Our Desired Future is a project of the Texas Center for Policy Studies and funded in part by a generous grant from the Shield-Ayres Foundation.
THE TEAM
Sharlene LeurigPRODUCER, WRITER
A writer and advocate, Sharlene Leurig is Project Director of the Texas Environmental Flows Project and a consultant on sustainable water investment products. She formerly directed the Sustainable Water Infrastructure Program at Ceres, a national nonprofit working to advance the integration of sustainability into the global financial markets. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Hill Country Alliance and is Chair of the Austin Integrated Resource Planning Community Task Force. Leurig has appeared on APM's Marketplace and On Point with Tom Ashbrook, and has written for numerous publications, including High Country News, Texas Monthly, National Geographic Water Currents, Bloomberg BNA and the Texas A&M Journal of Real Property Law. |
Sarah WilsonPHOTOGRAPHER
Photographer Sarah Wilson explores issues of community and culture through environmental portraiture. After nine years of studying and working in New York City, Wilson has returned to her hometown of Austin, Texas. Using Austin as home base, she works regionally as an editorial photographer for magazines such as The New York Times Sunday Magazine, Time, The Atlantic Monthly, Marie Claire, Texas Monthly, Mother Jones, and others. Work from Wilson’s personal projects has been acquired by the permanent collections at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas, and the Lishui Photography Museum of China. |
Dennis FoleyAUDIO PRODUCER
Dennis Foley has worked as a creative producer in public broadcasting for over 25 years. He has written, reported, and audio engineered for such award winning programs as The Christian Science Monitor, NPR's Morning Edition, Car Talk, This American Life, PRI's Living On Earth, APM's Marketplace, IEEE Spectrum Radio and World Vision Radio. He is currently the principal at HomeWork Productions & Sound Design an independent production facility aiding in the development of quality radio, television and film. |
Chris PerezVIDEO PRODUCER
Chris Perez is the Founder and CEO of Left Right Media LLC - a digital design agency based in Austin, TX. Left Right Media is a full-service design agency that specializes in developing first-of-their-kind magazine apps, sales enablement apps, digital brochures, event tools, continuous publishing solutions, press kits, interactive advertisements, and guides for mobile devices. Left Right Media also manages multimedia production and has been recognized as leaders in successfully blending interactive editorial and advertising through a focused mobile-first approach. Chris is an experienced professional with 9 years of experience as a hardware engineer and technology interface for IBM. Chris has a Master’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and a Bachelor’s Degree in Physics and Mathematics from Austin College in Sherman, TX. |
Sareen HairabedianANIMATOR
Sareen Hairabedian is a filmmaker and artist in Washington, DC. Along with freelance opportunities, Sareen works as a videographer, editor, and animator for The Brookings Institution. Sareen's background in dance and passion for artistic movement inspires her creative work, whether with a camera, a photograph, or a piece of animation. Recently, she had the opportunity to collaborate with dance companies and performance artists to document and create visual pieces combining both physical movement and film. |
Callie McLeanGRAPHIC DESIGNER
Callie is an interactive designer that crafts unique experiences for all Left Right Media LLC clients. As lead designer, she specializes in custom interactive template design and efficient workflows for integrating client assets on all mobile platforms. Callie has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art with a concentration in Graphic Design from James Madison University. |
Natalie BallewRESEARCHER
Natalie Ballew recently finished her graduate studies in Public Policy and Energy & Earth Resources at the University of Texas at Austin. She is devoted to communicating complex scientific and socio-economic issues related to water in easily understandable ways. She spent her undergraduate days studying hydrogeology and digital photography & film in Southern California, where her interests in colliding media and science blossomed. |
Garret NickWEBSITE DESIGNER
As an outdoor enthusiast and unabashed water lover, Garret enjoys working on projects that address important social and environmental issues. Since 1998 he has been helping individuals, businesses and non-profits establish themselves online with consulting, marketing, seo, design and development services. |
Jeff MillsAUDIO HOST
Jeff Mills is an inter-disciplinary theater artist and native Texan. He produces INdustry Night, Austin's newest old school live variety show. |
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This project was made possible by donations to our Indiegogo campaign by the following individuals:
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Lead Supporters
Stanley Arledge Bob Ayres Ken Gray David Honeycutt Leonard and Karen Huber Barbara and Louis Leurig Robert Mendez Christy Muse Stefan Schuster Steve Smaha Wes Strickland Ira Yates |
Supporters
Francisco Albornoz Dave Anderson Jim Ash Sarah Backhouse David Benson Jenni Bernier Paul Bertetti Kurt Blohm Jim Bradbury Sadi Brewton Ashton Brown Bill Bunch Brandi Clark Burton Regina Buono Bill Campbell Susana Canseco Jason Cazes Nishima Chudasama Linda Christie James Clapp George Cofer Jane Cohen J. Conlon Harper Connell Adam Conner Marge Fye Cook Rebecca Cook Ellen Evans Monika Freyman Mark de la Iglesia Amna Dermish Sarah DeWitt Lauren Dimitry Medha Donde Jim Donnelly Dixie Emmaline John Fleck |
Karen Ford Emma Foster Hedy Fye Kristen Fye Boll John Fye Lynda Fye Michael Fye Tracy Gartenmann Karen Gempel Sam Gosling Suzanne Gregg Karen Guz Bryan Hale Chris Hale David Hall Malcolm Harris Laura Harrison Gerry Hauer Patricia Healy Myron Hess Jeff Hughes Brian Hunt Barbara Lane David Langford Matt Lara Dana Lee Jae Rhim Lee Margo Leurig Lillian Lew-Hailer Sheril Kirshenbaum Ruby Ku Laura Machala Andy Mangan Amy Martin Niki Marineau Thomas Mason Catherine Merrick |
Garry Merritt Brandon Mettler Hugh Meyer Susan Mika Drew Miller Carol Neiman Jan Neiman Michael Nemerouf Garret Nick Nathan Nunn Jeff Odefey Megan O'Leary Betsy Otto Virginia Palacios Patricia Peirolo Wendy Petruzzi Katherine Romans Donna Schena Slay Schlemeyer Caimee Schoenbaechler Alexis Schulman Sarah Schlessinger Cappy Smith David Smith Morgan Snyder Timothy Terway Deborah Trejo Merri Lisa Trigilio David Venhuizen Jennifer Walker Leah Rosa Weinberg Joanna Wolaver Julianne Wooten Nick van der Kolk Andrew Voysey Nancy Yanofsky |
Our Desired Future is dedicated to Judith Layzer, who asked her students nothing more than to write something worth reading.