Dustin Bickel began his career with the U.S. Department of State in 2006 and is currently the Regional Indo-Pacific Strategy Coordinator based in Colombo and covering Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, and the Maldives, in addition to Sri Lanka. He promotes the U.S. IPS through the facilitation of regional engagement, workshops, conferences, and other events in support of the five pillars of the IPS: a Free and Open Indo-Pacific that is Prosperous, Secure, Connected, and Resilient. Dustin has served in Tashkent, Bishkek, Vientiane, Hermosillo, again in Bishkek, and most recently three years in Chennai, India as the sole Economic Officer covering the three states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Karnataka with a population of over 180 million people. Prior to beginning his career with the State Department, he served as an Uzbek linguist for the U.S. military in Uzbekistan and Afghanistan and a Peace Corps Volunteer in Uzbekistan. Dustin is originally from Roanoke, Indiana and studied at St. Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, Indiana and Sorbonne University in Paris, France. Dustin is joined in Colombo by his wife, U.S. Embassy Public Diplomacy Officer (Spokesperson) Cori Bickel, and their four children.