Steven Biegun

US Institute of Peace USIP is the independent, nonpartisan conflict management center created by Congress to prevent and mitigate international conflict without resorting to violence. USIP works to save lives, increase the government's ability to deal with conflicts before they escalate, reduce government costs, and enhance our national security. USIP works to reduce the costs and risks for American military and civilians deployed to conflict areas abroad by training them to peacefully mitigate and manage conflicts. Our work helps to create safe and stable environments for people living and Americans working in these regions. In Iraq, the tribal reconciliation USIP mediated in Mahmoudiya served as the model for the U.S. reconciliation strategy that dramatically reduced American military and Iraqi civilian casualties, as reported by TIME magazine. “Over the next six months Iraqi civilian deaths in the area fell 75 percent—from 1,200 per month to 300 per month; while US military deaths fell from a dozen per month to zero.” (TIME, 19 October 2007) USIP played a leading role in preventing electoral violence in South Sudan and continues to help keep the Sudan Peace Accord on track. USIP has been working with tribal chiefs, state judges, police and other stakeholders to improve cooperation and to develop an integrated approach to the rule of law, so that South Sudan can move beyond its history of violence. | The Two Sudans Since 2002, USIP has analyzed Afghanistan’s justice systems and recommended methods to strengthen the rule of law. USIP is helping to bridge the gap between informal and formal justice sectors and thereby prevent village and district-level disputes from spiraling out of control.

The US-ASEAN Business Council (also known as "the Council" or "USABC") is an advocacy organization that aims to foster economic growth and trade ties between the United States and Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)'s ten member countries. It is the only U.S.-based organization enshrined in the ASEAN charter. Based in Washington, DC, the Council has branch offices in New York, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The 29 year-old Council represents nearly 130 of the largest U.S. corporations, including Coca-Cola, ExxonMobil, General Electric, Intel, UPS, FedEx and Google.