My new book appears in print: hello, Universities on Fire!

Guess what arrived at my house today?

My new book, Universities on Fire: Higher Education in the Climate Crisis, is the fruit of several years of research, interviews, writing, more research, and more writing.  Some of you have seen parts of this through my blog posts on the topic.  Others have heard me present, teach, or lead workshops about it.

And now it finally exists in print.

Holding a published book you wrote is a staggering feeling.  It’s a bit like Christmas or other magical holiday times of presents to a child, that sense of delight given into your hands from beyond you. It’s like a graduation diploma, that firm confirmation of your work granted by an outside authority.  I hold it and see the hard work of Johns Hopkins University Press staff, from terrific editor Greg Britton to graphic designers and copyeditors, layout and marketing folks.  I feel the admonitions of peer reviewers, and hope the volume meets their charges. And it feels like a condensation of so many voices and conversations all in one artifact, from interviewees to the large number of folks who talked with me about the topic.

I’m committed to the topic – not just in writing the book, obviously, but moving forward, I’ll keep researching the ways climate change and higher education can intersect for the rest of the 21st century.  More articles are in the pipeline, along with videos (including Future Trends Forum sessions)  and, I hope, a podcast series.  I’ll talk about this in presentations and keynotes, teach about it in classes, and address it in workshops.

And I’m touring!  A bunch of folks have offered to host me so I can show off the book, speak to it, sign copies, and more.  If you’re interested in hosting me – a/k/a participating in the great Universities on Fire 2023 World Tour – please ping me directly or leave a comment here.

Once more, many thanks to the Johns Hopkins team, to my peer reviewers, and to the many, many people who helped me see this book to fruition.