diff --git a/build.gradle b/build.gradle
index 4706ca6d..6fe362bd 100644
--- a/build.gradle
+++ b/build.gradle
@@ -7,13 +7,17 @@ plugins {
     id 'com.github.johnrengelman.shadow' version '7.1.2'
 }
 
+// define these in the `gradle.properties` file
+ext.githubUser = project.findProperty('github.packages.user')
+ext.githubToken = project.findProperty('github.packages.token')
+
 repositories {
     mavenCentral()
     maven {
         url = uri("https://maven.pkg.github.com/seqeralabs/tower-java-sdk")
         credentials {
-            username = System.getenv("GITHUB_USERNAME")
-            password = System.getenv("GITHUB_TOKEN")
+            username = githubUser ?: System.getenv("GITHUB_USERNAME")
+            password = githubToken ?: System.getenv("GITHUB_TOKEN")
         }
     }
 }