William Brent Christensen () is a United States diplomat who served as the Director of the

American Institute in Taiwan The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT; ) is the ''de facto'' Embassy of the United States of America in Taiwan. The AIT institution is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the federal government of the United States in Taiwan with Congressional oversi ...

(AIT), the ''de facto'' embassy of the United States in Taiwan, from 2018 to 2021. Christensen's prior appointments include Deputy Director of AIT and Director of the

State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

’s Office of Taiwan coordination.

Early life

Christensen is a native of

Provo, Utah Provo ( ) is the fourth-largest city in Utah, United States. It is south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the largest city and county seat of Utah County and is home to Brigham Young University (BYU). Provo lies between the ...

, and great-great-grandson of

C. C. A. Christensen Carl Christian Anton Christensen (November 28, 1831 – July 3, 1912) was a Danish-American artist who is known for his paintings illustrating the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Of him it has been said t ...

, a

Danish American Danish Americans ( da, Dansk-amerikanere) are Americans who have ancestral roots originated fully or partially from Denmark. There are approximately 1,300,000 Americans of Danish origin or descent. History The first Dane known to have arriv ...

artist. He earned a BA in Chinese language and literature from

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

, an MA in

East Asian Studies East Asian studies is a distinct multidisciplinary field of scholarly enquiry and education that promotes a broad humanistic understanding of East Asia past and present. The field includes the study of the region's culture, written language, hist ...

from

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

, and a DMD (

Doctor of Dental Medicine Doctor or The Doctor may refer to: Personal titles * Doctor (title), the holder of an accredited academic degree * A medical practitioner, including: ** Physician ** Surgeon ** Dentist ** Veterinary physician ** Optometrist *Other roles ** ...

) from the

Oregon Health & Science University Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) is a public research university focusing primarily on health sciences with a main campus, including two hospitals, in Portland, Oregon. The institution was founded in 1887 as the University of Oregon Medi ...

. Christensen served as a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in the

U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

before joining the

Foreign Service Diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel obtains diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to o ...

Diplomatic career

Christensen, since 2010, was Director of the

’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 The Embassy of the United States in Beijing is the diplomatic mission of the United States in China. It serves as the administrative office of the United States Ambassador to China. The embassy complex is in Chaoyang District, Beijing, Chaoyang ...

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 Avian influenza, known informally as avian flu or bird flu, is a variety of influenza caused by viruses adapted to birds.

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

and

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

. Christensen also served as a Congressional Fellow on the staff of former U.S. Senator

Olympia Snowe Olympia Jean Snowe (; born February 21, 1947) is an American businesswoman and politician who was a United States Senator from Maine from 1995 to 2013. Snowe, a member of the Republican Party, became known for her ability to influence the outcom ...

. His earlier overseas postings include Beijing, Hong Kong and South Africa. He joined the Daniel K. Inouye

Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies The Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies (DKI APCSS) is a U.S. Department of Defense institute that officially opened Sept. 4, 1995, in Honolulu, Hawaii. The Center addresses regional and global security issues, inviting militar ...

foreign policy A State (polity), state's foreign policy or external policy (as opposed to internal or domestic policy) is its objectives and activities in relation to its interactions with other states, unions, and other political entities, whether bilaterall ...

advisor. In August 2022 Christensen was appointed

Chargé d'Affaires A ''chargé d'affaires'' (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador ...

of the U.S. Mission to the

International Civil Aviation Organization The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO, ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international sc ...

(ICAO), succeeding

Chesley Sullenberger Chesley Burnett "Sully" Sullenberger III (born January 23, 1951) is a retired American fighter pilot, diplomat, and airline pilot best known for his heroism as captain of US Airways Flight 1549 that he ditched in the Hudson River in 2009 a ...

Honors and awards

On June 18, 2021, he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Social Science from

National Sun Yat-sen University National Sun Yat-sen University (NSYSU; ) is a public research-intensive university renowned as an official think tank scholars' community, located in Sizihwan, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. NSYSU is listed as one of six national research universities, ...

(NSYSU). On June 24, 2021, Christensen was awarded Grand Medal of Diplomacy by Taiwan's ministry of foreign affairs. On June 25, 2021, Christensen was conferred Presidential Office Order of the Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon by Taiwan's president

Tsai Ing-wen Tsai Ing-wen (; born 31 August 1956) is a Taiwanese politician serving as president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) since 2016. A member of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Tsai is the first female president of Taiwan. She served as ...

References

Living people American people of Danish descent American diplomats United States Department of State officials Directors of the American Institute in Taiwan Deputy Directors of the American Institute in Taiwan Brigham Young University alumni George Washington University alumni Oregon Health & Science University alumni United States Air Force officers People from Provo, Utah Year of birth missing (living people) Recipients of the Order of Brilliant Star {{US-diplomat-stub