Katherine Birch

Kate Birch is a dual-degree graduate student at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs pursuing a Master of Global Policy Studies and a Master of Arts in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies. Throughout her graduate school career, she has interned with both the U.S. Department of State’s Global Engagement Center and Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor as well as various think tanks based in Washington D.C. and Central Europe. Additionally, Ms. Birch has experience conducting fieldwork abroad with Russian-language speakers in Europe following her semester studying abroad at the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin, Germany.  These professional opportunities have enabled Ms. Birch to deepen her regional expertise on security and political issues pertaining to Eurasia (with a specific focus on Russia, Central Asia, and the Caucasus) as well as professionalize her understanding of foreign malign actors’ influence activities. Overall, Ms. Birch aspires to one day work in the foreign policy and/or national security communities in a role that enables her to utilize her regional expertise, topical areas of expertise, cross-cultural engagement abilities, and hard-earned Russian language skills.