The Revenue Watch Institute will host a lunchtime discussion with author Peter Maass about his new book, Crude World: The Violent Twilight of Oil (Knopf, 2009).

In Crude World, Maass examines "oil’s indelible impact on the countries that produce it and the people who possess it," bringing stories of the so-called "resource curse" that transparency advocates have long discussed to a broader public. In Maass’s reporting on "the troubled world oil has created," he explores debates over the size of remaining Saudi oil reserves; vast inequalities in the distribution of Equatorial Guinea’s oil wealth; attempts to rebuild Iraq’s oil industry; and Ecuadorians fighting Chevron in court. Maass is a contributing writer to The New York Times Magazine and author of Love Thy Neighbor: A Story of War, an award-winning chronicle of the Bosnian war.

Revenue Watch Director Karin Lissakers will moderate a discussion with Maass about his book and reporting career.

REVENUE WATCH promotes the responsible management of oil, gas and mineral resources for the public good. With effective revenue management, citizen engagement and increased transparency, natural resource wealth can drive development and national growth.