Mary Ann Peters
The Carter Center
Atlanta, GA USA
"Failure is an acceptable risk. If you are going to tackle the tough problems, you have to be prepared to fail every once in awhile."
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Mary Ann's work combines: Non-Profit Organizations, Government, and Helping People
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Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Advice for getting started
There was a lot of negativity and caution about sending women into certain countries because of preconceived notions about how they would be welcomed (or not). In many instances, those fears were unfounded and a reflection of the biases held about the people of those countries. I just had to push forward and prove them wrong.
Here's the path I took:
High School
Bachelor's Degree
International Relations and Affairs
Santa Clara University
Graduate Degree
International Relations and Affairs
Johns Hopkins University
Certification
Political Science and Government, General
Institut d'Etudes Politiques
Life & Career Milestones
My path in life has been direct
1.
Was born and raised in California.
2.
Received her bachelor's and master’s degrees in international relations.
3.
Says while she was not a part of the first wave of women entering diplomatic service, she knew those women and had tremendous respect for the sacrifices they made that enabled her to enter the field.
4.
In the early ’70s, female diplomats who got married were forced to resign—she decided to join anyways and began her service in 1975 where she advocated for more women to join.
5.
She worked for over 30 years as a career diplomat with the U.S. Department of State, serving in Canada, Germany, Bulgaria, Russia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and many more.
6.
She became the United States ambassador to Bangladesh in 2000 and led the embassy’s response to the war on terrorism—was awarded a Presidential Meritorious Service Award in 2003 for her work.
7.
After retiring from foreign service, she transitioned into education, serving as dean of academics at the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies and provost of the Naval War College.
8.
She is now the executive director of The Carter Center and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and Women in International Security.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Peers:
You won't get that assignment because you are a woman.
How I responded:
There was a lot of negativity and caution about sending women into certain countries because of preconceived notions about how they would be welcomed (or not). In many instances, those fears were unfounded and a reflection of the biases held about the people of those countries. I just had to push forward and prove them wrong.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
Starting out, I was one of very few women in foreign service and had to deal with all of the push back associated with that.