Aura Garcia de Truslow was born in Peru in 1938. She entered the employment of the World Bank in 1980 as an Urban Affairs Specialist. In 1981 she joined the Latin America and Caribbean Regional Vice Presidency's (LCNVP) Urban Division (LCPUR) as an Urban Planner. In this capacity she supported lending programs and conducted country and sector studies focusing on the urban and housing sectors.

In 1987, Garcia de Truslow joined the new Strategic Planning and Review Department (SPR) as a Planning Officer. SPR was created in 1987 as part of the new Policy, Planning and Research Complex (PPRSV) and was responsible for coordinating and managing PPRSV policy formation and developing a systematic Bank-wide strategic planning process. Garcia de Truslow worked in the department's Strategic Planning Division (SPRSP).

Following the termination of SPR in 1990, Garcia de Truslow rejoined the Bank's operations complex in the Latin America and Caribbean Regional Vice Presidency (LACVP) as a Senior Projects Officer. She served in a variety of LAC divisions during the subsequent seven years, including: Country Department 4's Infrastructure and Energy Operations Division (LA4IE, 1990); Country Department 4's Trade, Finance, and Industry Operations Division (LA4TF, 1991-1993); Country Department 4's Environment Division (LA4EN, 1994); and Country Department 1's Country Operations Division (LA1CO, 1994-1995). Garcia de Truslow retired from the Bank in 1997. She returned to the Bank briefly as a consultant in the Finance, Private Sector, and Infrastructure Division of LACVP between 1997 and 1998.