IN COMMEMORATION OF THIS YEAR’S 250TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION…
ON FRIDAY, MAY 30, 2025, THE WALDEN WOODS PROJECT WILL WELCOME THE HONORABLE STEPHEN BREYER — A RETIRED ASSOCIATE JUSTICE OF THE U.S. SUPREME COURT — TO OUR HEADQUARTERS IN LINCOLN, MA FOR A CONVERSATION MODERATED BY HISTORIAN DOUGLAS BRINKLEY.
The public is cordially invited to attend this special, complimentary event at The Walden Woods Project; 44 Baker Farm Road; Lincoln, MA. Our organization is grateful to our co-sponsors: Lincoln250, Concord250, Bemis Free Lecture Series; and Lincoln Historical Society.
The outdoor event will be held rain or shine in an enclosed tent.
Preceding the conversational program will be the first public showing of a 9-minute introduction to the feature documentary – Henry David Thoreau. The film, by Ewers Brothers Productions and Executive Producers Ken Burns and Don Henley, is scheduled to air on PBS in 2026.
SCHEDULE:
5:15-5:30: Arrival
5:45: Henry David Thoreau film clip – introduced by producers Erik Ewers and Chris Ewers
6:00: Introduction of Justice Stephen Breyer and Douglas Brinkley by Kathi Anderson, Ex. Dir./The Walden Woods Project
6:05: Conversation with Justice Breyer moderated by Douglas Brinkley
7:00-7:15: Q&A
We ask guests to arrive promptly between 5:15 and 5:30 p.m. There will be open seating.
Registration for this event is full. Please fill out the form below to join the waitlist. Cancellations will be filled by those on the wait list in the order they sign up. We will optimize seating to the best of our ability to allow for as many people on the waitlist to attend as possible. We will be in touch over email if a spot opens.
Pre-purchase the following books signed by the authors. Pre-purchased books may be picked up at the event!
Reading the Constitution: Why I Chose Pragmatism, Not Textualism, by Justice Stephen Breyer
In a provocative and brilliant analysis, retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer deconstructs the textualist philosophy of the current Supreme Court’s supermajority and makes the case for a more pragmatic approach of the Constitution.
“Most important in interpreting law,” says Breyer, “is to understand the statutes as well as the consequences of deciding a case one way or another. He illustrates these principles by examining some of the most important cases in the nation’s history, among them the Dobbs and Bruen decisions from 2022 that he argues were wrongly decided and have led to harmful results.”
Hardcover book with attached bookplate signed by the author.
Click here to purchase Reading the Constitution: Why I chose Pragmatism, Not Textualism.
Silent Spring Revolution, by Douglas Brinkley
New York Times bestselling author and acclaimed historian Douglas Brinkley chronicles the rise of environmental activism during the Long Sixties, telling a highly charged story of an indomitable generation that quite literally saved the natural world under the leadership of John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon.
The Walden Woods Project is humbled and honored to be included in the dedication of Silent Spring Revolution.
Hardcover book, featuring two 8-page color photo inserts, with attached bookplate signed by the author.
Click here to purchase Silent Spring Revolution.
JUSTICE STEPHEN BREYER
The Honorable Stephen Breyer is a retired Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Born in San Francisco in 1938, he is a graduate of Stanford, Oxford, and Harvard Law School. He taught law for many years as a professor at Harvard Law School and at the Kennedy School of Government. He has also worked as a Supreme Court law clerk (for Justice Arthur Goldberg), a Justice Department lawyer (antitrust division), an Assistant Watergate Special Prosecutor, and Chief Counsel of the Senate Judiciary Committee. In 1980, he was appointed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit by President Carter, becoming Chief Judge in 1990. In 1994, he was appointed to the Supreme Court by President Clinton. His wife, Joanna, was born in Great Britain and is a retired clinical psychologist. They have three children—Chloe, Nell, and Michael—and six grandchildren.
DOUGLAS BRINKLEY
Douglas Brinkley is the Katherine Tsanoff Brown Chair in Humanities and Professor of History at Rice University, a CNN Presidential Historian, and a contributing editor at Vanity Fair. He has received seven honorary doctorates in American Studies. He works in many capacities in the world of public history, including for boards, museums, colleges and historical societies. Six of his books were named New York Times “Notable Books of the Year” and seven became New York Times bestsellers. The New-York Historical Society selected Brinkley in 2017 as their official U.S. Presidential Historian. He is a Board Trustee Member of the National Archives Foundation, the Library of Congress James Madison Council, and the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library. He lives in Austin, Texas with his wife and three children.
THE WALDEN WOODS PROJECT
The Walden Woods Project is a nonprofit organization committed to preserving the land, literature, and legacy of Henry David Thoreau through conservation, education, research and advocacy. The Project uses the land it has protected in Walden Woods to foster an ethic of environmental stewardship and social responsibility, both cornerstones of Thoreau’s philosophy.
Frequently Asked Questions:
If it is raining, will the event still occur?
Yes, this event is rain or shine! It will take place under a tent, however dress according to the weather.
If I preorder a book, how do I receive it?
Your book will be available for pick up at the event. If you wish to to purchase more items from The Walden Woods Project Shop to pick up with your book, please make a note when you complete your purchase.
This event is presented by The Walden Woods Project in partnership with Lincoln250, Concord250, Bemis Free Lecture Series; and Lincoln Historical Society.
