Contributor

Rick Jacobs

Deputy Chief of Staff, Mayor Eric Garcetti

Rick Jacobs chaired Howard Dean's 2003 presidential campaign in California. He is currently Chair and Founder of the Courage Campaign, a progressive political organization in California. He is also the Chair and Co-Founder of Brave New Films, the documentary film company. Jacobs was co-executive producer of Iraq for Sale: The War Profiteers.

From 1999-2003, Mr. Jacobs worked with a Forbes 400 family in the Los Angeles area managing investments, asset allocation, philanthropic endeavors and its operating businesses. Prior to that, he served as acting COO of Marvel Enterprises, Inc.

Mr. Jacobs was President and Chief Executive Officer of Newstar, Inc., a Washington, D.C. and Moscow-based merchant banking and investment advisory firm focusing on the Former Soviet Union (FSU) and Central Europe. He founded the firm in May 1991 with Ambassador Howard H. Baker, Jr., the former U.S. Senator and White House Chief of Staff.

Prior to establishing Newstar, Mr. Jacobs served as Assistant to the Chairman of Occidental Petroleum Corporation (Dr. Armand Hammer) from 1983 through 1990. He represented the Chairman in major financings and philanthropic activities.

Before joining Occidental, Mr. Jacobs served as International Director of The 1982 World's Fair in Knoxville, Tennessee. Mr. Jacobs was instrumental in securing the participation of the People's Republic of China for the first time in the history of World's Fairs in the United States.

Mr. Jacobs is actively involved in a number of community organizations and serves on several private and public policy Boards. He has traveled to the Former Soviet Union on more than 80 occasions, as well as to over 30 other nations (including China, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Korea, Colombia, Peru and Israel) on various business and citizen diplomacy matters. He serves frequently as a commentator and speaker on national politics, appearing on The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, NPR and at the Milken Institute Global Conference.

A native of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, Mr. Jacobs is a 1980 graduate of Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, where he received the Dean's Citation. He lives in Beverly Hills, California.