It all started when…

I am the product of a small farm town on the Colorado-Kansas border and two hardworking parents that taught me the value of commitment and follow-through. From my father, a retired high school teacher and coach, I learned the value of education and working everyday to help others achieve their dreams. My mother, a retired hospital and hospice nurse, taught me the lessons of providing care to those in need and even when you feel tired to find your sustenance and to keep going.

My wife and I have been married for more than 20 years, and we’ve been blessed with two sons, ages seventeen and fifteen. Both attend public school in Denver at George Washington High School. In our household, education and service are top priorities. My wife and I are dedicated to education and the positive impact it can have on individual lives and more broadly, an entire community. I’ve volunteered for the Denver Kids Mentoring Program and science education programs because every child should have the support and opportunity to succeed through education.

Throughout my career, I’ve benefited from opportunities to improve through education. I earned my undergraduate degree in Engineering from Kansas State University, a Master of Science from MIT, and then a PhD in Economic Geography from Oxford University. I was a Research Fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, and worked on solutions for bringing more renewable power to poor, rural areas of India. These experiences taught me the incredible value of education and instilled within me a conviction that all people should have an opportunity to pursue their passions regardless of their background.

I’ve been in the environmental and energy space for more than 20 years, working with renewable energy and electricity companies, as well as governments at every level to improve their operations. I also have the privilege of teaching courses at the University of Colorado focused on these issues and getting to educate the next generation of leaders in this space. The business and environmental policy insight I gained from these experiences gives me a unique perspective on the many challenges that our state currently faces. I’ve come to see how we as a state can do better to give all of our kids equal opportunities, protect our environment, encourage businesses to start up and grow, and expand employment opportunities in Colorado, especially in the clean technology sector.

In the community I have served on several boards and have volunteered with a variety of organizations, including the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation Board Executive Committee, the Colorado Energy Coalition as Co-Chair, the Central City Opera Board Executive Committee, Denver Kids Mentoring Program, and the UC-Denver Business School Advisory Board. I believe service to be more than an action; it’s a calling.

Thank you for your support; I am honored to serve our community!

More About Chris:

Senator Chris Hansen represents Central and East Denver in the Colorado State Senate. He specializes in energy sector economics and data analytics, with 25 years of experience in the global energy industry. He currently serves on the Senate Finance, Joint Technology, State Affairs and Appropriations Committees and is the Chair of the Colorado Property Tax Commission. He formerly served as the Vice-Chair of the Joint Budget committee and Chair of Appropriations. During his tenure in the Colorado House of Representatives from 2017-2019, Hansen served on the Capital Development, House Transportation & Energy, Natural Resources, and Joint Budget Committees, and as Chair on the House Appropriations Committee.

Prior to his work as an elected official, he was Senior Director at IHS Markit (now S&P) where he led a global portfolio of energy products, events and partnerships. He is a co-creator of the OptGen analysis tool, IHS CERA’s unique approach for applying financial portfolio techniques to power generation. Before joining IHS Markit, Dr. Hansen was a Research Fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, where he analyzed electricity and gas sector reform in India and published several papers in professional journals on energy sector economics and policy analysis.  Dr. Hansen holds a BSc in Nuclear Engineering from Kansas State University; a Graduate Diploma of Civil Engineering from the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa; a Master of Science in Engineering Systems from MIT; and a PhD in Economic Geography from Oxford University. 

In 2012, he was selected as a Marshall Memorial Fellow by the German Marshall Fund and in 2017 was selected as a Public Leadership Fellow at Harvard University by the Gates Family Foundation. In 2019, he was selected as one of fifteen leaders from across the country to join the NewDEAL (Developing Exceptional American Leaders), a selective national network of rising state and local elected officials. In addition to his current role in the state senate, Hansen serves as Executive Director of the Institute for Western Energy, a non-profit dedicated to improving energy policy in the West.  He is also the Co-Founder and Director of the Colorado Science and Engineering Policy Fellowship.

Hansen’s community involvement includes serving on the Denver Metro Chamber Leadership Foundation Board, the Central City Opera Board Executive Committee, Denver Kids, UC-Denver Business School Advisory Board and the Colorado Energy Coalition.