Ambassador Rick Barton is a lecturer at Princeton University’s School of Public and International Affairs, where he served as co-director of the Scholars in the Nation’s Service Initiative from 2016-23. Author of Peace Works: America's Unifying Role in a Turbulent World, Barton was the first Assistant Secretary of State for Conflict and Stabilization Operations, America’s ambassador to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations in New York, the UN’s Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees in Geneva and founded USAID’s Office of Transition Initiatives. He led peacebuilding initiatives in over 40 crisis zones across the globe, from Haiti, Iraq, Nigeria, Burma to Pakistan.

He advises numerous non-profits and public service institutions and serves on boards.  A regular contributor on major policy discussions, Barton’s pieces have appeared in a wide range of publications, including the New York Times, New York Daily News, Philadelphia Inquirer, The Hill, Los Angeles Times, and many more.

Barton and his wife Kit Lunney love working with younger people as they shape their lives and careers. Their daughter Kacy is a family therapist.