Christian's research and design work both focus on the aesthetic lifespan of architecture, reciprocal relationships with and obligations to materials and resources, and strategies for de-growth born from traditional ecological knowledge. He has worked in design practices on the east and west coasts of the United States, as well as in Canada and England, where he taught at the Birmingham School of Architecture and Design. He is a licensed architect in New York, California, and Michigan, is a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the American Indian Council of Architects and Engineers (AICAE), and is an enrolled member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians.

He is principal of Slow Built Studio and is currently providing pro bono architectural services to the Saginaw Chippewa Tribal Nation, focusing on the renovation of the historic buildings on the site of the former Mt Pleasant Indian Industrial Boarding School in Isabella County, Michigan. Christian is working on a book project entitled Impermanent: Building an Anishinaabe Future for the Great Lakes that proposes ways to transition from heavy, resource-intensive models of building and development to simpler, lighter methods of low-carbon fabrication, including objects that are designed to degrade.