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. Buy it today!

FOR FIVE DECADES.
THEY KNEW.

“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

“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

“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

“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