Lower Mississippi RIVERKEEPER

In response to this summer's Gulf oil disaster a Think Tank was brought together in New Orleans, LA by award winning filmmaker Josh Tickell and his wife and partner Rebecca Tickell. A group of many talented, intelligent, and interesting individuals came together to pool their resources and knowledge to find solutions to the Gulf oil disaster. Having such diverse areas of expertise, life experiences, and viewpoints working together towards the same goal made the resultant solutions both well-informed and inventive; while also remaining acutely attuned to the sensitive issues surrounding the oil spill. The following document was developed from the Think Tank.

Oil Spill Prevention Alliance

Purpose and Direction

Create an effective collaborative structure for a quicker response in the evaluation, representation, and implementation of ideas and technologies.  Such an organization will empower people worldwide to help clean up present and future oil spills.

Core Message

By using a collaboration of current solution-based groups, quicker implementation of oil spill solutions can be obtained and implemented.

Direction and Purpose

1. Create a collaborative structure that can effectively contain and remove oil spill contaminants;
2. Work together with the party responsible for the spill to solve the problem;
3. Create a worldwide organization that can move in immediately to clean up oil spills (handbook);
4. Provide for clean up and oil spill control technology to be implemented;
5. Create a funneling process to test new technologies and get them into action immediately;
6. Expedite identification of scientifically sound and viable engineering processes, Implement a pilot study of their viability, and Scale usage of the process or product to fit the market or size of disaster;
7. Allow foreign entities and local entities to contribute immediately; and
8. Insist on transparency from Government and the responsible party.

How it works

1. Establish the Oil Cleanup Alliance;
2. Look for templates of other successful responses to similar disasters, and model after those who achieved effective results;
3. Create website with database of organizations and proposed solutions;
4. Create a strategy to pressure the United States State Department to quickly and in a more timely fashion vet international assistance as well as new clean up technologies;
5. Broaden who makes the decisions regarding who can help and what technologies are to be used; currently only the responsible party, the EPA, and the coastal states’ Departments of Environmental Quality are making these decisions;
6. Create a test verification site to immediately study the effectiveness of a proposed solution and provide an answer within a month ;
7. Work with fishermen, engineers and politicos to coordinate efforts on the test site;
8. Monitor the removal and disposal of the spill waste;
9. Monitor the efforts to protect and preserve the ecosystem;
10. Monitor the outreach efforts to protect the people and preserve their heritage;
11. Create a collaborative atmosphere on the website and within the organization; and
12. Pick the top proposed solutions to support financially and then push them through to implementation.

How to involve people:

1. Create a database of volunteers and associated teams and organizations;
2. Create a database of proposed solutions;
3. Invite panels of technical experts to review proposals, and solicit funding sponsors from public, corporate, and government sectors;
4. Broadcast a specific call to action distributed through every channel possible;
5. Inform all branches of media;
6. Employ the services of celebrities and musicians and any other notable people;
7. Implement outreach through our collaborative NGOs;
8. Use the resources of scientific communities; and
9. Utilize whatever other means available.

Real, Emotional, and Spiritual Benefits

The coalition will provide people with an avenue to be constructive, involved and empowered, rather than feeling isolated, helpless, frustrated, or angry, and will bring practical support to those affected by the disaster.

How to keep the alliance moving and growing

The organization has been created to address all future disasters. The following steps can be utilized to engage the public and expand the alliance’s ability to have a positive impact on people and the environment.

1. Utilize continuing web and social media presence, celebrity endorsement, political pressure, and international NGO involvement;
2. Provide regular dissemination of information about proposed solutions;
3. Maintain an ongoing network of volunteer databases;
4. Create a voluntourism program - people who want to help by means of coming here to boost the local economy;
5. Create a clear structure for ongoing volunteers to help people who have no specific qualifications;
6. Create a volunteer network;
7. Launch a media campaign;
8. Identify those who will set up the structure for this program and implement it; and
9. Create the online platform.

How to measure success:

We will measure the success of the alliance through methods and landmarks such as:

1. Assessment of long-term environmental and economic impact of each funded proposal;
2. Number of successful proposals implemented;
3. Amount of oil removed and recycled;
4. Number of wildlife recovered;
5. There is a consortium of NGO’s, local and global people/organizations working together with the Government and the responsible party to clean up the oil spill;
6. The oceans and coasts are cleaner;
7. The heritage and local culture have been saved;
8. The coastal population is growing;
9. A return of normality to human and marine life;
10. Skills and local technologies are preserved;
11. The local economy is booming;
12. Outside support is flowing in through money and volunteerism;
13. Whether the economy has been stimulated by outside support;
14. Global participation parties from all over the world are stationed at the site helping out; and
15. An opportunity to explore new systems that will work for coastal residents has been provided.

Participants

Clay Alexander
REACH BioDiesel

Mike Ballantine
Intl Tech Corp

Heather Emmert
EnvironmentAmerica

Dan Favre
Gulf Restoration Network

Jake Fontenot
Brainstorm

Beth Galante
Global Green NOLA

Sarah Grabert and Monica Luke
Southern Mutual Help Association

Richard Greene
Communication Coach

Lamara Heartwell and Shems Heartwell
ExxonMobil Heiress

Andreas Hoffmann
Green Light New Orleans

John G Moore
Energy and Environmental Policy Analyst

Jason Mraz
Musician

Jim Murosako
Abundant Seas

John Nistler and Joy Tessman
Gulf Recovery LLC

Marylee Orr
Louisiana Environmental Action Network (LEAN)

Steve Roest
Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

Joey Santley
ReSurf Foundation

Stephen Shelton and Troy Von Ottnot
LA CleanTech Network

Amy Smart
Actress

Wilma Subra
Subra Company

Josh Tickell
Filmmaker, Author and Environmentalist

Rebecca Tickell
Producer, Marketing Director, and Musician