Sean O’Leary, senior researcher, energy and petrochemicals, has studied and written about coal, natural gas, and their role in the economies of Appalachia since the beginning of the fracking boom. He is the author of “The State of My State” blog and newspaper column, which ran in the Martinsburg (WV) Journal between 2010 and 2014. Since 2016, Sean has served as communications director of the NW Energy Coalition in Seattle, Washington where he has helped develop and promote policies advancing the Northwest’s transition to an emissions-free electric system, just transitions for fossil fuel workers and communities, and the restoration of salmon and orca whales whose survival is threatened by hydropower dams on the lower Snake River.
Previously, Sean was the founder and president of MarketLab, Inc., a market modeling and promotional services firm that provided analytic and creative services to over 50 national consumer packaged goods brands. He also created the ZeroBase marketing optimization model, which was used by brands to analyze performance and optimally allocate promotional spending.
In his spare time, Sean is an accomplished playwright and author of six plays that have been professionally produced. They include “Pound”, about the poet Ezra Pound, which starred Christopher Lloyd in an off-Broadway production in 2018. Sean’s plays have been recognized by the National Endowment for The Arts, the National Arts Club, and the West Virginia Department of Arts and Culture. In 2005, he was named to the Literary Map of West Virginia.
Sean is a native of Wheeling, West Virginia and is a graduate of Warwood High School and Bethany College. He and his wife, Kat Elias, live in Indianola, Washington. Sean’s book, “The State of My State”, published in 2013, is available in bookstores and on Amazon. You can also visit “The State of My State” blog.