Brent Christensen
William Brent Christensen is a United States diplomat currently serving as Director of the American Institute in Taiwan, the de facto embassy of the United States in Taiwan. Christensen's prior appointments include Deputy Director of AIT and Director of the State Department’s Office of Taiwan coordination.Early life and education
Christensen is a native of Provo, Utah, born as the great-great-grandson of C. C. A. Christensen, a Danish American artist. He earned a BA in Chinese language and literature from Brigham Young University, an MA in East Asian Studies from George Washington University, and a DMD from the Oregon Health & Science University. Christensen served as a captain in the U.S. Air Force before joining the Foreign Service.Diplomatic career
Christensen, since 2010, was Director of the State Department’s Office of Taiwan coordination, where he had a primary role in formulating U.S. policy toward Taiwan. In his posting at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing from 2007 to 2010, he served as Counselor for Environment, Science, Technology and Health, where he established the Embassy's air quality monitoring program and led working groups on avian influenza, HIV/AIDS and climate change.
Christensen also served as a Congressional Fellow on the staff of former U.S. Senator Olympia Snowe.
His other overseas postings include Hong Kong and South Africa. He then joined the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies as foreign policy advisor.
