Postdoctoral Associate in International Economics, CAES-Ag & Applied Economics
Faculty Research Fellow, Benson-Bertsch Center for International Trade and Security
Dr. Dixit Poudel is a Research Fellow at the Benson-Bertsch Center for International Trade and Security, a Postdoctoral Associate in International Economics at the University of Georgia (UGA), and an Economist at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). His research interests center on trade and development, with a focus on applied econometrics and causal inference, addressing questions on food systems, manufacturing, critical minerals, supply chains, trade networks, and regulatory frameworks. His work employs experimental, quasi-experimental, and geospatial methods with a strong public policy orientation. He works with cross-country databases and focuses regionally on the U.S., Asia, and occasionally Africa. At UGA, Dixit teaches graduate-level International Trade and Policy. He also mentors three Ph.D. students through the Association for Mentoring and Inclusion in Economics (AMIE) and co-organizes the Junior Economist Research Club at FAO.
He holds a B.S. in Agricultural Economics from Nepal, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Applied Economics from UGA. His published research spans global trade policy, U.S. fresh market production, global food security measurement, and the impacts of political instability on undernourishment. His Ph.D. dissertation examined modern economic transformation across countries, with chapters on digitalization in manufacturing firms, disaster resilience and public infrastructure in informal industries, and the role of nutritional regulations and trade in shaping global trans-fat consumption. Beyond his dissertation, his projects explore digital technology adoption, critical supply chains, and the food–energy–climate nexus, often linking these themes to international trade and development policy.
Dixit has contributed his expertise to organizations such as WHO, the AAEA–USDA/ERS Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, and the AAEA South Asia Section. He has received numerous awards, including Best Research Paper, Outstanding Ph.D. Student, and the Outstanding Ph.D. Student Scholarship. He has also been recognized as an IMF Young Fellow, Adam Smith Fellow in Economics at George Mason University, AIARD Fellow in International Agriculture and Rural Development, Summer Fellow in Environment and Energy Economics at UC Berkeley, and Pacific Trade and Development (PAFTAD) Fellow at the Australian National University and the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
Outside of work, Dixit enjoys traveling, hiking, cycling, cooking, and exploring local cultures while driving along intrastate highways. He also enjoys music, movies, and stories. He values teaching, learning, and listening to real-world experiences that inspire and inform his academic and professional endeavors.
