telling the story
This should be easier. Telling your own story is really not supposed to be this complicated. I suppose it has something to do with our modesty. Its not typically socially acceptable to talk about one's self so much.
I suppose I should start from the beginning.
About 5 years ago we created Tandem - Tandem Technologies, and environmental research and development firm that set out to eliminate the Aquatic Invasive Species Crisis by treating the ballast water onboard ships. We set up shop in Annapolis to test out our technology on Chesapeake Bay water. Since it is brackish, meaning salt water from the ocean meets and mixes with fresh water from streams and creeks, it was the perfect proving ground. It was the toughest conditions that our system would face.
The guys logged hours upon hours and months upon months in the lab testing our system - which came to be known as Medusa - under every imaginable set of parameters. We were killing stuff left and right. For a while there I was concerned to tell my brother what we did. I thought he might scream and wail that we focused on killing things. But he surprised me - he understood even before I went on to explain it. We were working on protecting the indigenous ecosystems of coastal estuaries around the world from an unforeseen side effect of trade and globalization. (Don't get me wrong. We are in business to make money, but it sure doesn't hurt that we're going to take a bad situation and correct it.)
I put in the time on the government and industry side. I made the rounds to inform everyone about Medusa and all her wonderful attributes. What started out as a lobbying effort ended up as a bit of a lesson in social order and the science of popularity. We made very limited contacts with congressional leaders, or more appropriately their staffers, about our successful tests and how we could achieve the results they desired. We put a greater effort into informing environmental groups of our progress. Very eager to mitigate the environmental crisis posed by AIS, they were anxious for a solution to the problem and elated to hear of one. We listened intently to their concerns and made sure to keep them informed of our progress and successes in achieving results that satisfied their goals. We spent the most time with the shipping industry. As our eventual customers, they were our greatest concern. Clearly they were not in favor of any new regulations which would cost them money as a result of time and equipment additions. We lucked out on this front. So many of the shippers had already been accosted by our other vendors in the industry (which was and is still in development) and had simply been shown a mind-blowing beheamoth of a product and were told that they would HAVE to have it, that we were a refreshing surprise. Not only were they surprised to be speaking with a woman, but I was universally told that I was the first to ask them what their parameters were for such a piece of equipment. We told them of our goals to keep energy and space requirements at a minimum and to work in time with the existing pumps.
I suppose I should start from the beginning.
About 5 years ago we created Tandem - Tandem Technologies, and environmental research and development firm that set out to eliminate the Aquatic Invasive Species Crisis by treating the ballast water onboard ships. We set up shop in Annapolis to test out our technology on Chesapeake Bay water. Since it is brackish, meaning salt water from the ocean meets and mixes with fresh water from streams and creeks, it was the perfect proving ground. It was the toughest conditions that our system would face.
The guys logged hours upon hours and months upon months in the lab testing our system - which came to be known as Medusa - under every imaginable set of parameters. We were killing stuff left and right. For a while there I was concerned to tell my brother what we did. I thought he might scream and wail that we focused on killing things. But he surprised me - he understood even before I went on to explain it. We were working on protecting the indigenous ecosystems of coastal estuaries around the world from an unforeseen side effect of trade and globalization. (Don't get me wrong. We are in business to make money, but it sure doesn't hurt that we're going to take a bad situation and correct it.)
I put in the time on the government and industry side. I made the rounds to inform everyone about Medusa and all her wonderful attributes. What started out as a lobbying effort ended up as a bit of a lesson in social order and the science of popularity. We made very limited contacts with congressional leaders, or more appropriately their staffers, about our successful tests and how we could achieve the results they desired. We put a greater effort into informing environmental groups of our progress. Very eager to mitigate the environmental crisis posed by AIS, they were anxious for a solution to the problem and elated to hear of one. We listened intently to their concerns and made sure to keep them informed of our progress and successes in achieving results that satisfied their goals. We spent the most time with the shipping industry. As our eventual customers, they were our greatest concern. Clearly they were not in favor of any new regulations which would cost them money as a result of time and equipment additions. We lucked out on this front. So many of the shippers had already been accosted by our other vendors in the industry (which was and is still in development) and had simply been shown a mind-blowing beheamoth of a product and were told that they would HAVE to have it, that we were a refreshing surprise. Not only were they surprised to be speaking with a woman, but I was universally told that I was the first to ask them what their parameters were for such a piece of equipment. We told them of our goals to keep energy and space requirements at a minimum and to work in time with the existing pumps.
posted by Ellie at 6:35 PM
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