A third-generation sailor, Blake Herzinger joined the Navy while studying political science at Brigham Young University. He first experienced Asia as an officer in the U.S. Navy deployed to Okinawa and moved to Singapore in 2013, completing a masters degree in strategic studies while serving as a naval liaison. He became a consultant to the U.S. Navy in the Asia-Pacific after leaving active service in 2017, but remains in the U.S. Navy Reserve. He writes regularly on naval matters and the Asia Pacific, with work published in Foreign Policy, Brookings, and War on the Rocks, and joined the Pacific Forum as a Non-resident WSD-Handa Fellow in 2021. He lives with his wife, son, dog and cat in Singapore.