Patrick Besha

Patrick Besha is the Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of the Administrator at NASA Headquarters. He provides expert analysis and directs research studies on a variety of topics, with recent efforts focused on global space exploration, economic and policy evaluations of major civil/commercial space initiatives, national security space issues and international relations.

He previously served as the overall Asia lead, with primary responsibility for China and India, in the Office of International and Interagency Relations at NASA. Proficient in Mandarin Chinese and Samoan languages, he is a former Boren China Fellow and returned Peace Corps Samoa volunteer.

He has authored or edited publications for NASA, the World Bank, the Institute for Global Conflict and Cooperation at the University of California, the World Economic Forum, the United Nations Development Program, UNESCO, and academic journals. Most recently, he co-edited a NASA publication, Economic Development of Low-Earth Orbit. He received his PhD in Public Policy from George Washington University with a dissertation focused on national innovation systems, renewable energy and space technology.