Jiří Pehe studied law and philosophy at Charles University in Prague. In 1980, he received a doctorate in law from the School of Law of Charles University. After fleeing Czechoslovakia in 1981 he settled in the U.S.A. where he graduated in 1985 from the School of International Affairs at Columbia University in New York. There he was the Director of East European Studies at Freedom House between 1985 and 1988. Between 1988 and 1995, he first worked as an analyst of Central European affairs and later as Director of Central European Research at the Research Institute of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in Munich, Germany. From 1995 to 1997, Jiří Pehe was Director of the Analysis and Research Department at the Open Media Research Institute in Prague. Pehe is a prominent political analyst whose articles and studies on developments in Eastern Europe regularly appear in national and international media. He co-authored a book titled ‘The Prague Spring: A Mixed Legacy’ which was published by Freedom House in 1988 and more recently his essays ‘The Stolen Democracy’ were published by Academia Press in Prague. He is currently director of New York University in Prague and head of NYU's Prague Institute for Democracy.