Biography

Erik Edstrom is an author and former captain in the U.S. Army.

He graduated from West Point in 2007, then deployed to Afghanistan, where he served as an infantry platoon leader. Erik spent the remainder of his service as the Presidential Escort Platoon Leader during the Obama administration.

He is a graduate of U.S. Army Ranger School, recipient of the Rippetoe Trophy during The Best Ranger Competition, was selected for the U.S. Special Forces (SFAS). After the military, Erik went on to earn both an MBA and a Master of Science, studying climate change, from Oxford University.

After graduate school, Erik moved to Australia for five years, where he worked as a management consultant for both Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and McKinsey & Company. His most recent book is Un-American: A Soldier’s Reckoning of our Longest War (Bloomsbury, 2020).

Areas of Expertise

  • Afghanistan War
  • American military culture
  • Civil-military relations
  • Climate change: Defense implications and Pentagon policy

Recent News

  • Lawrence Wilkerson, Dennis Laich, & Erik Edstrom: Climate action, as patriotism
    Despite a clear, lawful order to get vaccinated, tens of thousands of active duty…members have refused to be vaccinated, thereby disobeying a lawful order and being insubordinate. After standing by Powell’s side for more than a decade, Wilkerson gives an exclusive look at Powell’s internal conflict, blind spots and disillusionment over his role in the Iraq War.
  • Erik Edstrom: “Absolutely Zero Positive Impact”
    “The problems I identified on a microscale in Afghanistan still exist on a macroscale in American foreign policy,” Edstrom said. “That is detrimental to not only soldiers, but to Americans, and the world.”
  • Erik Edstrom: Boston Public Radio
    Former Army Captain Erik Edstrom shared his experiences in the military, including how he helped get his interpreter out of Afghanistan.