Trained as an agronomist, he received a law degree and worked as an academic after retiring from politics.
[1] He graduated from a high school in Frederiksborg and went to England to study agriculture in 1952.
[1] In 1977 Hansen started his studies in law at the University of Copenhagen and graduated in 1980 earning a bachelor's degree.
[3][4] During his term as minister of environment Hansen signed the Nordic Environmental Protection Convention on behalf of Denmark on 19 February 1974.
[5] Hansen's tenure ended on 13 February 1975 when the cabinet resigned following the 1975 election.