Create West Virginia

The following was previously published as an op-ed commentary in the Charleston Gazette:

If there are two pressing issues facing West Virginia's future and that demand every ounce of our creative problem-solving abilities, it is the momentum behind green energy (and therefore away from dependence on coal) and the practice of mountaintop-removal mining.

Celebrities and activists are turning up the global publicity heat (pun intended) on West Virginia's most visible industry, and, some would say, our primary identity in the outside world. At the same time, many in our state are digging in their heels in a defensive position, asserting (hoping?) that this "climate change nonsense" will blow over and we can all get back to work.

Based on the tactics used so far on both sides, we're headed for a lot more ugly incidents like the one recently posted on YouTube.

Create WV (createwv.com), an affiliate of Vision Shared (visionshared.com), is a grassroots initiative to build a "new economy" in West Virginia based on innovation-based growth strategies and the attraction of creative talent. Many have asked what our position is on mountaintop removal.

The truth is we've tried to focus as much as possible on what we should be building - the new economy and creative jobs - vs. what we're against. We are working to advocate for creative solutions that bring both sides of tough issues together around core pillars of creative community development: quality of place, technology, 21st-century education and talent, diversity and entrepreneurship. Most likely the solutions will push all of us out of our comfort zones.

Based on the principles of creative community development, here are some angles I suggest are critical to a solution:

• The passionate advocates on both sides of the coal/mountaintop removal vs. green energy/environmentalism issue are not evil. Each has vision for what they consider to be critical to their future livelihoods and feel threatened by hardened stances from the other side.
• Contrary to what many think (even some of our own leaders, it seems), the people of Southern West Virginia and the coalfield counties have intelligence and the potential to thrive in the new economy. Coal jobs are not the only option in those regions. When we draw a battle line that assumes that if coal jobs disappear (and by the way, they have been dwindling for years) then all hope is lost, it puts unneeded stress and pressure on the people involved and only inhibits dialogue.
• Let's define what we're all for - prosperity and the best future for West Virginia and the country - and not just what we're against.
• Is "clean coal" possible or not? Where are the large-scale research dollars and initiatives required to find out one way or the other? Let's work even harder to ensure the research is happening at WVU and Marshall and that any positive results of that research are captured in the form of entrepreneurial start-up organizations in the state.
• Let's be honest and discuss that simply migrating to "green industry" jobs also has the same potential for exploitation by non-local interests. There are already complaints from communities where big wind industry windmills, not coal mines, dominate. It's about involving and empowering the community in the decision and ensuring that they benefit vs. being exploited.
• Let's consider the kind of jobs that we're interested in investing in. Yes, process-oriented manufacturing jobs are important. But we want more than that. West Virginia needs to build the "creative" jobs of research, engineering and design within both coal and renewable energy industries.
• Are we building and protecting the kinds of communities where people - including entrepreneurs and skilled talent required for the new economy - actually want to live? How are energy policy decisions - both mountaintop removal and windmill projects - going to affect the "quality of place" so vital to attracting and retaining talent? Let's get creative here, folks. It's not just about the industry. It's about the communities in which entrepreneurs, investors and workers live and work.

The issues are complex and messy. Participants in the Create WV and Vision Shared volunteer organizations may tilt to one side or another on these issues, but we're working hard to focus on creative solutions. That might annoy some folks on both sides who want more tallies of support on their point of view, but we believe it is the best option for forging a path together vs. devolving into name-calling and continued strife.

Lord knows West Virginia has seen enough of that in its history. Let's get creative and blaze a new trail.

Jeff James is chairman of Create WV and vice chairman of Vision Shared.