Boom or Bust: A Collection and Study of Energy Narratives

FAIN: AC-253418-17

University of Texas, Permian Basin (Odessa, TX 79762-8122)
Rebecca Susan Babcock (Project Director: June 2016 to July 2019)
Jason Lagapa (Co Project Director: December 2016 to July 2019)

A two-year program of writing workshops, reading and discussion groups, and a speaker’s series bringing humanities perspectives to fields of energy production and consumption in West Texas.

“Boom or Bust: A Collection and Investigation of Energy Narratives” is a two year project at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin (UTPB) designed to bring humanities content and perspectives on the field of energy production and consumption, a field often discussed primarily through a STEM lens. The project directors, our students, and members of the West Texas community will examine the effects of energy harvesting and production on the area, with a particular emphasis on how the oil field and similar sectors of energy production affect the community, as West Texans of all races and backgrounds bridge social strata through the economic opportunity provided by the energy sector. Our primary objective in this project is to make accessible the voices of those community members who have been affected by the energy sector in this area.

Associated Products

Boom or Bust: Narrative, Life, and Culture from the West Texas Oil Patch (Book)
Title: Boom or Bust: Narrative, Life, and Culture from the West Texas Oil Patch
Author: Rebecca Day Babcock
Author: Sheena Stief
Author: Kristen Figgins
Editor: Sheena Stief
Abstract: A vast number of studies have documented the economic and geological effects of oil production, but the impact of boom-and-bust cycles on individuals and communities has received less attention. Boom or Bust remedies this gap by highlighting the personal experiences of those directly affected in an economy dominated by oil and natural gas production. The Permian Basin is one of the largest oil-producing regions in the United States. People who live there have benefited from explosive growth, only to see opportunities vanish with sudden industry downturns. In 2016, the National Endowment for the Humanities funded a grant for the study and collection of energy narratives in this economically volatile region. Boom or Bust derives from that community initiative and offers a unique contribution to the developing field of energy humanities. The oil-field industry may seem to be all about numbers, but as Boom or Bust demonstrates, residents of oil-and-gas country, whether they work in the oil field or not, are at the mercy of an ever-shifting economy. When the price of oil rises, companies move in and newcomers flood the area, expanding the employment force. And as the population booms, so does the infrastructure of cities. When prices drop, though, families must make difficult choices: whether to stay put or follow the oil to another location. With the ensuing declines in population, small businesses close their doors and unemployment levels rise. Despite the inevitable declines and despite the increase in alternative energy resources, many West Texans feel a sense of pride that borders on patriotism. Boom or Bust reveals the full complexity of boomtown culture.
Year: 2021
Primary URL: http://https://www.worldcat.org/title/boom-or-bust-narrative-life-and-culture-in-the-west-texas-oil-patch/oclc/1249102502&referer=brief_results
Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press
Type: Edited Volume
ISBN: ‎978-0806168
Copy sent to NEH?: No

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