Al Gore is an American politician, environmental activist, author and former vice president of the United States. A member of the Democratic Party, he served under President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 2001 and became internationally prominent for his efforts to raise awareness of climate change. Gore grew up between Washington, D.C., where his father, Albert Gore Sr., served in Congress, and the family farm in Tennessee. He attended Harvard University, graduating with a degree in government in 1969. Although he opposed the Vietnam War, he enlisted in the United States Army and served as a military journalist in Vietnam. After returning home, he worked as an investigative reporter for The Tennessean in Nashville and studied at Vanderbilt University, including its law school, before entering politics. Gore was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Tennessee in 1976 and won reelection three times. In Congress, he developed interests in environmental protection, technology and arms control. He supported research into climate change and helped advance legislation promoting high-performance computing and communications, including the High Performance Computing Act of 1991. In 1984, he was elected to the U.S. Senate, where he continued to advocate environmental initiatives and technological development. His 1992 book, Earth in the Balance, presented his concerns about the environmental consequences of modern industrial society. Gore sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 1988 but lost to Michael Dukakis. Four years later, he joined Arkansas governor Bill Clinton as the Democratic vice-presidential candidate. The pair won the 1992 election and were reelected in 1996. As vice president, Gore advised Clinton on government reform and promoted the development of information technology, while continuing to emphasize environmental policy. In 2000, he became the Democratic nominee for president, selecting Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman as his running mate. Gore won the national popular vote but lost the Electoral College to Republican George W. Bush after a disputed result in Florida. The U.S. Supreme Court halted the recount in Bush v. Gore, and Gore conceded the election. After leaving office in 2001, he devoted much of his work to climate change awareness. His book An Inconvenient Truth (2006) and the documentary of the same name brought his presentation on global warming to a broad audience; the film won two Academy Awards. In 2007, Gore shared the Nobel Peace Prize with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for efforts to spread knowledge about human-caused climate change and encourage action. He also helped establish the Climate Reality Project, co-founded the investment firm Generation Investment Management, and co-founded the television network Current TV. His later books include The Assault on Reason, Our Choice, and The Future. Gore has received numerous other honors, including a Primetime Emmy Award and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2024. Through public speaking, writing and environmental initiatives, he has remained a prominent voice in debates about climate policy, democratic institutions and the responsibilities of political leadership. He has also taught at several universities and served on boards focused on sustainability and natural resources.