About me
I am a development economist interested in studying the determinants and constraints of welfare-improving investment behaviour in developing settings. My research work has focused on investment decisions in human capital -- education, health and especially migration -- labor supply, technology adoption and social networks. Depending on the theoretical perspective and research design, I employ different data sources and empirical methods.
Using national survey or census data from developing and emerging economies, I have identified some of the causes and consequences of labor migration in Mexico, Brazil, South Africa, Bangladesh and Albania. More recently, I have used a global survey combined with geolocalized data on irregular migration routes to study the role of the smuggling costs in triggering migration intentions in Africa.
I have used tailored and hand-collected survey data to study the economics of migration and networks in southern Mozambique or the formation of social networks among immigrants in Milan and in a squatter village in Brazil. I am currently using first-hand administrative data on refugee reception centers in Italy to study the political economy of dispersal policies and the cultural and economic drivers of social integration and inclusion.
Finally, I have experience in leading large-scale impact evaluations of economic policies, with either natural or field experiments (RCTs), in both developed and developing countries (e.g. Italy, Uganda, Malawi), while having national government, NGOs and other local organizations as partners.
My research has been financially supported by several institutions such as the World Bank, 3ie, IGC, the Italian Agency for Development and Cooperation and Fondazione Cariplo.
I hold a B.Sc. in Economics and Social Sciences (DES) from Bocconi University in Milan. Before graduate studies, I spent a year in Latin America, studying at the PUC in Santiago de Chile and working at ECLAC. After graduating, I worked for a year in the international development cooperation sector, managing projects in the Eastern Balkans and Central America. I then obtained a Master degree in Development Economics from the University of Sussex (UK) and a PhD in Economics from the University of Milan. I have been a visiting scholar at the European University Institute (EUI), the Department of Economics at NYU in the US and the Tinbergen Institute in Amsterdam. I have worked as a consultant for various international organisations (e.g. WB, UNDP, FAO, etc.) and national governments (mainly in the EU and Africa).
I was born and raised in Milan, but my family is from the south of Italy. I spent my childhood travelling between northern and southern Italy. I used to observe very carefully how the landscape, norms and habits changed as I travelled, and how my grandparents had managed to give my parents life chances that were very different from their own. It was then, I believe, that I began to develop some of the questions that are still at the heart of my research today.
“Great innovation only happens when people aren’t afraid to do things differently” (Georg Cantor)