Few Americans have met personally with the leadership of both Mao Zedong’s China and Chiang Kai-shek’s Taiwan. Sheila Platt, and her husband Nicholas Platt, are among that select group. Sheila Platt dropped out of Radcliffe in 1957 to join her Foreign Service husband in a storied diplomatic career that led him to ambassadorships in Zambia,… Read More "Sheila Platt: A Diplomatic Life Bridging Both Sides of China’s Divide"
Whistle-Blowing on American Corruption in Russia
USAID unearthed a major corruption scandal in Russia in the late 1990s involving Harvard University’s Institute for International Development. Dr. Janet Ballantyne, USAID’s mission director, blew the whistle. In her oral history, Ballantyne discusses the consternation this caused with U.S. Embassy leadership, and the repercussions of her reporting on relationships with key Russian officials. Throughout… Read More "Whistle-Blowing on American Corruption in Russia"
Helping Rebuild Rwanda After the 1994 Genocide
Rebuilding Rwanda after the genocide was no easy task. USAID tasked George Lewis to head up that agency’s efforts to help a nation heal after one of the most horrific episodes in recent history. He faced extreme ethnic animosity, a destroyed country, and an “epic event in the history of human movement,” the return of… Read More "Helping Rebuild Rwanda After the 1994 Genocide"
Removing Corpses from the U.S. Embassy: Behind the Scenes of Operation Restore Hope in Somalia
After the fall of Somalia’s dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991, a civil war broke out between warlords. In the ensuing conflict, an estimated 350,000 Somalis died because of famine, disease, and war-time casualties. With the death toll mounting, President George H.W. Bush sent a U.S.-led humanitarian force to Somalia. It was among the earliest… Read More "Removing Corpses from the U.S. Embassy: Behind the Scenes of Operation Restore Hope in Somalia "