Ryan Mangefrida is a Policy Analyst on the Security and Foreign Affairs team at the Commission. He previously served as a Budget Analyst at the Department of Defense (DoD) managing the execution of part of the Department’s Science and Technology portfolio. Prior to his employment at DoD, he worked as a research specialist at a Virginia-based business intelligence firm. Ryan’s research includes work on the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) military capabilities, Chinese foreign policy, the PLA’s political commissar system, and Chinese diaspora policy. Ryan graduated with a Bachelor’s in International & Global Studies and Political Science from the Rochester Institute of Technology. Ryan acquired Chinese language capabilities while living and studying in Shanghai. He is currently pursuing a China-focused MS in Washington, D.C.