Campaign Statement
Dear Fellow AmCham Member –
My name is Travis Tanner, Senior Vice President at GreenPoint Group, a boutique U.S.-China strategic advisory firm that serves as a trusted China advisor to executives of leading corporations. I would like to request your support of my candidacy for the AmCham Board of Governors. I respectfully request your vote and in return pledge to serve you in the following three ways:
- I pledge to listen and act on your behalf. Representing your voice is the essence of the role of governor. I will take a personal approach to engaging the AmCham community. I welcome individual phone calls/coffee meetings and will pro-actively seek opportunities to connect and understand your interests so that I may advocate on your behalf (my wechat id is ttanner). I have the honor to serve a number of leading American corporations that represent a wide range of industries including technology, energy, finance, retail, aviation, luxury brand, food and beverage, chemical, and others. I will strive to reflect your views along with these insights to the Board in an effort to ensure AmCham’s advocacy and messaging is sharp and aligned with your (the U.S. business community) priorities.
- I pledge to leverage my diverse networks and background to ensure the AmCham community, including all members large, medium, and small companies, as well as NGOs, is well informed. I spent the past two decades building partnerships and connecting resources between the U.S. and China across corporate, government, academic, and non-profit communities. As the external context facing the business community becomes increasingly complex, including the Chinese political, commercial and social environment, fresh multidimensional perspectives, informed by grounded expertise, are vital to the success of American businesses operating in China. I will invite diverse voices to panel discussions and events as well as build on existing relationships with government officials and policy influencers to promote AmCham messaging.
- I pledge to serve you with enthusiasm AND invite you to step up your own involvement in AmCham in high-value ways. AmCham is a powerful network, platform, advocacy channel, and source for insight and guidance. I will serve as a conduit into AmCham that will welcome and steer your efforts in ways that produce value for you, your company, and the community. The AmCham community has afforded me many opportunities to grow and contribute. I’ve been privileged to serve as the vice-chair of the Education Committee, member of the CSR committee, advisor to the public diplomacy program, AmCham Charity Ball partner (while leading the 100,000 Strong Foundation), contributor to the White Paper, meeting organizer for Washington, D.C. Door Knocks, and successfully invited companies to join AmCham. I am committed to help you find constructive ways to connect and enrich your participation in AmCham.
I do not take for granted the opportunity to request your vote – I am honored by prospect of serving you. My wife, Amy, and my three teenage children who live in Beijing feel humbled and deeply blessed to call Beijing home and belong to the AmCham community. I am confident my unique and diverse experience will serve as an asset to the AmCham community and I pledge to serve you to the best of my ability. Thank you in advance for your consideration of my candidacy.
Finally, I encourage you to reach out to share recommendations for how we can collectively make your AmCham membership as valuable as possible. Your ideas are most welcome.
Warmly,
Travis Tanner
Mobile/Wechat: 186 1829 8825
Biography
Travis N. Tanner is the Beijing-based Senior Vice President of GreenPoint Group. Mr. Tanner assists clients based on two decades of experience conducting research and analysis, briefing policymakers, directing programs, and building bridges between Chinese and U.S. government, corporate, academic, and non-profit communities.
Previously Mr. Tanner served as President of the U.S.-China Strong Foundation, an offshoot of the Obama administration’s “100,000 Strong Initiative,” a public-private partnership designed to equip the future generation of leaders with the knowledge and skills to engage productively with China. Mr. Tanner established and directed the Foundation’s operations in China and drove engagement with key stakeholders and partners including Chinese and U.S. government officials, business leaders, academic institutions, media outlets, philanthropists, and students.
Mr. Tanner worked for over a dozen years in the think tank industry conducting research projects examining a wide range of policy issues facing the U.S.-China relationship, including China’s intellectual property, technology standards and innovation policy, China’s military development, and U.S.-China people-to-people exchange. He previously served as Senior Project Director at The National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR) and Director of NBR’s Kenneth B. and Anne H.H. Pyle Center for Northeast Asian Studies. He was Deputy Director and Assistant Director of the Chinese Studies Program at the Center for the National Interest (formerly the Nixon Center) in Washington, D.C. He also worked as a Research Assistant at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
Mr. Tanner is the author, contributing author, or co-editor of numerous publications on the strategic, economic and political dimensions of the U.S.-China relationship, including co-editor of five volumes of NBR’s Strategic Asia series and Avoiding the ‘Thucydides Trap’: U.S.-China Relations in Strategic Domains (Routledge, 2021). Mr. Tanner has also been featured in major media outlets in the U.S. and China.
Mr. Tanner is the recipient of the Doak A. Barnett and Hassenfeld Fellowships and received his M.A. in International Relations from the Johns Hopkins University – SAIS and the Hopkins-Nanjing Center and his B.A. in Chinese language and literature from the University of Utah. Mr. Tanner is Senior Advisor to NBR, a Tsinghua University Schwarzman College Industry Mentor, and member of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations. He has also served as a leader in the Boy Scouts of America for over 20 years.
Mr. Tanner is fluent in Portuguese and Mandarin Chinese. He and his wife, Amy, and three of their four children, Zachary, Josephine, and Vivian enjoy living in Beijing.