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News, ideas, and analysis from J-PAL staff and affiliated professors. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive monthly email updates.

Female worker with helmet and safety vest scanning a box in a factory

JOI Brazil’s first year promoting evidence generation and use within Brazilian labor markets

The Jobs and Opportunity Initiative in Brazil (JOI Brazil) celebrated one year of working to promote the generation and use of evidence within the Brazilian labor markets. The celebration of its first anniversary and the commemoration of the International Workers' Day helped the is an opportune time...
Four people in conversation

Diversifying economics, part two: The Kauffman Foundation on bolstering diversity in research

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Chhaya Kolavalli, a Senior Program Officer at the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, discusses the importance of increasing diversity in research.
Four headshots of J-PAL North America health team members

J-PAL North America Staff Spotlight: Health Team

This Staff Spotlight highlights four J-PAL North America team members who work together to evaluate promising programs aimed at making health care in the United States more efficient, effective, and equitable.
Unidentified Ghanaian pupils in school uniform in a local village. Photo: nicolasdecorte | Shutterstock.com

Want to get girls to school in sub-Saharan Africa? Tackle poverty

Female education remains a key challenge in sub-Saharan Africa, which is home to the largest population of out-of-school girls. Poverty remains a key barrier to school enrolment, especially following the economic disruptions triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic. Can governments really hope to tackle...
Headshot of Dr. Nkechi Owoo

African Scholar Spotlight: Dr. Nkechi Owoo

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In this post we speak with Dr. Nkechi Owoo, a senior lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of Ghana. Nkechi’s primary research interests relate to gender, health, demography, and poverty alleviation.
Three people of different ethnicities sit in front of a laptop and discuss.

Using research to combat internalized bias

Combating internalized biases is an important step in building equitable, fair societies. Read on for a recap of our recent webinar on combating discrimination, featuring insights from researchers on how research can help further our understanding of effective strategies.
Mujer con hijo en su espalda asiste a hospital

The effect of cash transfers on women's well-being: Lessons from evidence in Latin America

There is no consensus on the effects of cash transfers on women's lives, especially regarding empowerment and violence perpetrated by their intimate partners. This blog post reviews existing evidence from Latin America and draws lessons for policymakers on the scope and limits of these programs for...
Students work on schoolwork together around a table

Diversifying economics, part one: How J-PAL's collaborative pipeline program was built

Jatnna Amador and Toby Chaiken discuss background of J-PAL North America's Economics Transformation Project, how their lived experiences informed this work, and opportunities for continued learning.