The Sixth Annual Richard H. Sabot Lecture: Policies and Politics: Can Evidence Play a Role in the Fight against Poverty?

Esther Duflo is a leading development economist known for her work applying impact evaluation, randomized controlled trials and other field experiments to identify which development interventions actually work. Duflo is the Abdul Latif Jameel Professor of Poverty Alleviation and Development Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-founder of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL). Her lecture will draw upon a new book by Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee, a J-PAL co-founder, titled Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty. Duflo and Banerjee’s research has led them to identify wholly new aspects of the behavior of poor people, their needs, and the way that aid or financial investment can affect their lives.

Development scholar-practitioner Duflo is featured speaker of CGD’s sixth annual Richard H. Sabot Lecture honoring the life and work of Richard “Dick” Sabot, a friend, co-author, and founding member of CGD's board of directors. CGD president Nancy Birdsall will host and serve as moderator for a discussion following the talk.