Barnaby Marsh
Cornell University, A.B. Summa cum laude, Economics, Psychology, and International Affairs, 1996
University of Oxford, D. Phil., Zoology, 2000
Barnaby Marsh is the oldest of five children. At an early age, he moved with his family from Pennsylvania to Alaska. He spent most of his formative years growing up in the Alaskan wilderness near Denali National Park. His parents home-schooled him and cultivated a problem-solving outlook. He did not receive any formal educational training until he enrolled at Harvard for his freshman year. After a year at Harvard, he transferred to Cornell, where he chose to take double course loads for the challenge and to get the most out of his undergraduate experience. He currently works for the John Templeton Foundation as the Strategic Initiatives Director. He is also the creator and Managing Director of the Templeton Philanthropic Leadership Network, defined as “a group of world leaders in business and philanthropy who aim to find innovative ways to address philanthropic challenges.” [link]
Let’s start with your childhood. It sounded pretty interesting, because you were up in Alaska.
My childhood was somewhat unconventional in that I never went to formal school. I was taught at home by my parents.
When did you move to Alaska or were you born there?
We moved up to Alaska from Pennsylvania when I was six. My parents wanted an experience where we could be creative. My parents wanted to be involved in the process of education. I’ve got four siblings, so parenting was really a full time job for both of them. They were always very supportive of cultivating our interest and letting us explore things. That was very important in the formative years.
Where were you in the birth order?
I’m the oldest.
Carolyn Conner Seepersad






