Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology was founded on the belief that anti-poverty programs can be made more effective — thus creating positive change in the lives of the poor — if policymakers have access to rigorous scientific evidence on what works and the capacities to apply it. J-PAL pursues three goals: (a) developing the capacity of researchers (including those from low- and middle-income countries) to lead randomized impact evaluations; (b) generating evidence through randomized evaluations that respond to pressing policy problems; and (c) promoting the systematic use and adaptation of evidence in informing policy windows and decision-making processes through tailored synthesis, targeted outreach, and technical assistance. These broad goals lay the foundation for achieving J-PAL's ultimate objective, which aligns with our Evidence-Informed Policymaking strategy: to improve the lives of the poor globally by closing the gap between research, policy, and practice.

The mission of the MIT Stephen A. Schwarzman College of Computing is to address the opportunities and challenges of the computing age — from hardware to software to algorithms to artificial intelligence — by transforming the capabilities of academia in the three key areas: computing fields, computing across disciplines, and social and ethical aspects of computing. This grant supports a dual position in the departments of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and Economics at MIT, with the goal of catalyzing the integration of behavioral science into computer science.