Employee Spotlight: Jason Hanson
The beginning of 2004 found me working at a publishing company in St. Louis and contemplating two conundrums: (1) How to move back within range of family and the familiar landscapes and climate of the West, and (2) How to start publishing my own writing rather than that of other people. When I was accepted to CU's graduate history program and offered the chance to work with Patty at the Center of the American West, I knew that I had my answer on both counts and I jumped at the opportunity.
Four years later, I am finished with graduate work and have officially joined the ranks of the Center's research faculty. My role at the Center gives me the very satisfying opportunity to participate as both an author and editor in the conversations that shape our region. In my role as a writer, I have collaborated on several Reports from the Center, including last year's What Every Westerner Should Know About Energy Efficiency and Conservation and the forthcoming What Every Westerner Should Know About Oil Shale. In addition to my own writing, I also help manage the publishing process for other Center publications, such as a upcoming book on the history of Denver Water.
Although the Center gives me the opportunity to work on a diverse range of projects, my main research interests are mining and energy development and how these activities impact and interact with our society's evolving environmental values. Beginning this summer, I will collaborate on revising the energy efficiency and conservation report into a publication geared toward a nationwide audience. And in the near future I hope to begin work on the Center's upcoming project on the perpetual management of mines, a follow-up to the Center's well-received 2005 report on cleaning up abandoned mines.
When not applying historical perspective to contemporary Western issues, I can usually be found at home working on my own history project of sorts. In the summer of 2006, my wife Stacie and I (and our dog Harper) bought a 120-year-old house in Denver. After nearly two years of continuous rehab, the end of the project is finally coming into view, and we are gleefully looking forward to the transition from home improvement to home enjoyment and spending time this summer enjoying the many outdoor activities that make us grateful to live in the West.