John Leshy, former Solicitor (general counsel) of the U.S. Department of the Interior during the Clinton Administration, tells the little-known story of how the U.S. government came to hold nearly one-third of the nation's land and manage it primarily for recreation, education and conservation.

John Leshy is Emeritus Professor at U.C. Hastings College of the Law. The book is the first comprehensive history of America's public lands – those managed by the National Park Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and the Bureau of Land Management – in more than a half-century. It recounts the political decisions that led to the U.S. government stewarding this nearly one-third of the nation's real estate primarily for conservation, recreation, and other broad public purposes. Leshy's talk will highlight the main themes of this history and lessons it offers for dealing with contemporary challenges like climate change, biodiversity loss, and the dramatic increase in visitation.