Perry Zizzi is a Managing Partner at Dentons based in Bucharest, Romania, and he has worked in corporate law since the mid 1990s, when we met as office mates in a midtown Manhattan law firm Debevoise & Plimpton. He is the President, Founder and Board Member of the Romanian Diversity Chamber of Commerce.

Our trip down memory lane starts with Perry’s childhood in upstate NY where his early fascination with history led him to cycle around the town making a map of the streets. He also collected stamps as well as a coterie of mentors including teachers and local historians. Later on in Georgetown he deliberately sought out professors who might push him outside his comfort zone and his love of languages, Latin America and travel took root. Perry often talked about his time in Palau with the Peace Corps while we shared an office, and it was fascinating to reflect on the lessons learned from time spent in this island in Micronesia with a population of around 18,000 people.

Our conversation then moves to his time at law school, practicing corporate law, and the twists and turns that took him to Paris and then Romania, and the shifts that led him to realize how much he enjoyed practicing. We talk about his work in the Romanian Diversity Chamber of Commerce and how the inclusion of LGBT professionals has changed dramatically over the course of his career. We finish with reflections on wisdom shared by some legendary teachers.

This podcast was made possible with the kind support of David Mooney, as well as Tom Soto of the Diverse Communities Impact Fund.