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Barbara Chattin - 2000
Arlington, Virginia
Ph.D., Agricultural Economics, 1982
Deputy Assistant U.S. Trade Representative, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative,
Washington D.C and Geneva, Switzerland
Negotiating Around the World
Thinking on her feet fills much of Barbara Chattin's workdays, especially during
the six months or so of every year that she spends at the Geneva, Switzerland,
Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. So when she has a little time off
from trade negotiations, she takes those overworked feet on mini-vacations
in the Swiss countryside.
"
Switzerland has an incredible train system. I ride the train out to different
little towns. At each town you can get off the train, get a map showing where
hiking trails are and how long they are, and you can walk," Chattin says. "And
strange it may seem for Switzerland, you can find some trails that don't require
you to be scurrying up a mountain or down narrow paths and ledges.”
Living in Arlington, Va., and flying frequently to Geneva for extended stays,
Chattin needs a portable and very part-time hobby. Hiking fills the bill
on both continents. In Virginia, she also enjoys her own home's flower
garden.
Hiking is especially beneficial in Switzerland, where the scenic meadows
she walks to offer an occasional respite from intense trade discussions.
Negotiations constitute the bulk of her job, and being able to think on her
feet is her greatest challenge, Chattin says. "The more articulate you
are, the better the job you do," she says. "You can have a position
identified ahead of time. You may know the general principles you're trying
to convey. But no one can script it. And when you're from the United States,
every word you say, people are taking down."
Her years at Purdue, which went beyond agricultural economics to include some
animal science, process engineering, and a broad interdisciplinary experience
helped prepare her. "It was a foundation, working with people who have
a different framework," she says. "It's very similar in the government."
1968
B.A., Political Science
Mount Holyoke College
1969
M.A., Political Science, Michigan State University
1978
M.S., Economics, University of Kansas
1982
Ph.D., Agricultural Economics, Purdue University
1988-1994
Director, Uruguay Round Negotiations of Agriculture, United States Trade
Representative on detail from the United States Department of Agriculture
1994-1999
Director for Tariff Affairs, Office of the United States Trade Representative
2000
Deputy Assistant United States Trade
Representative, Market Access
"
The real special thing about Purdue University was that I worked with folks in
animal science, I sat in on a course on process engineering, I worked informally
with people in other schools, so it was a broad, interdisciplinary experience,
and I was able to communicate with all of them. It's very similar in the government.
The folks in Treasury have a very different way of looking at things than EPA
or Defense. You learn to listen. to work together, and appreciate what everyone
brings. A lot of that I got from Purdue. It was a foundation, working with people
who have a different framework."
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