David Talbot is Associate Director for Global Policy at the Milken Institute. In this capacity, he helps lead the institute’s research on key issues including global markets, international trade and investment, regional economic competitiveness, and the energy transition.
David previously served in the Obama administration as policy advisor for international economics to US Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker. He played a central role in designing Secretary Pritzker’s commercial diplomacy strategy and developing signature initiatives to strengthen US economic relations with India, ASEAN, and Canada and Mexico; increase exports and inbound foreign direct investment; and promote responsible business conduct. David has additionally worked on three US presidential campaigns, volunteered as an Economic Policy Advisory Committee member on Joe Biden for President, and counseled clients on complex geopolitical, economic, and regulatory issues.
David holds a PhD in international political economy from the University of Cambridge, a master’s degree from the University of Oxford, and a BA from Yale University. He serves on the advisory board of CIV:LAB, a grantmaking non-profit accelerating climate change mitigation and adaptation, and is a member of the Pacific Council on International Policy, the Los Angeles Committee of Human Rights Watch, and the Asia Society of Southern California. His articles have appeared in numerous outlets including Foreign Policy, World Politics Review, Lawfare, and the Los Angeles Review of Books.