Elizabeth Kucinich
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth Kucinich is director of public affairs
for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
, and wife of the U.S.
Congressman and former Democratic Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich
.
in Havering
. She attended Coopers' Company and Coborn School
in Cranham
from 1989-96. According to her mother, as a girl Harper "was always into human rights and the environment and delivered a petition on animal rights to Parliament when she was just 14." After leaving school she went to Agra, India to volunteer at one of Mother Teresa
's homes for India
's poorest children.
On her return to the UK she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Religious Studies and Theology and Master of Arts degree in International Conflict Analysis (both from the University of Kent at Canterbury
). The subject of her MA thesis
was "Conflict Resolution in World Politics".
n village and worked as an advocate for regional development
. After leaving Tanzania, she volunteered with a British Red Cross
refugee unit, earned a certificate in Peace Studies from Coventry University
and was employed as a fund-raiser for a seafarer's charity in London
. Her volunteer work often brought her to the Forum for Stable Currencies
at the House of Lords
.
At that time, she heard financial analyst Stephen Zarlenga speak about monetary reform
. She was impressed and was soon hired to become Zarlenga's assistant at the Chicago
-based American Monetary Institute
.
Kucinich is currently the director of public affairs for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
.
.
The Sunday Times
noted that one of her heroines is Diana, Princess of Wales
, partly for her bringing "compassion
back into public life".
Harper has her tongue pierced with a silver stud. Like her husband she is a vegan.
Public relations
Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....
for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., which promotes a vegan diet, preventive medicine, alternatives to animal research, and encourages what it describes as "higher standards of ethics and effectiveness in research." Its primary...
, and wife of the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Congressman and former Democratic Presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich
Dennis Kucinich
Dennis John Kucinich is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1997. He was furthermore a candidate for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States in the 2004 and 2008 presidential elections....
.
Early life and education
Born Elizabeth Jane Harper, she was brought up in North OckendonNorth Ockendon
North Ockendon is an outlying settlement of northeast London, England and part of the London Borough of Havering. It is located east northeast of Charing Cross and consists of a dispersed settlement within the Metropolitan Green Belt...
in Havering
London Borough of Havering
The London Borough of Havering is a London borough in North East London, England and forms part of Outer London. The principal town in Havering is Romford and the other main communities are Hornchurch, Upminster and Rainham. The borough is mainly characterised by suburban development with large...
. She attended Coopers' Company and Coborn School
Coopers' Company and Coborn School
The Coopers' Company and Coborn School is a 11-18 school in Upminster, in the London Borough of Havering, and is part of Essex.-Admissions:The school is a non-selective voluntary aided state comprehensive school describe by Ofsted as "an exceptional school of real excellence". The school excels at...
in Cranham
Cranham
Cranham is a residential suburb in northeast London, England and part of the London Borough of Havering. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross and comprises an extensive built-up area to the north and a low density conservation area surrounded by open land to the south. It was historically...
from 1989-96. According to her mother, as a girl Harper "was always into human rights and the environment and delivered a petition on animal rights to Parliament when she was just 14." After leaving school she went to Agra, India to volunteer at one of Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa , born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu , was a Roman Catholic nun of Albanian ethnicity and Indian citizenship, who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India, in 1950...
's homes for India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
's poorest children.
On her return to the UK she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Religious Studies and Theology and Master of Arts degree in International Conflict Analysis (both from the University of Kent at Canterbury
University of Kent
The University of Kent, previously the University of Kent at Canterbury, is a public research university based in Kent, United Kingdom...
). The subject of her MA thesis
Thesis
A dissertation or thesis is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings...
was "Conflict Resolution in World Politics".
Career
After university she spent 16 months in a rural TanzaniaTanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
n village and worked as an advocate for regional development
Regional development
Regional development is the provision of aid and other assistance to regions which are less economically developed. Regional development may be domestic or international in nature...
. After leaving Tanzania, she volunteered with a British Red Cross
British Red Cross
The British Red Cross Society is the United Kingdom branch of the worldwide impartial humanitarian organisation the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The society was formed in 1870, and is a registered charity with over 31,000 volunteers and 2,600 staff. At the heart of their work...
refugee unit, earned a certificate in Peace Studies from Coventry University
Coventry University
Coventry University is a post-1992 university in Coventry, West Midlands, England. Under the terms of the Further and Higher Education Act of 1992, the institution's name was changed from Coventry Polytechnic to Coventry University...
and was employed as a fund-raiser for a seafarer's charity in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Her volunteer work often brought her to the Forum for Stable Currencies
Forum for Stable Currencies
Forum for Stable Currencies is a political advocacy group in the United Kingdom seeking economic democracy through freedom from national debt. Founded in 1998, the group is a non-governmental organization without governmental funding...
at the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
.
At that time, she heard financial analyst Stephen Zarlenga speak about monetary reform
Monetary reform
Monetary reform describes any movement or theory that proposes a different system of supplying money and financing the economy from the current system.Monetary reformers may advocate any of the following, among other proposals:...
. She was impressed and was soon hired to become Zarlenga's assistant at the Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
-based American Monetary Institute
American Monetary Institute
The American Monetary Institute is a non-profit charitable trust organized in 1996 for the "independent study of monetary history, theory and reform."...
.
Kucinich is currently the director of public affairs for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine
The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine is a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C., which promotes a vegan diet, preventive medicine, alternatives to animal research, and encourages what it describes as "higher standards of ethics and effectiveness in research." Its primary...
.
Personal life
In the course of her work with Zarlenga, she met Dennis Kucinich, who proposed to her during their second meeting and they married in 2005 in his native Cleveland, OhioCleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
.
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
noted that one of her heroines is Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
, partly for her bringing "compassion
Compassion
Compassion is a virtue — one in which the emotional capacities of empathy and sympathy are regarded as a part of love itself, and a cornerstone of greater social interconnection and humanism — foundational to the highest principles in philosophy, society, and personhood.There is an aspect of...
back into public life".
Harper has her tongue pierced with a silver stud. Like her husband she is a vegan.