russia are taking on new roles in this shifting geopolitical world, as the entire world now deals with the consequences of the war on terrorism. The technological forces shaping our future have led to critical debates about what it means to live in the "24-hour interconnected, hyperactive, e-mail-fueled, and sleep-deprived world."  Meanwhile, a backlash continues to build against a world open to trade, investment, and communications, with energy as one of the most important forces changing the position of nations. Russia—flat on its back only a few years ago—is now an “energy superpower.” China and India are the rising great powers. And worries about energy security are now a political fact in the United States and Europe, amplified by climate change.