He is a key figure in the nonprofit housing organization Habitat for Humanity and has written numerous books, ranging from political memoirs to poetry, while continuing to comment on global affairs, including two books on the Israeli–Palestinian conflict in which he criticized Israel's treatment of Palestinians as apartheid. Polls of historians and political scientists generally rank Carter as a slightly below-average president, although his post-presidential activities are considered exceptional.

Early life
The Carter family store, part of Carter's Boyhood Farm, in Plains, Georgia
James Earl Carter Jr. was born October 1, 1924, in Plains, Georgia at the Wise Sanitarium, where his mother worked as a registered nurse.[1] With this, Carter became the first American president to be born in a hospital.[2] He was the eldest son of Bessie Lillian and James Earl Carter Sr.[3]: 70  Carter is a descendant of English immigrant Thomas Carter, who settled in the Colony of Virginia in 1635.[4] Numerous generations of Carters lived as cotton farmers in Georgia.[5] Plains was a boomtown of 600 people at the time of Carter's birth. His father was a successful local businessman, who ran a general store and was an investor in farmland.