I’m Research Fellow at Monash University’s SoDa Laboratories. 

I work at the intersection of political economy and development. My research examines how large, uneven shocks affect economic and political outcomes in the context of development and conflict.

I build and analyse large-scale micro and subnational datasets and use applied econometrics—event studies, instrumental variables, and continuous difference-in-differences—to answer policy-relevant questions. 

I hold a PhD in Economics from the University of Göttingen and an MSc in Political Economy from the London School of Economics, and I have studied economics at the Universities of Bayreuth, Bordeaux, and São Paulo. I have previously worked with the German development bank KfW.

My work has been published in the American Journal of Political Science and Economic Development and Cultural Change. 

Get in touch: lukas.wellner[at]monash.edu