A damning expose from James Gustave Speth – former Chair of the U.S. Council on Environmental Quality and co-founder of the Natural Resources Defense Council.
By James Gustave Speth
Introduction by Julia Olson & Philip Gregory
In 2018, Gus Speth was tapped by the plaintiffs of Juliana v. United States as one of twenty-one preeminent experts in the children’s constitutional climate lawsuit against the federal government. Recognizing the importance of Speth’s scathing assessment of the federal government’s role, MIT Press has published They Knew, an updated version of his Expert Report.
They Knew offers evidence supporting the children’s claims, presenting a devastating and compelling account of the federal government’s role in bringing about today’s climate crisis. Speth analyzes how administrations from Carter to Trump—despite having information about the impending climate crisis and the connection to fossil fuels—continued aggressive support of a fossil fuel based energy system.
As children around the world continue to suffer from the increasingly deadly effects of the climate crisis, and the Juliana v. United States case progresses closer and closer to trial, there has never been a more important time in history to read this book.