Katie Starr is from Ottawa, Canada. After studying Russian, French and History at the University of Western Ontario, she taught English in Moscow for a year and founded the travel blog The Devushka Diaries. It was while working in Moscow that she was inspired to become a journalist, after confronting the lack of press freedom in Russia. Katie graduated with a Master's of Arts in Journalism and has worked in print, television and radio. Prior to working in Tokyo, Katie covered Canadian and international politics from the nation's capital at the CBC's parliamentary bureau, working as a producer on the television show "Power and Politics" and the radio show "The House." Her particular areas of focus are international relations, women's global empowerment, and Russian politics.