Project Unthinkable

Derek Yach, a public health figure who has spent his career trying to reduce deaths worldwide, tells his own story in this memoir. He began at the World Health Organization, where he campaigned hard against the tobacco industry over the millions of deaths it was linked to. After helping to build an international treaty aimed at reducing smoking globally, he took a path few expected: he accepted a role at PepsiCo, assisting its chief executive in reshaping a snack and beverage giant into a healthier business. Yach explains his reasoning as a belief that saving tens of millions of lives may require working from within a company that harms people.

The book's central episode comes when Philip Morris International announced plans to move away from traditional cigarettes toward smoke-free products, a shift that could prevent enormous loss of life. Yach took on this high-stakes effort, a decision that marked a major gamble in his long career. The narrative raises questions about whether a company responsible for harm can change from within, whether someone can cross over to work with former opponents, and whether conventional cigarettes can eventually disappear.

Written as a biography with a strong sense of personal conviction, the memoir will appeal to readers interested in global health policy, corporate change, and the tobacco industry's role in public health.