Next Generation of Scholars
Read about emerging scholars the King Center supports, including undergraduate and PhD students and predoctoral and postdoctoral fellows.
Site news
-
2026 Global Development Postdoctoral Fellows Conference: King Center scholars present new evidence from developing countries
Co-hosted with CDDRL, the day brought together nine new fellows studying topics including climate, democracy, gender norms, and labor markets.
-
Aiming to improve the aquaculture industry in Kenya
King Center scholar Fridah Nyakundi has published a new paper describing the risks and associated market challenges facing tilapia farmers in Kenya and showing why the country’s growing aquaculture sector needs risk- and system-specific policy support.
-
Global development conference highlights research by postdoctoral fellows
Stanford’s only conference for postdoctoral fellows in global development featured wide-ranging international research on September 19.
-
Undergraduates tackle global issues through academic year fellowships
Students research malaria, dengue, and the sand mining industry.
-
Undergraduates delve into cutting-edge research through summer fellowships
The King Center’s full-time program matches undergraduates with Stanford faculty for immersive global experiences.
-
Graduate students explore critical global problems in search of long-term solutions
King Center Graduate Student Research Funding kick-starts novel early-stage research on topics ranging from political polarization to infectious disease.
-
Stanford undergraduates witness challenges and dynamism of life in low- and middle-income countries
King Center-funded opportunities include fieldwork in developing countries and research projects on topics ranging from financial inclusion to infectious diseases.
-
Q&A with King Center Predoctoral Research Fellow Besindone Dumi-Leslie
Dumi-Leslie worked with former Faculty Director Pascaline Dupas on projects encompassing health, gender, and institutions, among others.
-
Q&A with King Center Predoctoral Research Fellow Suhi Hanif
Hanif has been working on research in infectious disease epidemiology.
-
A blueprint for India’s potential for growth through improved management practices
Supported by King Center funding, Stanford Professor Nicholas Bloom and Megha Patnaik, PhD ’17, are pioneering a survey on management practices in India’s manufacturing sector.
-
Q&A with King Center Predoctoral Research Fellow Shakil Ayan
Ayan shares his thoughts on his fellowship experience, and the work he's been doing with King Center affiliates on human trafficking and gender discrimination.
-
Reframing girls’ education as valuable family legacy
Graduate Student Research Funding recipient Ayodele Dada is exploring how linking education to the idea of legacy affects girls’ access to education in northern Nigeria.
-
Students bring global research insights to Stanford
More than two dozen scholars across a variety of disciplines presented their work at the King Center’s Global Development Research Symposium on April 26.
-
Exploring refugees’ experience in the Global South
Political science PhD student Mae MacDonald is using King Center funds to study how refugees are treated in Kenya and other countries.
-
Pioneering research to fight gender-based violence
A postdoctoral fellow recounts her journey tying economic policy to social change.
-
Undergraduate research assistants help expand entrepreneurial opportunities for refugees
Natalie Milan and Faith Zehfuss received King Center funding to research and help facilitate a 10-week entrepreneurship program for refugees in Uganda.
-
Studying state expansion in sub-Saharan Africa
Jamie Hintson looks closely at public infrastructure projects in dozens of countries as a part of his King Center Graduate Student Research Funding.
-
Q&A with King Center Postdoctoral Fellow Karmini Sharma
Sharma describes her research, which primarily focuses on the economics of gender, and talks about why she would recommend the King Center's Postdoctoral Fellows Program.
-
King Center supports undergraduate student research in infectious disease lab
Current and former students share their experience studying mosquito-borne viruses in the lab of Professor A. Desiree LaBeaud.
-
Examining barriers to communication in Pakistan
Mark Walsh received support from the King Center for his experiment studying why people are reluctant to share information about new technologies.
-
Q&A with King Center Predoctoral Fellow Ei Thandar Myint
Former predoctoral fellow Myint discusses her research with King Center faculty affiliates and her overall experience as part of the inaugural cohort in the program.
-
Q&A with King Center Predoctoral Fellow Diego Tocre
Tocre discusses his experience and research projects as an inaugural member of the King Center's Predoctoral Research Fellows Program.
-
A long-term focus on growing cities in Africa
Multi-year datasets from the King Center’s African Urbanization and Development Research Initiative continue to inform research and policy insights in Ethiopia and Côte d’Ivoire.
-
Q&A with King Center Postdoctoral Fellow Juan Felipe Riaño
Riaño discusses his research in political economy, namely bureaucratic nepotism and the politics of state capacity building.
-
Toward a better theory of learning
With support from the King Center, Anirudh Sankar traveled to Uganda to study how small-holder farmers learn about farming practices through a novel irrigation system.
-
Keeping an eye on an island nation’s marine life
King Center support helped advance Bianca Santos’s research in Palau, where she is studying the impacts of climate change on small-scale fisheries.
-
Testing the winds
Anna-Katharina von Krauland’s research on potential wind farm development in the US and India could help ease the transition to renewable energy.
-
Measuring the impact of remittances
King Center PhD funding recipient Kimberly Higuera’s research explores how the social status of immigrants is impacted by their decision to send money to relatives in Mexico.
-
Q&A with King Center Postdoctoral Fellow Jeremy Bowles
Bowles discusses his research on electoral accountability, voter mobilization, and state capacity.
-
Rethinking asylum
King Center fellowship recipient Pablo Seward Delaporte studies the tension between migrants in northern Chile and the government’s plans to resettle them.
-
Researcher takes aim at discrimination and intimate partner violence
Research funding recipient Nina Buchmann is leading ground-breaking work to study and reduce discrimination and domestic violence in Bangladesh.
-
Q&A with King Center Postdoctoral Fellow Yoshika Crider
Crider discusses her research on WASH interventions in Bangladesh and Kenya, as well as her time spent at the King Center.
-
Assessing social change in African countries
King Center graduate student research fellow Nicholas Lyon has studied urbanization in Uganda and Kenya and attitudes about LGBTQ+ rights.
-
Q&A with King Center Postdoctoral Fellow Marie Christelle Mabeu
Mabeu discusses her research on the relationship between colonial history, gender equity, and reproductive health across Africa.
-
Seeking to ease conflicts linked to climate change
King Center graduate student fellowship recipient Garrett Albistegui Adler, ’18, MA ’22, PhD is exploring the factors that might influence how people respond to climactic shocks.
-
Stanford undergrad examines efforts to make classrooms in Guatemala more welcoming to traditionally marginalized groups
What does it mean to make a school inclusive?
-
King Center Predoctoral Research Fellow seeks to make an impact
Christlee Doris Elmera, who works on a King Center initiative to reduce lead exposure, is drawn to the practical nature of research.
-
Stanford undergraduate student studies how social groups motivate political participation in India
Which women become politicians and does women’s electoral representation lead to changes in policy outcomes?
-
Q&A with King Center Postdoctoral Fellow Augustin Bergeron
Bergeron discusses his research on tax collection and social ties in the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as his time spent at the King Center.
-
King Center graduate student researchers pause, then persist in the face of COVID-19 pandemic
Students transition to remote technologies to pursue their inquiries as the pandemic and other global crises continue.
-
Putting machine learning to work for development
A team of researchers have created a machine-learning tool to encourage the development of new ways to measure progress on the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
-
Escaping extreme poverty
Stanford environmental engineer Christine Pu discusses how infrastructure investments and policies can alleviate poverty and build resilience against climate change.
-
Stanford undergraduates contribute to research on COVID-19, HIV, and infant health
As part of the Academic Year Part-Time Research Assistant Program, Keona Blanks, ’24, and Sophia Nesamoney, ’23, conducted research with Stanford Professor Gary Darmstadt.
-
Predoctoral fellowships expand access to global development research
The King Center’s new Predoctoral Research Fellows Program recruits candidates from low- or middle-income countries.
-
Breaking down barriers to women’s employment
King Center Postdoctoral Fellow Madeline McKelway studied how an intervention designed to increase women’s self confidence in rural India affected their likelihood of employment.
-
Market power and in-kind transfers: Evidence from Mexico
In settings with market power, providing goods directly can generate larger consumer surplus gains than cash and vouchers because of price effects.
-
Counting calories
PhD student Nano Barahona and a team of researchers investigated the impact of a national food labeling law in Chile.
-
Working to secure a food staple
Tianmei Wang is exploring how climate change will affect rice farming, including through the use of remote sensing technology.
-
Addressing pollution brick by brick
King Center Fellow Nina R. Brooks, PhD ’20, is part of a team of Stanford researchers exploring how to reduce pollution from brick kilns in Bangladesh.
-
Q&A with economics PhD candidate Cauê Dobbin
Cauê Dobbin, a PhD candidate in economics at Stanford, answers questions about his research on the economics of Brazil's higher education sector.
-
Stanford researchers and others reveal pervasive health threats of unregulated battery recycling
A remediation and public education effort at an abandoned battery recycling facility in Bangladesh eliminated most lead soil contamination.
-
Engineering entrepreneurial success in emerging economies
Through a King Center student program, undergrads Arianna Togelang and Alexander Ke worked alongside Faculty Affiliate Professor Charles Eesley.
-
Model student
As an undergraduate research assistant for the King Center, Ella Tessier-Lavigne worked in Stanford Biology Professor Erin Mordecai’s infectious disease lab.
-
Why econ: Development
Curious about what draws someone to study development economics? Or how economics connects to a wide range of policy issues? Our affiliated students share why econ matters to them.
-
Chasing the cause of chronic kidney disease
Two undergraduate students are assisting Stanford Assistant Professor of Medicine Shuchi Anand’s research on kidney disease in Sri Lanka.
-
A cultural approach to development
Catherine Thomas, a PhD candidate in social psychology and King Center research funding recipient, traveled to Niger to help facilitate community discussions.
-
Stanford researcher finds lead in South Asian turmeric and jumpstarts a bigger movement
Researchers part of the King Center initiative focused on lead poisoning have shown that turmeric is a key contributor to heightened blood-lead levels.
-
Center affiliates help launch Stanford Human Trafficking Data Lab
A new multidisciplinary initiative convenes researchers across Stanford's campus and in Brazil to secure localized, high-quality data to fight human trafficking.
-
Postdoctoral fellow Brandon de la Cuesta on using data for sustainable development and what's next for him at Stanford
In a Q&A, Brandon de la Cuesta reflects on his time spent at the King Center as a 2019 - 2020 postdoctoral fellow, as well as his research on resource-revenue accountability.
-
Postdoctoral fellow Sara Lowes reflects on her research in the Democratic Republic of Congo
In a Q&A, Sara Lowes reflects on her time spent at the King Center as a 2019 - 2020 postdoctoral fellow and her research in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
-
How local governance undermines democracy in Lebanon
With support from the King Center, Stanford PhD candidate Christiana Parreira studies how municipal governments function—or not—in Lebanon.
-
Stanford undergraduate students gain vital experience working in Indian non-profits
In summer 2019, four Stanford undergraduate students worked with local non-profit organizations in India through King Center-supported programs.
-
Stanford students learn about geospatial innovations and potential ramifications at King Center
In far reaching corners of the world, especially low- and middle-income countries, how can organizations gather and process information?
-
Stanford undergraduate students conduct research on freedom of expression laws in Indonesia
Melodie Liu and Alisha Zhao spent the summer in Jakarta, Indonesia, as Summer Undergraduate Field Research Assistants working with a local NGO.
-
Q&A with Stanford PhD student and McKinnon Fellowship Recipient, Levi Boxell
During summer 2019, Stanford economics PhD student Levi Boxell traveled to Ghana with support from the King Center.
-
Clean water for health in Uganda: Glimpses of home
Part four in a series of a stories by students working in Uganda as part of the King Center's Summer Undergraduate Field Research Assistant Program.
-
Stanford students experience small- and large- scale entrepreneurship in Mexico City on their Journey of Inquiry
Stanford students Micheal Brown and Kayley Miller recount their experiences on a Journey of Inquiry to Mexico City.
-
Stanford graduate students share new mechanism for reducing negative health impacts in the Senegal River basin with local officials
River development interventions impact multiple facets of river systems including food production, water availability, and public health outcomes, often in unanticipated ways.
-
Clean water for health in Uganda: Preventing disease in a refugee settlement
Part three in a series of a stories by students working in Uganda as part of the King Center's Summer Undergraduate Field Research Assistant Program.
-
Clean water for health in Uganda: Taking initiative and finding a solution
Part two in a series of a stories by students working in Uganda as part of the King Center's Summer Undergraduate Field Research Assistant Program.
-
Stanford researchers find lead in turmeric
Some spice processors in Bangladesh use an industrial lead chromate pigment to imbue turmeric with a bright yellow color prized for curries and other traditional dishes.
-
Clean water for health in Uganda: Seeking answers to my childhood questions
Part one in a series of a stories by students working in Uganda as part of the King Center's Summer Undergraduate Field Research Assistant Program.
-
Retail modernization in emerging markets: Strengthening the retail backbone of the economy
As economies become more digitally enabled, Stanford researchers seek to better connect and strengthen the millions of small retailers in an emerging market.
-
Mechanical engineering graduate students create a hub for economic development research at Stanford
The newly formed interdisciplinary, King Center-supported student group meetings on topics relevant for economic development in Africa.
-
Q&A with Meredith Startz, the first postdoctoral fellow at the King Center on Global Development.
Meredith Startz is the inaugural postdoctoral fellow at the King Center. In a Q&A with the Center, she shares some of her research experience.
-
Stanford students undertake field research in Senegal to combat schistosomiasis
Two Stanford seniors spent the summer in Senegal researching the disease schistosomiasis with Faculty Affiliate Giulio De Leo.
-
Graduate student grant recipient measures impact of piped water
Graduate student James Winter is measuring how transitioning to a high-quality source of water piped directly to a household’s yard can impact household economic activity.
-
Stanford students take a Journey of Inquiry to learn about India’s corporate governance
Stanford students Jacqueline Wibowo and Sana Gujral talk about their recent whirlwind trip to India where they learned about the country's corporate governance.
-
Sebastián Otero examines the effects of increasingly privatized higher education
Stanford graduate student Sebastián Otero examines the effects of widespread privatization of higher education in Latin America.
-
Students in a new Stanford course use machine learning technology to provide new insights on key development challenges
The new Stanford course Data for Sustainable Development introduces students to new methods of using machine learning and satellite technology.
-
Stanford students find challenges and rewards while doing field research for center Faculty Affiliates
Many Stanford undergraduates travel during their summer vacations, but for some, their travels are more about work than leisure.
-
Can North African urban policy keep up with a rising population?
Caroline Abadeer, a Stanford graduate student in political science, examines urban housing policy in North Africa.
-
Looking at rural debt through the eyes of India's farmers
In the paddy fields of rural India, a Stanford researcher explores why so many farmers are trapped in debt and highlights a clear need for crop insurance.
-
Stanford students navigate the challenges of fieldwork
Stanford graduate students Eduardo Laguna and Christina Kent confronted the difficulties of fieldwork in a developing country.
