DCFR Global Speaker Series
Speaker: Ambassador Rick Barton
Date: Thursday, April 16, 2026
Time: 5:00 pm – 8:15 pm
Location: Central Denver Location (Please register for more details)
5:00 PM | Cocktails & Networking
6:00 pm | Dinner
7:00 pm | Program Begins
About the Event
From Gaza and Ukraine to Sudan and beyond, global instability is on the rise while traditional and newer peacebuilding efforts are being sidelined. In an era defined by aggression, arms buildups, and the targeting of civilians, how do we restore order?
Join us for a high-level conversation with Ambassador Rick Barton, former Ambassador and Assistant Secretary of State for Conflict and Stabilization Operations, and author of Peace Works – America’s Unique Role in a Turbulent World. Drawing on his experience in over 40 conflict zones, Ambassador Barton will move beyond the headlines to provide sharp analysis of our “new norms” and offer constructive, proven alternatives for building peace in a divided world.
Bio of Speaker
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. Amb. 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.
Check Out Peace Works from Amb. Barton!
Peace Works: America’s Unifying Role in a Turbulent World
Bosnia, Rwanda, Haiti, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria – a quarter-century of stumbles in America’s pursuit of a more peaceful and just world. American military interventions have cost thousands of lives and billions of dollars, yet we rarely manage to enact positive and sustainable change. In Peace Works: America’s Unifying Role in a Turbulent World, ambassador and global conflict leader Rick Barton uses a mix of stories, history, and analysis for a transformative approach to foreign affairs and offers concrete and attainable solutions for the future.
Drawing on his lifetime of experience as a diplomat, foreign policy expert, and State Department advisor, Rick Barton grapples with the fact that the U.S. is strategically positioned and morally obligated to defuse international conflicts, but often inadvertently escalates conflicts instead.
*Please visit our Global Affairs Speaker Dinners page to learn about our policies.