Title: Spotlight on Professor Gary Barrett

As part of the Global Human Development’s initiative to feature the diverse voices and perspectives of our students, faculty, alumni, and as well as provide program highlights and a glimpse into life at GHD, we sat down to talk with one of our professors, Gary Barrett.

In addition to teaching at GHD, Gary Barrett is currently the Senior Advisor at the USDA Forest Service National Partnership Office and an Associate Professor of Practice at Virginia Tech University, as well as the president of the Yale School of the Environment Alumni Association Board.

He has so far had an impressive career trajectory, spanning from his service in the US Marine Corps, to working for the USAID Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance in the Disaster Assistance Support Program (DASP); the World Food Program in South Sudan; and as former Deputy Director and Senior Advisor of the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Office of American Schools and Hospitals Abroad (ASHA), USAID’s only office dedicated to advancing US public diplomacy objectives, just to name a few of his positions.

Throughout his work, Professor Barrett has centered his interests around renewable energy, water and conflict, and the empowerment of women, which is reflected in the courses that he teaches here at GHD. Among them, his favorite is Environment, Conflict, and Development, which delves deeper into some of the relationships between the environment and development issues, including the different levels of conflict that are present in these contexts. The course is very interactive, allowing students to learn about the complexities of different perspectives and actors through discussions and simulations.

“Life is a marathon, not a sprint…so don’t get discouraged if solutions aren’t implemented as quickly as you would like.”

His courses, his role as an advisor, and his time so far with GHD has left an impression on Professor Barrett. He enjoys engaging with brilliant students who are seeking to create solutions for some of the most difficult development challenges that we see today. At the same time, he reminds students that “life is a marathon, not a sprint…so don’t get discouraged if solutions aren’t implemented as quickly as you would like.” Despite this, he encourages students not to be afraid to challenge assumptions and make their voices heard in order to keep the conversation moving, advance the field, and produce more durable solutions. 

Some advice that Professor Barrett has for students:

“Don’t be too rigid in the planning of your career, sometimes the best things that come to you are simply good preparation and luck.”