The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a global research center working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. Anchored by a network of more than 1,000 researchers at universities around the world, J-PAL conducts randomized impact evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty.
The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a global research center working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. Anchored by a network of more than 1,000 researchers at universities around the world, J-PAL conducts randomized impact evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty.
Our affiliated professors are based at over 120 universities and conduct randomized evaluations around the world to design, evaluate, and improve programs and policies aimed at reducing poverty. They set their own research agendas, raise funds to support their evaluations, and work with J-PAL staff on research, policy outreach, and training.
Our Board of Directors, which is composed of J-PAL affiliated professors and senior management, provides overall strategic guidance to J-PAL, our sector programs, and regional offices.
J-PAL recognizes that there is a lack of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the field of economics and in our field of work. Read about what actions we are taking to address this.
We host events around the world and online to share results and policy lessons from randomized evaluations, to build new partnerships between researchers and practitioners, and to train organizations on how to design and conduct randomized evaluations, and use evidence from impact evaluations.
Browse news articles about J-PAL and our affiliated professors, read our press releases and monthly global and research newsletters, and connect with us for media inquiries.
Based at leading universities around the world, our experts are economists who use randomized evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty. Connect with us for all media inquiries and we'll help you find the right person to shed insight on your story.
J-PAL is based at MIT in Cambridge, MA and has seven regional offices at leading universities in Africa, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, North America, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.
J-PAL is based at MIT in Cambridge, MA and has seven regional offices at leading universities in Africa, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean, Middle East and North Africa, North America, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.
Our global office is based at the Department of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. It serves as the head office for our network of seven independent regional offices.
Led by affiliated professors, J-PAL sectors guide our research and policy work by conducting literature reviews; by managing research initiatives that promote the rigorous evaluation of innovative interventions by affiliates; and by summarizing findings and lessons from randomized evaluations and producing cost-effectiveness analyses to help inform relevant policy debates.
Led by affiliated professors, J-PAL sectors guide our research and policy work by conducting literature reviews; by managing research initiatives that promote the rigorous evaluation of innovative interventions by affiliates; and by summarizing findings and lessons from randomized evaluations and producing cost-effectiveness analyses to help inform relevant policy debates.
How do policies affecting private sector firms impact productivity gaps between higher-income and lower-income countries? How do firms’ own policies impact economic growth and worker welfare?
How can we identify effective policies and programs in low- and middle-income countries that provide financial assistance to low-income families, insuring against shocks and breaking poverty traps?
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.
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...
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.
The effects of climate change will worsen over the next thirty years and will disproportionately impact the world’s poorest people in many ways. In recognition of Earth Day 2022, we're highlighting how food systems, food security, and nutrition are particularly vulnerable to climate impacts.
We celebrate our alumni and their many interests and achievements through an ongoing series of interviews and blog s in which alumni share their work in their own words. Marking the third year of this documentation project, we're highlighting the 34 remarkable individuals we’ve interviewed to date...
Rahma Ali is a former research manager at J-PAL Middle East and North Africa, where she was at the forefront of establishing the office’s research operations in Egypt and pushing forward randomized evaluations on employment and livelihood generation in the country. Now at Global TIES for Children at...
John Tebes is a former research analyst for Amy Finkelstein at J-PAL North America. Now, as an economics PhD candidate at Harvard and an incoming Assistant Research Professor of Economics at Notre Dame, he researches how public policy can exacerbate or mitigate U.S. poverty traps. He reflects on his...
J-PAL North America and WorkRise recently convened a panel to discuss sectoral employment training and the role of rigorous research in guiding the development of pathways to high-quality jobs. Here are four key takeaways.