PIETRO NIVOLA

NIVOLA--Pietro S.

Pietro S. Nivola, a scholar and a kind and gracious man, died at 73 on April 5, 2017 surrounded by his family. He was born in New York City on March 31, 1944 to Ruth and Costantino Nivola, both artists and immigrants. His family moved to Springs on the East End of Long Island, among the first wave of artists to relocate there from New York City in the 1940's and 50's. Pietro attended the Springs School, the Little Red Schoolhouse, Pomfret School (1962) and Harvard College (1966). He later earned a Masters and PhD from Harvard University. He began his career teaching Political Science at Harvard and the University of Vermont. Later he worked for nearly three decades at the Brookings Institution in Washington, DC, where he published eleven books. Pietro wrote with economy and precision. He explored complex ideas with deceptive ease and addressed his reader in a straight-forward conversational tone, with memorable turns of phrase. He wrote on a range of topics including energy conservation, environmental protection, trade, federalism, and political polarization. He served as Vice President of Governance Studies for four years toward the end of his tenure at Brookings. He will be remembered by his colleagues not only for his inquisitive mind, but also for the rigor of his scholarship, for his talent as a writer and editor, and not least for his impish humor and stylish elegance. He will also be remembered as a generous mentor to many interns and research assistants. After retiring, Pietro turned his attention to a lifelong interest in architecture and redesigned his childhood home in Springs. He was happiest to be in the company of his family and friends and especially enjoyed outings with as many of them as he could corral at a time on his antique wooden boat. He was an avid tennis player and an exceptional cook. With his beloved wife, Katherine Stahl, he hosted dinner parties with conversations extending late into the night. Pietro leaves a circle of devoted family and friends, intensely grateful for his sweetness, his humor and his courage. He is survived by his wife Katherine, children and grandchildren: his son Adrian; his son Alessandro and his wife Emily Mortimer and their children Sam and May; his stepdaughter Asia Webber and her husband Jed Webber and their children Nina, Gage and Tess; and his first wife, Virginia Nivola. He also leaves his dear sister Claire Nivola and her husband Timothy (Gus) Kiley and their children Anther and Maia Anne. In lieu of flowers, please consider a gift to the Brookings Institution www.brookings.edu toward the Pietro S. Nivola Internship in Governance Studies.