Larry C. Knauer, Biography
Larry C. Knauer,
a candidate for AAPG treasurer, is a senior geologist with Texaco
in Bakersfield, Calif.
A native of Long Beach, Calif., Knauer earned
his bachelor's degree in geology from Whittier College and a master's
from the University of California at Los Angeles.
Knauer began his career as a petroleum geologist
with Gulf Oil, which in 1985 became a part of Chevron. In 1987,
Knauer became a lecturer/curator at the California Well Sample Repository
at California State University at Bakersfield, as well as a consultant
for oil environmental issues in Kern County. In 1989 he took a senior
geologist position with Bechtel Petroleum Operations before moving
on to join Texaco in 1997.
Knauer has been a member of AAPG since 1982
and he is a registered geologist in California.
Active in the AAPG Pacific Section, Knauer
has held a number of leadership positions there, including president
in 1996-97. In 1999 he received the Section's Honorary Lifetime
Member award. Knauer also has served as president of the San Joaquin
Geological Society. Knauer was an AAPG House of Delegates alternate
in 2001.
Additional professional affiliations include
the Society of Petroleum Well Log Analysts.
Why I Accepted the Invitation To Be a Candidate For AAPG Office
AAPG is a unique organization that thrives
through a combination of good business sense, a true vision of its
purpose as a vehicle for education and assistance to its members
and the public, and its member's volunteerism.
I believe in volunteerism. I think giving
something back to the profession you have selected is important.
It is no less important than giving something of yourself to improve
the community in which you live.
I have participated in the Pacific Section
AAPG a great deal over the years. I see the direct benefit of what
even a small number of volunteers are able to accomplish for our
members. I see the camaraderie and flow of information grow as the
network of geologists expands to include more of us. One of the
main things we need to do is encourage fellow geologists to get
actively involved. It is a slow process, usually involving one person
at a time. We need to make a greater effort to bring more of what
AAPG has to offer to the local societies and sections.
Joining with other professional societies
for annual meetings has proven to be beneficial. The last two annual
section meetings in the Pacific Section were done with the SPE in
2000 and the GSA in 2001. We are teaming up with the SPE again in
2002 in Anchorage. While the culture of these groups is somewhat
different, that difference has provided the main benefit of working
together on these joint meetings. That benefit is the many new ideas
to which each of the organizations has been exposed. Not just technical
ideas, but differences in the philosophy of how to run a meeting
for the maximum benefit of the membership.
I accepted the invitation to stand for the
office of treasurer of AAPG because I saw it as an opportunity to
get to know geologists from other sections in AAPG. I want to find
out how they conduct themselves in their geologic communities. I
want to know what programs they support and how they get people
involved in doing the work.
Most of all, I want to find a way to connect
the local societies, the regional sections and the national AAPG
office into a more organized system of data exchange and mutual
support. Rick Fritz has the right idea in going digital as much
as possible, and expanding the AAPG Web site. But digital isn't
everything. People are still needed to facilitate the connection
between Tulsa and the outlying areas. I have a few ideas to discuss
with the members and the staff of AAPG over the next year or two.
I hope during that time to bring some new ideas back to the Pacific
Section for the benefit of its members.