Dr. Hansen, a Doctor of Optometry, brings to his new position a wealth of knowledge and experience gained through a number of management positions he has held in the German based optical and opto-electronics firm, Carl Zeiss, over the past 26 years. For the past 16 years, in his Japan based role as Chief Executive Officer of Carl Zeiss Asia Pacific, he managed the profitable growth of the company’s Asia based photography business. Dr. Hansen also initiated and developed thriving photographic business co-operations with the Japanese corporations Sony, Cosina and Kyocera.
For the last year, Dr. Hansen has been Chief Executive officer of the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness. IAPB is the global umbrella organization of more than 100 organizations working to prevent avoidable blindness in partnership with the World Health Organization in the joint initiative Vision 2020.