Friends –

I have a new book out with MIT Press, one I hope will interest you.

The title says it all, They Knew: The US Federal Government's Fifty-Year Role in Causing the Climate Crisis. It covers the period from LBJ through Trump, documenting what the government knew, when they knew it, and how they played a leading and affirmative role in bringing about today’s climate crisis.

This book took shape when Our Children's Trust (OCT), a great advocacy for children, asked me to write up the Carter Administration for the children’s climate lawsuit, and I said sure. A busy period, I thought, but just four years. When I was done, or so I thought, they said, "now, will you do the other administrations?" I picked my aging body up off the floor, and started in on the assignment with the help of an amazing documentary research team at OCT. That was 2018, and I subsequently added the disastrous Trump finale and did some updating.

I am grateful that Julia Olson and Philip Gregory, legal counsel for the seminal case Juliana v. United States, have contributed an introduction to the book. And thankful also for terrific early reviews and endorsements from Naomi Klein, Bill McKibben, Van Jones, Elizabeth Kolbert, and Catherine Flowers. There have been positive reviews also from Nature and Science. See below.

I have described the book as the saddest story ever told, but if you are reality tolerant you will find it an important story of vast governmental malfeasance, surely one of the greatest derelictions of civic responsibility in the history of the Republic.

I hope the book spurs people to act in small and big ways. Please consider ordering a copy from your favorite bookstore and sharing the word with others who may be interested. My publisher has also provided a discount code that will give you 20% discount and free shipping* on direct orders with Penguin Random House.

All royalties go to Our Children’s Trust.

All the best to you,

Gus

James Gustave Speth, gus@speth.com Distinguished Next System Fellow, the Democracy Collaborative, thenextsystem.org

*Necessary information about the discount code: Customers based in the USA can order with discount code TheyKnew20 and receive a 20% discount. Orders should be placed on the Penguin Random House website. This discount code is valid on this website only. This offer is valid while supplies last. Limit one discount code per person. Valid for one transaction. Discount code is not redeemable for cash, is non-transferable and cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer or discount. Discount code expires 10/15/2021.

Praise for They Knew

“A rousing condemnation of a system bent on short-term gain against long-term health.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Drawing on first-hand knowledge from his time as chair of the US Council on Environmental Quality during the administration of president Jimmy Carter (1977–81), and his founding role in several major environmental non-governmental organizations, Speth gives a clear and concise account of the scientific evidence available to successive US presidents and Congresses over five decades. He provides a chilling description of the gulf between the safer course of action recommended by scientists and advisers, and the reality of federal policy.”
—Nature

“Working pro bono [for Juliana v. United States], Speth produced a lengthy report tracing nearly 60 years of federal action on climate change and fossil fuel development. That report is the foundation for this book. Parts of the story have been told before… but Speth’s volume covers a broader period of time, says more about federal encouragement of fossil fuels, and as befits a legal filing, is richly documented.”
—Science

“Devastating. Enraging. Indispensable. Would that the world had more heroic elders like Gus Speth. He has produced a damning record that will become a potent tool for justice.”
—Naomi Klein, Gloria Steinem Chair in Media, Culture, and Feminist Studies at Rutgers University; author of This Changes Everything, The Shock Doctrine, and No Logo

“With skill and dedication, Gus Speth has documented precisely what we knew and when we knew it. This book is a shocking reminder of the chances for action we've already missed, and a spur to finally move with the vigor the climate crisis demands.”
—Bill McKibben, Schumann Distinguished Scholar in Environmental Studies at Middlebury College; founder, 350.org

“Wondering how in the world the catastrophe of climate change could be happening and whom to hold responsible? Look no further than They Knew—Gus Speth’s enlightening and infuriating new book.”
—Van Jones, CNN commentator, author, and founder of the Dream Corps

“Gus Speth has written a history of federal action and inaction on climate change that spares neither Democrats nor Republicans. They Knew is at once a searing indictment and a fascinating read.”
—Elizabeth Kolbert, staff writer, New Yorker; author of Under a White Sky and The Sixth Extinction

“Speth reveals the smoking gun of the climate crisis in the US government’s unholy alliance with the fossil fuel industry. The history presented in They Knew makes clear that democratic action is needed now to ensure a future for seven generations to come.”
—Catherine Flowers, Founder and Director, Center for Rural Enterprise and Environmental Justice; Professor of Practice, Duke University; 2020 MacArthur Fellow; author of Waste