The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL)
Policy Insight
Teaching business skills to support microentrepreneurs
Business skills training programs increased microentrepreneurs’ use of business best practices, but in most cases, there were no significant changes in their profits. Alternative programs that are tailored to participants’ needs or foster an entrepreneurial mindset have shown more promising results than traditional programs.
Blog
From technology adoption to adaptation: supporting smallholder resilience to climate change
Without adaptation—defined broadly as “preparing for and responding to the disruptive effects of climate change,” it is predicted that 500 million small farms around the world will experience severe impacts on agricultural yields, affecting their income, food security, and well-being.
News
How the economics Nobel laureates’ methods could help fight poverty in the U.S.
Vincent Quan, Associate Director of Policy at J-PAL North America, reflects on what we've learned from randomized evaluations in the U.S.
News
Release: Announcing new research partnerships to promote social inclusion for migrants in Europe
J-PAL Europe, together with Community Jameel and Porticus, announce new research partnerships to promote social inclusion for migrants and refugees in Europe
J-PAL affiliated researchers have 994 ongoing and completed randomized evaluations in 84 countries
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Mental health, well-being, & lasting economic outcomes are intimately connected. A recent study in a conflicted-aff… https://t.co/UYHFm5WjaQ
11 hours 40 min agoLogin name: JPAL
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School is in session! Today we welcome our first class of students in the Data, Economics, & Development Policy Mas… https://t.co/TfyUR5k1sr
13 hours 40 min agoLogin name: JPAL
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Our Global Exec. Director is at the #WEF20 in Davos to talk about...
15 hours 53 min agoLogin name: JPAL
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Want to publish your research #data, but not sure where to start? Our new practical guides to publishing and de-ide… https://t.co...
4 days 15 hours agoLogin name: JPAL
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We ♥️ our alumni! Tanya Sethi (former @JPAL_SA) & Kristen Watkins (former...
5 days 10 hours agoLogin name: JPAL
- In the United States, more than 500,000 people experience homelessness on a given night. Are you an organization in the United States working to respond to this crisis and interested in rigorously evaluating your program or policy? If so, J-PAL North America invites you to submit a letter of interest through the Housing Stability Evaluation Incubator. Selected organizations that operate programs aimed at reducing homelessness, preventing evictions, and promoting housing stability will receive pro bono technical assistance to develop an evaluation idea, flexible funding, and connections with J-PAL’s network of leading academic researchers. https://j-p.al/d2i 5 days 9 hours ago.
- **New policy positions open in Kenya, Nigeria, and/or South Africa!** We are seeking applications for a Policy Manager to lead our Labor Markets work based in Kenya, Nigeria, or South Africa; and a Policy Manager to lead our Gender Initiative efforts based in Kenya. Policy Manager, Labor Markets: https://j-p.al/pyu Policy Manager, Gender Initiative: https://j-p.al/GI_K The Policy Group plays a key role in translating research by J-PAL affiliates into actionable poverty alleviation policies around the world. Staff connect the dots between economics and policy and are passionate about working with organizations to inform development policy. Apply by January 24 for early consideration. 6 days 16 hours ago.
- 2019 was a banner year for J-PAL on many fronts. We launched exciting new initiatives to expand the frontiers of research and evidence-informed policy, grew our online MicroMasters program, and accepted the first class of students in our new Master’s in Data, Economics, and Development Policy. 2019 was also notable for an exceptional reason: J-PAL co-founders Abhijit Banerjee and Esther Duflo and longtime affiliate Michael Kremer were awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Economics for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty. So how do we top this incredible year, or for that matter, the past decade? We do so by doubling down on the hard work and strong, collaborative partnerships that helped this movement succeed, and by focusing on a number of new priority areas. Our Global Executive Director provides a quick recap of 2019 and highlights some of the key focus areas for 2020 and beyond. Read more: https://j-p.al/kyj 1 week 11 hours ago.
- Just 4 days left to apply to open positions at J-PAL through our annual recruitment drive! Open positions in research, education, training, policy, and administration—take a look through our job database for opportunities at J-PAL offices worldwide, research assistant positions, and positions at our partner organizations: www.povertyactionlab.org/careers Got questions? Check out our FAQ page (povertyactionlab.org/faq) and our online information session (youtube.com/watch?v=RIixYWusFoY) 2 weeks 1 day ago.
- Business skills training programs are common across the world, but a recent J-PAL review of 22 randomized evaluations shows that being offered business skills training did not always have the intended impact on microenterprises. Read more here: https://www.povertyactionlab.org/policy-insight/teaching-business-skills-support-microentrepreneurs 2 weeks 5 days ago.
Creating good policies is a complex and dynamic process. A program can be evaluated, found to improve people’s lives, and be scaled up. However, in the longer run, these programs interact with other...
1 week 40 min ago
We are pleased to announce the publication of two new methods guides to de-identifying and publishing research data. These guides draw on J-PAL’s experience of publishing research data on randomized...
1 week 2 days ago
2019 was a banner year for J-PAL on many fronts. We launched many exciting initiatives to expand the frontiers of research and evidence-informed policy, including in...
1 week 6 days ago
In 2019 we launched new initiatives to spur innovative research, admitted the first-ever cohort of blended Masters’ students, celebrated our founders’ and affiliate’s Nobel Prize win, and much more. It’s almost impossible to capture the breadth and depth of what our staff, affiliates, and partners have learned and achieved over the last year.
2 weeks 40 min ago
Researchers from J-PAL’s network partnered with the Camden Coalition of Health Care Providers (the Camden Coalition) on a rigorous evaluation of their Camden Core Model. The Camden Core Model has received national attention as a promising super-utilizer intervention over the past few years. We sat down with Kathleen Noonan and Aaron Truchil, the Camden Coalition’s CEO and Director of Strategy and Analytics respectively, and Amy Finkelstein, Co-Scientific Director of J-PAL North America and the Principal Investigator of the study, to go behind the scenes of this research partnership and share their thoughts on what they have learned through the process.
2 weeks 40 min ago