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And now, from the University of Chicago Institute of Politics and CNN Audio, the Axfiles, with your host, David Axelrod.

Many of you may have seen Ian Bremmer, founder of the Eurasia Group, making the rounds of media over the years talking about global risks and trends.

An expert on Russia he's in particular demand right now, as the standoff over Ukraine continues.

What you probably don't know is where Bremmer comes from, and the unlikely story of how he got to where he is today.

I sat down with him this week to talk about all of this, and here's that conversation.

Ian Bremmer, it's great to see you. I can't think of a more propitious time to speak with you. So, welcome.

Thank you. Very happy to join you, man. Absolutely.

You are a ubiquitous presence on television. You are a counselor to countless corporations assessing global political risk.

And it seems like a long way from Chelsea, Massachusetts, where you grew up right there on the Mystic River.

You know Chelsea? Well, I know enough. Yeah, I know enough. I've done a few races in Massachusetts.

So, yeah, I know. I know. But tell me about that, because it is a long way from there to here.

And I think it'd be surprising to people how you grew up. And I want to trace that story before we talk about our risky world.

Well, the funny thing, Dave, I mean to bring it into politics is I remember when I read Hillbillyology.

And I felt connected to JD. I mean, this is well before his true shark jumping over the past few buds.

But now because because his Mima in that story was my mother, this kind of insane woman who had massive panic disorder and grew up.

She didn't finish high school. She aloaked with my dad and then listed man. They moved to Ecuador. I used to hear that was where he was based.

I used to hear stories that she could tell when the spaghetti was done because she'd throw it against the wall and see if it would stick.

And he died when I was four her. Do you remember to remember that? I mean, can you do you have any recollection of that?

I have three or four sort of effectively that used to be real memories. Now they're almost memories of memories of things that we did together.

Like sitting in the back of the car in and we were there were counting the number of freight cars going past.

When I think I was two or something and I remember him playing this game with me that was an Egyptian game with these plastic scarabs and you'd work your way up the look like a ziggurat.

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