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I am a Senior Economist in the Development Impact Department (DECDI), within the Research Division of the World Bank Group. I founded and lead the WBG's research program on Entertainment-Education, the use of media entertainment with development objectives.
I run this program in close collaboration with researchers and practitioners from governments, the World Bank, International Finance Corporation, development partners and global entertainment media and technology firms, such as MTV, Discovery, Meta, Girl Effect, and Population Foundation of India.
This fun job entails working with celebrities, including Golden Globe, Emmy and Nobel Prize winners. My research has been featured in media outlets such as NPR, Bloomberg, El País, The Telegraph, The Times of India, and The Hollywood Reporter.
My main research interests are in development economics, AI applications, behavioral economics, and mass media and behavior change. I received a Masters in Public Affairs and Economics from Princeton University and a PhD in Social Intervention from Oxford University.
As part of the WBG's Entertaining Change sessions in Fall 2025—from UNGA to Abuja, Lagos, and Los Angeles—Actor, Director and Producer David Oyelowo underscored that prioritizing women is smart business for entertainment media and highlighted how AI can democratize opportunities for under-resourced creators across the industry.
Our research shows that short edutainment clips produced by Population Foundation of India that were distributed through Facebook reshaped gender attitudes of social media users in India.
Ms. Sharon Stone discussed how entertainment media can be better used for global impact at a forum co-organized by WBG and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.
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