What are the most important events influencing the energy conversation?

The Chevron Pulse Report examines changes in the volume and sentiment of online conversation about prominent discussion topics related to energy. The quarterly report, launched in May 2010, examines the online energy conversation taking place on blogs, discussion forums, video sites, social networks, and Twitter during a recent 18 month period.

The online conversation about energy is robust, diverse, passionate and dynamic. From October 1, 2008 through March 31, 2010, there were more than 30 million posts on energy-related topics. The volume grew rapidly during the first quarter of 2010, increasing 71.5% to 9.2 million posts. Conversation was largely driven by political and economic events such as the Introduction of the American Clean Energy and Security Act (a.k.a. Waxman-Markey), the G8 Summit, the EPA announcing rules to regulate greenhouse gases, and the UN Convention on Climate Change in Copenhagen.

So, what do you think were the most important political and economic events influencing the energy conversation during this time period? Why were they so important, in your opinion? What is the impact of these events today?