About

Update: I wrote the information on this page in about 2020. I worked hard to make it as nonpolitical as I could. The following post is eye opening.

March 31, 2025 – from Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase and the Institute of International Finance – Big Banks Quietly Prepare for Catastrophic Climate Change | Scientific American: “…the planet is hurtling toward a future in which severe droughts and harvest failures become widespread, sea-level rise is measured in feet rather than inches and tropical regions experience episodes of extreme heat and humidity for weeks at a time that would bring deadly risks to people who work outdoors….Most [reports] were published after the reelection of President Donald Trump, who is seeking to repeal federal policies that support clean energy while turbocharging the production of oil, gas and coal — the main sources of global warming.”

Now, back to the original post: An idea is born…

There is one and only one reason I worked for years to write Earth’s Forgotten Secrets. I made a silent promise to the kids in the photo and to my other great nieces and nephews. Aunt Susie is not going to let people with blind spots (or people who don’t care) steal the future from you. I’ve read that young people around the world are extremely worried about their future. The Earth Secrets can help us move beyond “Either – Or” thinking. Those who claim it’s “Jobs or the Environment” are leading us down a dangerous road. I hope readers of Earth’s Forgotten Secrets choose BOTH.

For the sake of young people, it must be both. The companies behind fossil fuels have had at least 50 years to diversify and become renewable energy companies. We can’t wait any longer. It’s time to protect our oxygen and food supply by protecting jobs in farming and fishing from climate change. The bottom line, the only way we survive is if plants, animals and their habitats survive. Renewable energy offers a path to a more promising and sustainable future.

92% of Americans agree we have a climate problem.* Caring people in 200 countries are working to fix it and to prevent future problems.

The idea for this book began some twenty-five years ago after a science workshop I did for elementary teachers. The feedback was positive, but I had failed them. Sure, I had provided good information and activities focusing on the hot topics of the day. But it was a tiny drop in a giant bucket, and I knew it. I wanted to teach them to fish, not throw them a few fish crumbs. Einstein’s words echoed in my mind. We cannot solve problems with the same thinking that created them.

How can we help teachers, students, and people everywhere think for themselves when there is so much to know? Slowly, answers emerged, and a light popped on. Get back to basics. The basics of how laws, like gravity, govern this planet. It doesn’t matter if you think of them as laws of science, laws of nature, or God’s laws. Like gravity, they were part of the planet when we humans arrived. Like gravity, these laws are nonnegotiable and nonpolitical. We have climate, energy, and biodiversity problems because we don’t understand how these laws govern our lives.

In short, dozens and dozens of seemingly separate issues can be explained by five ideas I call the “Earth Secrets.” All I needed to do was translate the abstract science laws into everyday language. Everything comes from somewhere and goes somewhere is an example. This idea helps explain the Law of Conservation of Matter/Mass (Secret #7). It also helps explain why sulfur in coal triggered acid rain, CFCs (chemicals) in spray cans enlarged the ozone hole, and carbon in fossil fuels contributed to global climate change.

The sulfur, CFCs, and carbon didn’t disappear. They all went “somewhere.” Each caused problems because everything is connected, which means you can never do just one thing. (Secret #3 – First Law of Ecology). Thus, one change triggers others that caused unexpected problems (Secret #4 – Law of Unintended Consequences.) These are not scary or hard to understand ideas. Download the free eBook to learn how the Secrets, when taken together, help explain almost every environmental problem. If you’ll check out the three sample pages in the “Overview” section, you’ll discover why Earth’s Forgotten Secrets is a quick, easy read. Plus, the eBook is beautifully illustrated and fully cited.

Our challenge now is to find ways to meet our daily needs without destroying the very things that make our lives possible. The best way to do this is to turn the five laws into questions. Where did this (material to make a toy, hoodie, or gasolene/petrol) come from and where will it go when I am done with it? Will it cause any problems? This new, nonpolitical approach can prevent us from making the same mistakes. Perhaps most importantly, Earth’s Forgotten Secrets levels the playing field because every single one of us can ask important questions that impact our future. For more details, check out the Overview section.

Expect science knowledge, nods to religious teachings, and other words of wisdom.

It will take all of us working together to create a better future. Saving biodiversity (the plants and animals that are part of our critical supply chains) isn’t a new idea. It’s what the story of Noah and the Ark were all about! Science explains how our planet works. Religion and spirituality inspire us to act with courage and morals, to do the right thing. Earth’s Forgotten Secrets can help you think about ways to secure the future for today’s children and teens. Please, please do not keep these ideas secret. Tell everyone you know! There is no big publishing house with a giant publicity machine for this eBook. The only way others will gain the knowledge to protect their family is if you spread the word. Remember, the eBook is free. So, it isn’t about money. It’s about hope.

A special thanks to Nancy Rosenthal Stewart and Dr. Jeannette Batz Cooperman for helping to make the manuscript readable. Thank you to Major Luke Barker, USAF Ret., for tech support. Their generous gifts of skill, time, and encouragement helped make Earth’s Forgotten Secrets possible.

Thanks for reading, Susan “Sus” Barker

**https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2024/12/09/how-americans-view-climate-change