Speakers

Sofia Amaral is an Economist at the South Asia Gender Innovation Lab, World Bank. Her research focuses on violence against women and children and the economics of crime in various countries. She holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Uiversity of Birmingham.

Joshua Angrist, a Ford Professor of Economics at MIT, and Nobel Laureate in Economics (2021), specializes in econometric methodology and labor economics. An Oberlin College graduate, his career includes positions at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Harvard University. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Princeton University. Angrist is a fellow of the Econometric Society and a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research.

S Anukriti is a Senior Economist in the Development Research Group (Human Development Team) at the World Bank. An applied micro-economist, her research focuses on gender and family economics, and political economy in developing countries. She holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Columbia University, an Masters from the Delhi School of Economics, and a BA from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi. Before the World Bank, she was an Assistant Professor at Boston College and is a Research Fellow at IZA.

Girija Borker is an Economist and Gender Lead at the Development Impact Evaluation Unit, World Bank. Her work focuses on gender, violence, and transport in urban areas. Borker holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Brown University.

Sara Constantino is an Assistant Professor of Psychology and Public Policy. Her interdisciplinary work focuses on social and environmental policy, equity, and decision-making. She holds a Ph.D. in cognitive sciences from New York University.

Iqbal Dhaliwal is the Global Executive Director of JPAL. He leads policy initiatives, liaising with global policymakers and overseeing field evaluations. Dhaliwal, a former Indian Administrative Service officer, holds a BA from the University of Delhi and a Masters from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School.

Dean Karlan is a Professor of Economics and Finance at Northwestern University and Chief Economist at USAID. He founded Innovations for Poverty Action and the Global Poverty Research Lab. A prolific author and researcher, Karlan has received numerous awards and holds degrees from MIT, the
University of Chicago, and the University of Virginia.

Dan Keniston is an Associate Professor in the Department of Economics at E.J. Ourso College of Business, Louisiana State University. Keniston holds a Ph.D. in Economics from MIT. His research focuses on firms and markets in developing countries and the political economy in India.

Shantanu Khanna is an Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Economics, focusing on labor, development, and public economics. His research addresses inequality and public policy impacts. Khanna holds a Ph.D. in Economics from University of California, Irvine.

Asim Ijaz Khwaja is the Sumitomo-FASID Professor of International Finance and Development at Harvard Kennedy School. He co-founded the Center for Economic Research in Pakistan (CERP) and serves as the Director of the Center for International Development. His research spans economic development, finance, education, and political economy, combining fieldwork, empirical analysis, and microeconomic theory. A Carnegie Scholar, Khwaja has been published in top economics journals and covered by prominent media. He holds a BS degree from MIT and a Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard.

Anjani Kumar is an Indian Police Service Officer, currently serving as Chairman Road Safety Authority in Telangana Police, India. He has formerly served as the Director General of Police in Telangana, India. He is recipient of President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Services, Indian Police Medal for Meritorious Services, United Nations Peace Medal, and has contributed significantly to public safety and law enforcement in India.

Arianna Legovini heads the Development Impact (DIME) department at the World Bank. She pioneered the DIME model, enhancing the impact of development projects through data and evaluation research. Legovini has raised substantial funding for research and impacted billions in development finance. She holds a Ph.D. in Economics from University of Maryland.

Mario Macis is a Professor of Economics at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School. His work explores pro-social behavior and morally contentious exchanges. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago and has served as a consultant for various international organizations.

Margaret McConnell is an Associate Professor of Global Health Economics at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her research merges behavioral economics with experimental approaches to improve health outcomes, especially in maternal and child health. McConnell is a former postdoctoral fellow in the Program on the Global Demography of Aging at HCPDS.

Shariq Mohammed, an Assistant Professor of Economics at Northeastern University, specializes in labor economics, economic history, and development economics. His work examines socio-economic disparities and policy solutions. Mohammed was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Michigan and holds a Ph.D. from the University of Arizona.

Priya Mukherjee is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Agricultural & Applied Economics, University of Wisconsin- Madison. Her research interests include development economics, political economy, education, and health. She has received her Ph.D. in Economics from Cornell University.

Bethany Park is the Senior Director of Policy at Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA). She leads IPA’s global policy strategy and its embedded evidence capacity and labs strategy. Before IPA, she was a Ph.D. candidate at Princeton University, focusing on governance and democratization in Latin America. Park holds a BS from Georgetown University and an MA from Princeton University.

Vikram Patel is the Paul Farmer Professor and Chair of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School. A leader in global mental health, Patel co- founded several initiatives and organizations in this field. He is a Fellow of the UK’s Academy of Medical Sciences and member of the US National Academy of Medicine. His numerous accolades include TIME Magazine’s 100 Most Influential Persons of 2015 and multiple honorary doctorates and international awards.

Uta Poiger serves as the Special Advisor to the Provost on Humanics at Northeastern University. From November 2012 to June 2023, Poiger served as Dean of the College of Social Science and Humanities at Northeastern University. She holds a Ph.D. in History from Brown University.

Silvia Prina is an Associate Professor of Economics at Northeastern University and o-director for Global Action for Policy (GAP).. Her research interests are centered on financial access, networks, and spillover effects. She is a Co-Editor of Labour Economics, a Faculty Affiliate of J-PAL, a Research Fellow IZA, a Research Affiliate at Innovations for Poverty Action. She is holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Boston University.

Matthew Ross is an Associate Professor of Public Policy and Economics. His work at the intersection of urban, public, and labor economics aims to inform policy and impact society. Ross has published in prominent journals and received funding from various foundations and agencies. He hold a Ph.D. in Economics from University of Connecticut.

Eldar Shafir is a Professor of Behavioral Science and Public Policy at Princeton University. His research focuses on decision-making in contexts of poverty. A recipient of several prestigious awards, Shafir co-founded ideas42 and has served in advisory roles for the World Economic Forum and the U.S. government. He holds a Ph.D. in Cognitive Science from MIT.

Siddharth Sharma is a Lead Economist at the World Bank’s Office of the Chief Economist for South Asia. His research focuses on productivity, innovation, and labor markets. Sharma holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Yale University.

Mary Steffel is an Associate Professor of Marketing at Northeastern University. Her research delves into consumer judgment and decision-making. Steffel has served on the White House Social and Behavioral Sciences Team and the General Services Administration. She holds a Ph.D. in Marketing from University of Florida and Ph.D. in Psychology from Princeton University.

Anil Swarup is a retired Indian Administrative Service Officer and former Coal Secretary for the Government of India. His career has spanned various roles, contributing significantly to public policy and program implementation in India.

Ashley V. Whillans is the Volpert Family Associate Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. Her research examines the associations between time, money, and subjective wellbeing. Whillans earned her Ph.D. in Social Psychology from the University of British Columbia.

Shuo Zhang is an Assistant Professor of Economics and Computer Science, specializing in labor economics, platform design, and algorithmic fairness. Her work focuses on online labor markets. She earned her bachelor’s degrees from Tsinghua University and her master’s and Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Rachel Glennerster is an Associate Professor of Economics in the Division of Social Science at the University of Chicago. She uses randomized trials to study democracy and accountability, health, education, microfinance, and women’s empowerment mainly in West Africa and South Asia. She holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Birkbeck College, University of London.

Michael Kremer is a University Professor at the University of Chicago and a Nobel laureate (2019). A MacArthur Fellow and member of prestigious academies, his research spans education, health, finance, and agriculture in developing nations. As a social entrepreneur his initiatives like Deworm the World and Precision Agriculture for Development impact millions worldwide. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University.

Gonzalo Hernández Licona Executive Secretary, National Council for the Evaluation of Social Development Policy of Mexico and collaborates with UNICEF on country-led evaluations. He is an expert in country-led evaluations. Licona holds a Ph.D. from Oxford University.

John Lowrey is an Assistant Professor of Supply Chain & Information Management and Health Sciences at Northeastern University, with expertise in food banks, food science, agricultural economics, and supply chain management. Dr Lowrey received his BS in Biology and Chemistry from NEOMED at the University of Akron, and a MS, MBA, MAE, and Ph.D. from the Ohio State University.

David Madigan is Provost and Senior Vice president for academic affairs at Northeastern. Recognized for fostering interdisciplinary collaborations and expanding diversity initiatives, he has a strong global perspective, with notable contributions at the intersection of Big Data and healthcare innovation. As a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a leader in global collaborations, his expertise spans academia, industry, and entrepreneurship.

Kristin Madison, with a joint appointment in Law and HealthSciences at Northeastern University, is a leading expert in healthlaw, policy, and economics. Her research delves into theimplications of healthcare quality reporting, regulatoryapproaches, and employer health incentives, informing criticaldiscussions in the field. She holds a Ph.D. in Economics fromStanford University.

Nishith Prakash is a professor of public policy and economics at Northeastern and co-director of Global Action for Policy (GAP). He is a Research Fellow at CESifo, CReAM, IZA, and IPA. He serves on the editorial boards at Journal of Development Economics, Economics of Education Review, and PLOS ONE. Through his research he contributes significantly to shaping global discourse on reducing gender gap in education, crimes against women, and mental health in developing countries. He holds a Ph.D. in Economics from University of Houston.

Rajit Punhani is an Indian Administrative Service officer, currently serving as secretary in Indian Parliament. He led various flagship government programs and substantially contributed to the committee on GST reforms. Punhani holds a BA from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi and MBA from Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore (India).

Frank Schilbach is an Associate Professor at MIT Economics, specializing in the intersection of poverty, economic behavior, and behavioral economics. As a leading figure in the field, he collaborates with renowned institutions like NBER, J-PAL, CEPR, and BREAD, advancing innovative approaches to address socio- economic challenges. He hold a Ph.D. in Economics from Harvard University.

Kellee Tsai, a distinguished political scientist, assumes the role of Dean of the College of Social Sciences and Humanities at Northeastern University. She is an accomplished author, and her research focuses on the political economy of China. She holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from Columbia University.