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

Children sitting in front of computers

J-PAL North America joins the Learning Engineering Virtual Institute to improve math outcomes for middle school students

In October 2023, J-PAL North America joined the Learning Engineering Virtual Institute to support organizations evaluating learning products that harness AI and machine learning to improve middle school math achievement.
Paul Niehaus speaking into a microphone

Rigorously evaluating cash transfer programs in the United States: Perspectives from other contexts

J-PAL affiliated researcher Paul Niehaus (UC San Diego) shares his perspective on studies of cash transfers in low- and middle-income countries and on how the United States can learn from other contexts.
From left to right: Kim Desmond, Mary Ann Bates, Elizabeth Linos, and Stan John in panel discussion

Three lessons from J-PAL North America’s ten year convening

Across a breadth of topics covered at J-PAL North America's ten year convening, speakers touched on common themes about how to generate evidence and inform policies effectively and equitably.
From left to right: Esther Duflo and Laura Arnold in conversation

Recapping a conversation between leaders in evidence-based policy making from J-PAL North America’s ten year convening

In this post, we highlight a conversation between Esther Duflo and Laura Arnold from J-PAL North America's ten year convening on building a culture of evidence-based policymaking.
White pills spilling from bottle

Encouraging rigorous, actionable research for opioid epidemic interventions in the United States

In this post, J-PAL North America reviews the ongoing studies supported by J-PAL North America on strategies to address the opioid epidemic and calls for further research in this pressing area.
Two doctors speaking with notepad

The role of health economics in addressing poverty and building better policy

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J-PAL staff sat down with Matt Notowidigdo (University of Chicago), Co-Scientific Director of J-PAL North America, and Tal Gross (Boston University) to examine their new book's approach to health economics and the impact of randomized evaluations on their understanding of the health care system...
Photo of San Diego County Administrative Center

LEVER Partner Spotlight: Ricardo Basurto-Dávila on the County of San Diego’s research priorities and culture of learning

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In this Partner Spotlight series, J-PAL North America and Results for America highlight the government leaders and decision-makers who are harnessing data, evaluation, and evidence to advance economic mobility via our Leveraging Evaluation and Evidence for Equitable Recovery (LEVER) programming...
Group of people talking in conference room

Rigorously evaluating cash transfer programs in the United States: Considerations, challenges, and future research questions

In September 2023, researchers conducting randomized evaluations of cash transfer programs in the United States gathered at Duke University to discuss their ongoing and completed research projects. In this post, we highlight key takeaways from these conversations.