Pat Christen
Pat Christen is a managing director of The Omidyar Group, serving as a senior adviser to philanthropists Pierre and Pam Omidyar. Her role focuses on cultivating environments of learning, innovation, impact, and accountability across all Omidyar Group organizations and initiatives.
Prior to joining The Omidyar Group, Pat served as president and CEO of Hopelab, a nonprofit harnessing the power and appeal of technology to improve human health and well-being. Under Pat’s leadership for more than a decade, Hopelab’s work centered on the development of specially designed technology to drive positive health behavior among youth. Hopelab is currently focused on advancing the mental health and well-being of young people through uncovering knowledge and evidence, investing in innovators, and funding youth-centered solutions.
Prior to Hopelab, Pat was president and executive director of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation for 15 years, where she worked with her counterparts nationally to craft the federal Ryan White C.A.R.E. Act. This precedent-setting legislation generated billions of dollars in critical funding for AIDS treatment and care in the United States.
Pat also served as president of the Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation, establishing AIDS clinics and playing an active role in AIDS-planning efforts globally. During her tenure, Pangaea was responsible for the construction of the Infectious Diseases Institute at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. A state-of-the-art AIDS clinic, research, and training center, the Institute opened its doors in August 2004 and today serves as an essential clinical, research, training, and care center for Africa.
Pat has written, studied, and lectured on social and health issues both in the U.S. and abroad. She was a Peace Corps volunteer in Kenya from 1982 to 1985. She is a graduate of Stanford University, where she studied biology and political science. She is also a mother of four, a role that deeply inspires her work.
Prior to joining The Omidyar Group, Pat served as president and CEO of Hopelab, a nonprofit harnessing the power and appeal of technology to improve human health and well-being. Under Pat’s leadership for more than a decade, Hopelab’s work centered on the development of specially designed technology to drive positive health behavior among youth. Hopelab is currently focused on advancing the mental health and well-being of young people through uncovering knowledge and evidence, investing in innovators, and funding youth-centered solutions.
Prior to Hopelab, Pat was president and executive director of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation for 15 years, where she worked with her counterparts nationally to craft the federal Ryan White C.A.R.E. Act. This precedent-setting legislation generated billions of dollars in critical funding for AIDS treatment and care in the United States.
Pat also served as president of the Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation, establishing AIDS clinics and playing an active role in AIDS-planning efforts globally. During her tenure, Pangaea was responsible for the construction of the Infectious Diseases Institute at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. A state-of-the-art AIDS clinic, research, and training center, the Institute opened its doors in August 2004 and today serves as an essential clinical, research, training, and care center for Africa.
Pat has written, studied, and lectured on social and health issues both in the U.S. and abroad. She was a Peace Corps volunteer in Kenya from 1982 to 1985. She is a graduate of Stanford University, where she studied biology and political science. She is also a mother of four, a role that deeply inspires her work.