Public diplomacy; strategic communications and outreach; international/community engagement
Karen Knudsen, the former director of EWC’s Office of External Affairs, is a Adjunct Senior Fellow with the Center, co-President of the East-West Center Association Executive Committee, and member of the EWC Foundation Board.
Karen has extensive experience working in the Asia Pacific region in public affairs/public engagement/public relations; strategic outreach, dialogue, and communications; and international conference and community event coordination.
As an elected member of the Hawai‘i State Board of Education, Karen spent 20 years setting statewide education policy for Hawaii’s K-12 schools.
Currently, Karen serves on Chaminade University’s Board of Regents, the American Red Cross Pacific Islands Region Board of Directors, Japan-America Society of Hawaii Board of Directors, and is an associate member of the Consular Corps of Hawai‘i and the Public Diplomacy Council of America.
Prior to joining the East-West Center, Karen was Outreach Coordinator for the University of Hawai‘i's Center for Pacific Islands Studies, Public Affairs Specialist for the Hawai‘i State Judiciary, a consultant to the Pacific Forum, and an account executive in advertising/public relations in Honolulu.
She is a former Peace Corps Volunteer in Chuuk, Federated States of Micronesia. She received her BA from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and her MA in Pacific Islands Studies from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.
Karen Knudsen, the former director of EWC’s Office of External Affairs, is a Adjunct Senior Fellow with the Center, co-President of the East-West Center Association Executive Committee, and member of the EWC Foundation Board.
Karen has extensive experience working in the Asia Pacific region in public affairs/public engagement/public relations; strategic outreach, dialogue, and communications; and international conference and community event coordination.
As an elected member of the Hawai‘i State Board of Education, Karen spent 20 years setting statewide education policy for Hawaii’s K-12 schools.
Currently, Karen serves on Chaminade University’s Board of Regents, the American Red Cross Pacific Islands Region Board of Directors, Japan-America Society of Hawaii Board of Directors, and is an associate member of the Consular Corps of Hawai‘i and the Public Diplomacy Council of America.
Prior to joining the East-West Center, Karen was Outreach Coordinator for the University of Hawai‘i's Center for Pacific Islands Studies, Public Affairs Specialist for the Hawai‘i State Judiciary, a consultant to the Pacific Forum, and an account executive in advertising/public relations in Honolulu.
She is a former Peace Corps Volunteer in Chuuk, Federated States of Micronesia. She received her BA from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and her MA in Pacific Islands Studies from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.
