Bureau of Oceans, Environment & Science -Ariel Wyckoff - U.S. Department of State -To Speak At Chamber Luncheon

Weekly luncheons are held every Wednesday at noon. Enjoy great food, dynamic speakers, and exciting networking opportunities. Chamber luncheons are open to the public. Chamber members receive special member-only pricing.

Executive Lunch
Upgrade to the Executive Lunch and receive VIP treatment including cookies and special prize drawings.

Executive Lunch Sponsor 
Cummins Taxi -
 
Menu
Lasagna, Garlic Bread &  Salad Bar

Speakers
Ariel Wyckoff - Bureau of Oceans, Environment, and Science - U.S. Department of State

Bio 
Mr. Wyckoff is 44 years old and was born and raised in the Los Angeles area, graduating from the University of California – Los Angeles campus (UCLA) in 1996 with an undergraduate degree in Literature in English. He joined the U.S. Peace Corps in 2000 after working at an environmental non-profit for a few years. Ariel was sent to Mongolia as an English language instructor and small projects organizer, and lived in a small town in the northeast province of Dornod, with a population of 1700 souls. In August 2002 he went to northern Japan with the Japan Exchange and Teaching program and taught English for one year as an Assistant Language Teacher at two schools in a town called Mizusawa, in Iwate prefecture. In May of 2005, he received a master’s degree from The George Washington University in International Development, with a concentration on the Environment. Mr. Wyckoff began working at the U.S. Department of State in April 2007, initially at the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs on Afghanistan-related counter-narcotics issues for one year. He then switched to the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs (EAP) in July of 2008.

Mr. Wyckoff worked in strategic planning and foreign assistance funds management at the EAP bureau through December of 2016. This included managing grants for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, The Asia Foundation, and the UN Assistance to the Khmer Rouge Trials. In April of 2014 Ariel was selected for a year-long fellowship with the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Foundation to represent the U.S. in Japan for one year, working closely with Japanese colleagues at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Japan International Cooperation Agency on U.S.-Japan coordination in the Asia-Pacific region. In December 2016 Ariel became the Deputy Public Affairs Officer at U.S. Embassy Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, overseeing a range of bilateral educational, cultural, and professional exchange programs, as well as the community outreach, English language, and small grants programs. Returning to the States in December 2018, he started working at the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, focusing on issues that include marine conservation, combating wildlife trafficking, and promoting U.S. scientific expertise and technology overseas – especially in the Middle East and Asia.  He is married and has two sons.