Perhaps one of the most resounding and uplifting images of U.S. politicians these past tumultuous years has been that of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter. Even well into his nineties, he banged a hammer, getting up on roofs, building houses, all while wearing blue dungarees like Bruce Springsteen. Carter was a longtime volunteer at Habitat for Humanity and a dogged environmentalist which did much set the country straight toward a green future. Carter died this weekend at age 100. News of the former presidents death was confirmed by The Carter Center. The 2002 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate passed at his home surrounded by family in Plains, Georgia, making him the longest-living U.S. president.My father was a hero, not only to me but to everyone who believes in peace, human rights, and unselfish love, Chip Carter, the presidents son, said in a statement. My brothers, sister, and I shared him with the rest of the world through these common beliefs. The world is our family because of the way he brought people together, and we thank you for honoring his memory by continuing to live these shared beliefs.Carter volunteered for Habitat for Humanity well into his nineties. (Courtesy Habitat for Humanity)James Earl Carter Jr. was born in 1924 in Plains, Georgia. In 1946, he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy. He married his wife, Rosalynn Smith, that same year.In 1953, Carter left the U.S. Navy to manage his fathers peanut farm. In 1963, he successfully ran for a Georgia State Senate seat. Carter operated the peanut farm while serving in the state senate. He subsequently served as Governor of Georgia between 1971 and 1975. Carter was elected U.S. President in 1977. In 1978, under Carters tutelage, Congress authorized the Solar Photovoltaic Energy Research, Development, and Demonstration Act of 1978. This legislation granted time and resources for scientists to explore solar irradiance (sunlight) as an alternative to fossil fuels.Leading the ChargeCarter said he wanted to harness the power of the sun to enrich our lives as we move away from our crippling dependence on foreign oil. That same year, May 3 forever became Sun Day. Carter didnt mince any words when he said his goal was to wage the moral equivalent of war on the energy crisis at hand. This pioneering investment was made famous when, in 1979, Carter had 32 photovoltaic panels installed on the West Wings roof. These same photovoltaic panels however were famously taken down by his successor, Ronald Reagan, after moving in. (Ironically, George H. W. Bush reinstalled solar panels at the White House in 2003 to help heat the pool, albeit quietly, and then Barack Obama added more to the roof in 2013.)The Carter Presidential Center was built in 1986 and designed by Henri Vatable Jova, Stanley Daniels, and John Busby, reputable Atlanta architects. (Nicolas Henderson/Flickr/CC BY 2.0)While in office, Carter ensured that more than a dozen new parks were added to the National Park Services purview. Carter placed special emphasis on nature reserves in Alaska, where oil tycoons sought to plunder. In 1980, the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act was approved, putting much land in Alaska under public management.Habitat for Humanity WorkCarter lost to Reagan in 1981. After, The Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project was founded in 1984 as an offshoot of Habitat for Humanity. That program started in Georgia as a one-off, but eventually spread out into 15 countries around the world, becoming an annual affair. The program ultimately built and renovated 4,390 homes. Its gathered more than 104,000 volunteers.We are deeply saddened by President Carters passing, and our prayers are with the Carter family, Jonathan Reckford, CEO of Habitat for Humanity International, said in a statement. President and Mrs. Carter began volunteering with Habitat for Humanity near their home in southwest Georgia more than 40 years ago, and soon brought worldwide attention to the need for decent and affordable housing. Reckford continued: We are grateful for the incredible impact the Carters have had on Habitat and on the families who have benefited from their shining example. The Carters put Habitat for Humanity on the map, and their legacy lives on in every family we serve around the world.In the early 1980s, construction started on the Jimmy Carter Presidential Center in Atlanta. A local firm ran by Henri Vatable Jova, Stanley Daniels, and John Busby designed the building together with Hawaii-based Lawton, Umemura, Yamamoto. In 1986, the same year the Carter Presidential Center completed, Reagan shut down research into renewable energy. Reagan also prohibited tax breaks for property owners who installed photovoltaic panels and wind turbines. These measures were praised by The Heritage Foundation, but critics argued Reagans antics put the U.S. back on track to be fully dependent on foreign countries for dirty, nonrenewable energy.Peace and PoliticsCarter stayed politically activethroughout the 1990s.In 2002, he was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize. The committee bestowed the award upon Carter for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development.Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter (Courtesy Habitat for Humanity)In 2006, Carter strayed away from his contemporaries in U.S. politics when he used the word Apartheid to describe the situation in Israel and Palestine when speaking to Charlie Rose.Critics like Rashid Khalidi argued however in his book The 100 Years War on Palestine (which President Biden was recently seen brandishing) that the 1978 Camp David Accordswhich Carter helped broker between Israel and Egyptdid much to destabilize the Levant, and ultimately hurt Palestinians.Carter spent much of his nineties volunteering for Habitat for Humanity, and continuing to advise global leaders. His wife, Rosalynn Carter, died on November 19, 2023.Today, Carter is survived by his four children, 11 grandchildren, and 14 great-grandchildren.