Description:

Join us for a lunchtime conversation with Dean Karlan, who recently resigned from his position as Chief Economist of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). In conversation with Valerie Friedman, Northwestern University Trustee and a former principal at Bracebridge Capital, Karlan will reflect on his tenure at USAID, the challenges of integrating rigorous evidence into global development initiatives and the implications of USAID’s shutdown for the recipients of US aid and the future of US foreign policy. He will also offer his thoughts about how we should rebuild US foreign assistance in the future, some of which are summarized in his recent op-ed. 

This event is co-sponsored by the Robert J. Havey, MD Institute for Global Health at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine.

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Dean Karlan is the Frederic Esser Nemmers Distinguished Professor of Economics and Finance at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, where he co-directs the Global Poverty Research Lab. He is the founder and former president of Innovations for Poverty Action, a nonprofit dedicated to discovering and promoting solutions to global poverty problems. Karlan was the Chief Economist at USAID from 2022 until resigning in 2025.

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Lunch will be provided beginning 12:15 p.m.

Please note that 720 University Place is not an ADA-accessible space. Increasing physical access to buildings and facilities is a goal of the University, but not all buildings and venues have been updated.