Rye Barcott

Rye Barcott is a social entrepreneur, author, investor, and former U.S. Marine Corps officer whose career spans military service, humanitarian work, and civic leadership. Barcott served five years on active duty in the Marine Corps, attaining the rank of captain and deploying to Bosnia, the Horn of Africa, and Iraq. While an undergraduate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Barcott co-founded Carolina for Kibera, now known as CFK Africa, with Salim Mohamed and Tabitha Atieno Festo. The organization, focused on youth leadership and public health, addresses extreme poverty in the slums of Kenya. CFK Africa began as a small inter-ethnic soccer program and medical clinic and has grown into a major affiliated entity of UNC and a partner of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Time and the Gates Foundation recognized CFK Africa as a "Hero of Global Health."

Barcott's experiences as a Marine officer and humanitarian organizer are chronicled in his memoir, "It Happened on the Way to War: A Marine's Path to Peace." The book explores the intersection of military service and social entrepreneurship and has been adopted in college reading programs nationwide. Reader's Digest named it one of the top four nonfiction books of the year, and the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association awarded it the Ragan Old North State Award for Nonfiction. The TED Conference selected the memoir for its annual book club. Dartmouth College awarded Barcott an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters. He also holds an MPA and MBA from Harvard University, where he was a Center for Public Leadership Social Entrepreneurship Fellow and George Leadership Fellow.

Barcott co-founded With Honor with the late bipartisan presidential advisor and Navy veteran David Gergen and entrepreneur and Marine Corps veteran Peter Dixon. With Honor is a national nonprofit and political action committee that addresses polarization in Congress by recruiting, electing, and supporting veterans who pledge to serve with integrity, civility, and courage across party lines. The organization has supported the election of more than 100 veterans and national security professionals to public office, including 50 serving in Congress, and has helped advance more than 200 bipartisan laws focused on national security, national service, and veterans' affairs. Prior to co-founding With Honor, Barcott co-founded and led the solar power investment firm Double Time Capital and served as special advisor to the CEO of Duke Energy, where he established and led a clean energy investment team.

In "Courage Can Save US: Ten Extraordinary Americans and the Fight for Our Future," Barcott profiles American political leaders who served in the military and the FBI, examining themes of public service and bipartisan governance. Barcott appeared on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" to discuss the book, highlighting the role of veteran leadership in restoring trust and courage in American public life. He serves on the boards of CFK Africa, the Global War on Terrorism Memorial Foundation, NDI, Veterans Bridge Home, and the U.S. Institute for Peace. Barcott's writing has appeared in The Washington Post, The New York Times, USA Today, and TIME. His work provides insight into leadership, service, and the impact of moral courage in public affairs, social entrepreneurship, and veteran advocacy.