She was a great-granddaughter of Ralph Waldo Emerson and a niece of William Cameron Forbes (Governor-General of the Philippines 1908 - 1913).
[1] Forbes studied painting at the Arts Student League, and her still lifes and landscapes were exhibited in New York and Philadelphia.
[3] Forbes joined the World Federalist Movement after the dropping of atomic bombs in 1945.
Thant recommended getting in touch with Indar Jit Rikhye, who went on to become the International Peace Academy first President.
[1] Forbes provided the Academy's initial funding, and continued to support it financially.