Columbia Center for Oral History Portal > Oral history interview with Toby Trister Gati, 2016Biographical NoteToby Gati (née Trister) was born in new York City in 1946. She received her B.A. from Pennsylvania State University in 1967, where she majored in Russian language and literature. She received her M.A. from Columbia University in 1970 and her Masters of International Affairs (M.I.A.), along with a certificate from the Harriman Institute, in 1972. After completing her studies at Columbia, Gati served as senior vice president for policy studies at the United Nations Association of the United States (UNA-USA), then became the special assistant to the President and senior director for Russia, Ukraine, and the Eurasian States at the National Security Council in 1993. In her current position as Senior International Advisor at the global law firm Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, where she has worked since 1997, she focuses on political, economic, and trade developments in Russia, Eurasia, and Central and Eastern Europe
Scope and ContentsGati discusses her personal history and family background, and how her Russian heritage led to an interest in Russian culture and literature. Her interest in Russian language led her to the Harriman Institute and the world of international affairs. She describes how her work and contacts at the Institute led her into government during the Clinton administration. She talks about her experience working amid gender bias in American and Russian politics, and discusses the importance of area studies in informing policy and diplomacy. Gati concludes by analyzing the state of Russian Studies in the United States
SubjectsAccess ConditionsCopyright by the Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York, 2016
| |
