[1] Holland, the oldest of four sons, was born in South Malvern, Canterbury, New Zealand and went to Timaru Boys' High School.
Edward C. Carter, head of the American branch, invited him to join the Secretariat, and Holland was to work for the IPR until it went out of operation in 1960.
In 1944, he became an American citizen in order to accept the position of acting director of the Office of War Information in Chongqing, China.
Edward Carter left the American IPR, and Holland became Executive Secretary and editor of its journal, Pacific Affairs.
The University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, invited Holland to become the head of the newly created Department of Asian Studies, and to bring Pacific Affairs with him.