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

Three people, WFP Director of Evaluation, Anne-Claire Luzot, J-PAL co-founder and Nobel Laureate in Economics, Prof Abhijit Banerjee and WFP Assistant Executive Director for Partnerships and Resource Mobilization, Rania Dagash-Kamara pose in front of blue United Nations flags.

Humanitarian impact evaluations: WFP and J-PAL build commitment for a common cause

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In recent years, RCTs and other rigorous impact evaluations have gained momentum in contexts previously believed to be unnecessary in urgent crises, or even unethical or impossible in resource-constrained environments that can change overnight. In this blog, we explore how we can keep momentum going...
Group of students from the Breakthrough Program

Celebrating Women’s Day: Eight stories of evidence-informed change for women and girls

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This International Women’s Day, we are highlighting stories of evidence-informed programs transforming the lives of women and girls globally. We hope that as you read, you see how crucial rigorous research is to each of these examples, and are inspired to put evidence at the center of your own...
A man stands in a sweater in front of a light blue wall.

African Scholar Spotlight: Nathaniel Olutegbe

Through our African Scholars Program, we hope to help create more opportunities for African researchers to advance the research agenda on the continent through randomized evaluations. In this spotlight, we speak with Nathaniel Olutegbe of the University of Ibadan in Nigeria.
A student in a red and white school uniform types on a computer

AI for social good: Helping students learn

AI has the potential to improve student learning and make evidence-informed education programs easier to deliver at scale—but there's a risk it could become another “magic bullet” that fails to improve learning, leaving governments to spend scarce resources on ed tech that sits unused in schools.
A tree with visible roots grows in a dense forest.

The King Climate Action Initiative: Five years of growing impact

As rising temperatures threaten to reverse gains in the fight against poverty, communities on the frontlines need solutions that work. Since 2020, J-PAL's King Climate Action Initiative has funded research has informed policies and programs improving the lives of nearly 33 million people.
Two men sit behind computer screens that display e-filing information

AI for social good: Governing more effectively and efficiently

Artificial intelligence promises to help governments meet challenges and deliver better for citizens. AI tools could be leveraged at multiple points in the public financial management cycle—from collecting revenue through taxation, to spending those revenues on public services. They could also make...
Colleagues stand in a line in front of a projector smiling.

K-CAI at COP30: How evidence is powering climate solutions

In Belém, Brazil, where the Amazon rivers converge and forests help regulate the earth’s temperature, COP30 last month was a unique summit and call to action. Climate change is not just an environmental crisis—it is a development crisis. Low-income people in low- and middle-income countries are...
A man on the left checks a woman's vitals on the right while they both sit down.

AI for social good: Making AI work for health systems

AI has the potential to improve access to and quality of health care. However, evidence on the real-world impacts of AI solutions on providers and patients is scarce. Closing these evidence gaps is key to ensuring policymakers can responsibly scale AI that supports healthcare workers and patients.