Julie Furuta-Toy
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Julie Furuta-Toy (born 1960) is a former U.S. Ambassador to
Equatorial Guinea Equatorial Guinea ( es, Guinea Ecuatorial; french: Guinée équatoriale; pt, Guiné Equatorial), officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea ( es, link=no, República de Guinea Ecuatorial, french: link=no, République de Guinée équatoria ...
. Following an initial announcement by President Barack Obama on June 18, 2015, Ambassador Furuta-Toy was confirmed by the
United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...
on October 22, 2015, and subsequently sworn in on November 24, 2015. She arrived in Malabo to take up her duties on January 7, 2016. Prior to her arrival in Equatorial Guinea, Ms. Furuta-Toy served as both Deputy Chief of Mission and
chargé d'affaires A ''chargé d'affaires'' (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador ...
at the
Embassy of the United States, Oslo The Embassy of the United States in Oslo is the diplomatic representation of the federal government of the United States to the Kingdom of Norway. A new embassy was put into service in May 2017. The current Embassy is located in Morgedalsvegen 36, ...
, (2012-2015). Her lengthy tenure as chargé d'affaires stemmed from delays related to the nomination and confirmation of a new
ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...
to Norway by the United States Senate..


Early life and education

Ambassador Furuta-Toy was born in Opelika, Alabama, and raised in
Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States, in the Inland Empire metropolitan area. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. It is the most populous city in the Inland Empire an ...
, and is the daughter of Emi K. Furuta and Tokuji Furuta. She earned a
Bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...
from
University of California, Riverside The University of California, Riverside (UCR or UC Riverside) is a public land-grant research university in Riverside, California. It is one of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The main campus sits on in a suburban distr ...
in 1981, and credits her liberal arts education and study abroad her final year in the U.K. with sparking her interest in a foreign service career. She also earned a
Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.
in comparative literature from
Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...
and a
Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.
in
security studies __NOTOC__ Security studies, also known as international security studies, is an academic sub-field within the wider discipline of international relations that studies organized violence, military conflict, national security, and international s ...
from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces.


Career

Ambassador Furuta-Toy entered the
United States Foreign Service The United States Foreign Service is the primary personnel system used by the diplomatic service of the United States federal government, under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of over 13,000 professionals carryi ...
in 1986 and has served overseas assignments in the Philippines, Venezuela, Haiti, India, and Russia. She has served domestic assignments in the
Bureau of Consular Affairs The Bureau of Consular Affairs (CA) is a bureau of the United States Department of State reporting to the under secretary of state for management. The mission of the Bureau is to administer laws, formulate regulations and implement policies rel ...
, the
Bureau for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) is an agency that reports to the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights within the Department of State. Under the umbrella of its general miss ...
, and the Bureau of Human Resources. Her service as a consular officer includes time as Director of the
Office of Children's Issues The Office of Children's Issues is an agency of the Bureau of Consular Affairs, which in turn is part of the U.S. Department of State. The Office of Children's Issues was created in 1994 under the leadership of Assistant Secretary of State for Con ...
(2007–2009) and Director of the Office of Public and Diplomatic Liaison of the Visa Office (2004–2007). Prior to her arrival in Norway, she was the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in
Accra Accra (; tw, Nkran; dag, Ankara; gaa, Ga or ''Gaga'') is the capital and largest city of Ghana, located on the southern coast at the Gulf of Guinea, which is part of the Atlantic Ocean. As of 2021 census, the Accra Metropolitan District, , ...
,
Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
(2009–2012).


Personal

Furuta-Toy is married to Steven M. Toy, a fellow Foreign Service Officer, and they are the parents of two adult children. They reside in
Wapiti, Wyoming Wapiti is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Park County, Wyoming, Park County, Wyoming, United States. It is situated along the North Fork of the Shoshone River in Shoshone National Forest, between Cody, Wyoming, Cody and the ea ...
. Furuta-Toy is of Japanese descent. Both of her parents were sent to Japanese internment camps during World War II. In addition to English, she speaks Spanish and Russian. Her hobbies include handicrafts, pet care, and listening to the viola.Ambassador Julie Furuta-Toy
Embassy of the United States, accessed June 20, 2016


References


External links

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Furuta-Toy, Julie 1960 births Living people Ambassadors of the United States to Equatorial Guinea Ambassadors of the United States to Norway American women ambassadors American people of Japanese descent Dwight D. Eisenhower School for National Security and Resource Strategy alumni Indiana University alumni University of California, Riverside alumni United States Foreign Service personnel 21st-century American women