Michael J. Osborne

Michael J. Osborne - (born: September 20, 1949 in Amarillo, Texas.) An author, inventor, entrepreneur, visionary and energy policymaker, Michael Osborne has been a pioneer in promoting Texas renewable energy resources for over three decades. He was one of three founding members of the Texas Renewable Energy Industries Alliance (TREIA). His public service appointments have included the steering committees of the State of Texas Energy Policy Partnership (STEPP) and the Sustainable Energy Development Council under Governor Ann Richards; and later, the Texas Energy Coordination Council appointed by Governor George W. Bush. As Chair of the Austin Electric Utility Commission, Osborne has traveled internationally to speak and consult about the Texas energy experience. In 2015 he was part of the Austin, Texas delegation to the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference held in Paris, France.

Early Life and Education

The youngest of two sons born to Maxine Joan Chambers Osborne (a businesswoman and investor) and Jack Harold Osborne (a WW II Navy pilot and rancher), Michael was born in Amarillo, Texas on Sept 20, 1949. When he was six, his family moved to the small town of Pampa, Texas where he later became captain of the Pampa High School golf team and played guitar and piano in two rock-and-roll bands.  He graduated in 1967. At the age of seventeen Michael moved to Austin, Texas to attend the University of Texas and majored in aerospace engineering and later, business marketing. He withdrew from school one semester short of a degree after his business school dean denied him project credit for an advertising agency, Directions Company, he had started on the side.

Professional Life

Marketing Music. As founder of Directions Company, Michael focused on marketing music venues such as Castle Creek, Mother Earth, and the legendary Armadillo World Headquarters (1973-1980), a famed venue that led the Music of Austin Texas to national prominence. The Armadillo became a springboard for the careers of celebrated musicians such as: Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Marcia Ball, Joe Ely, Jerry Jeff Walker, Bruce Springsteen, Shiva’s Headband, and many more.

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