Author Talk & Book Signing: Footeprint by Lindsay H. Metcalf

Author Talk & Book Signing: Footeprint by Lindsay H. Metcalf

April 19th, 2026 - 2:00pm–3:00pm

• Program is free with museum admission.
• Books will be available for purchase and signing.

Join author Lindsay H. Metcalf for a talk and book signing of her new book Footeprint: Eunice Newton Foote at the Dawn of Climate Science and Women's Rights, a novel-in-verse for young adults that captures the discoveries of Eunice Newton Foote, a remarkable woman in science way ahead of her time.

Discover the account of the first woman to identify carbon dioxide as a cause of climate change in 1856, at a time when most people preferred that women be seen rather than heard. Foote also has a meaningful connection to the Capital Region—she was educated at Emma Willard School, formerly called the Troy Female Seminary, and attended science courses at the adjacent Rensselaer School, later renamed Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Fictionalized only to weave together some unknown pieces of Eunice’s life, this is a journey through time, triumph, trepidation, and trauma, revealing the extraordinary life and work of Eunice Newton Foote. Eunice’s most important discovery was recognizing the effect of excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere: a warming planet. But in a society driven by coal, kerosene, and crude oil, Eunice’s warnings went unheeded. After all, who would listen to a woman—especially a woman known to consort with suffragists?

From the Seneca Falls Convention to the halls of the US Patent Office in Washington, DC, Eunice Newton Foote blazed a trail for independence and inquiry. Today Eunice’s discoveries feel ever more prescient. Her story is told in novel-in-verse format, appropriate for teenagers interested in STEM.

Lindsay H. Metcalf is a former journalist who writes nonfiction and poetry for young people. She is a co-editor of and contributor to the Social Justice Literature and Green Earth Book Award-winning young activist poetry anthologies No Voice Too Small and No World Too Big, and the summer 2026 installment, No Brain the Same: Neurodivergent Young Activists Shaping Our Future. Three of Lindsay’s picture books were named Junior Library Guild selections: Tomatoes on Trial; Outdoor Farm, Indoor Farm; and Farmers Unite!, also a Bank Street Best Book of 2020. Her 2020 debut, the picture book biography Beatrix Potter, Scientist, won the Friends of American Writers Young People’s Literature Award.

In February 2026, she will release her young adult debut, Footeprint: Eunice Newton Foote at the Dawn of Climate Science and Women’s Rights (Charlesbridge), a biography-in-verse about a nineteenth-century scientist and suffragist who discovered carbon dioxide’s warming properties. Lindsay began her writing career as a reporter, editor, and columnist for The Kansas City Star and other news outlets. She lives in north-central Kansas with her husband, two sons, and a matching pair of Cavalier King Charles lapdogs. Learn more at lindsayhmetcalf.com and @lindsayhmetcalf on social media.