Karen is a US Dept. of Commerce Foreign Service Officer currently serving as the Senior Commercial Advisor to the National Center for Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) in Seattle, WA.. Her responsibilities include participating in policy formation, analysis and representation to APEC for the US private sector and the Department Of Commerce. Her work furthers US trade policy interests within the 21 member economies of APEC at venues across Asia and the Western Hemisphere. Additionally, she provides advice, counsel and staff support to the Presidential-appointees from the US private sector to ensure that the US Government policy debate includes their input.
From 2001 to 2004, Karen was the Regional Senior Commercial Officer for the Baltic States serving Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. While this position was based in Riga, Latvia, it included frequent travel to the other two Baltic countries to coordinate among the three US Embassies, American Chambers of Commerce and host governments to assist US companies exporting to the Baltics. During this dramatic time after liberation from the Former Soviet Union, she participated in the growth, transition and accession of the Baltic States into the EU and NATO. These countries are now on the new border between the EU and the CIS, with Latvia and Estonia sharing a border with Russia.
Prior to this assignment, Karen served in Stockholm, Sweden, (1998-2001) while developing the commercial ties with the Baltic States. Karen joined the US government as a Commercial Officer in July, 1994 and after qualifying in Mandarin Chinese in 1995, she began her first US government assignment in Beijing, China in August of 1995.
Karen comes to the US government from a substantial career in the private sector in the US including 12 years of management experience in the high tech sector in a Fortune 500 company and in a company she founded. Her management experience includes marketing, finance, mergers and acquisitions, factory management, purchasing, logistics, accounting, engineering support and personnel.
Karen holds an MBA in marketing and a BA in Anthropology from the University of Colorado.
