Jimmy Carter, who served as the 39th president of the United States, has died. He was 100. In addition to his work as president, Carter will be remembered for what he accomplished after he left the White House. 

James Earl Carter, Jr., was born in 1924 in the tiny town of Plains, Georgia. He grew up on his family’s farm. After attending college in Georgia, he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1946, the same year he married Rosalynn Smith. Carter served as an officer in the U.S. Navy for seven years. But when his father died in 1953, he and Rosalynn returned to Georgia to take over the family farm. 

Carter began his political career in 1962, when he was elected to the Georgia state senate. He became governor of the state in 1971. As governor, he voiced his opposition to racial discrimination at a time when many white leaders were reluctant to do so. 

“I say to you quite frankly, the time for discrimination is over,” Carter said in his first speech as governor. 

Carter was elected president in 1976. He worked to get funding to research sustainable solar and wind energy—a fairly new idea at the time—and spoke out against governments that violated their citizens’ human rights. He also helped negotiate a historic peace agreement between Israel and Egypt. Carter was not elected to a second term as president, due in part to voters’ unhappiness about high gas prices.

After leaving the White House, Carter worked for causes that were important to him, including democracy and human rights. He worked with an organization called Habitat for Humanity, which builds homes for people who could not otherwise afford them. Both Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter not only raised funds for the organization but also worked frequently on its construction projects. 

“To have a decent place to live is a basic human right,” Carter said in a 2017 interview with Bloomberg.com. “And also to have a chance to live in peace and to have…health care and…education, so you can take advantage of your talents.” 

President Carter also used his position as a world leader to travel around the globe, helping to work out disagreements between nations and monitoring elections to be sure they were carried out fairly. 

Leaders from around the world paid tribute to President Carter after his death. 

“To all of the young people in this nation and for anyone in search of what it means to live a life of purpose and meaning—the good life—study Jimmy Carter, a man of principle, faith, and humility,” U.S. President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden said in a statement. “He showed that we are a great nation because we are a good people—decent and honorable, courageous and compassionate, humble and strong.”

Click through the slideshow below for highlights from President Carter’s remarkable life.