Sofia Maier
PhD in Economics | Researcher | Public Policies
Email: maier.sofia@gmail.com; LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sofiamaier; Google Site: sites.google.com/view/sofiamaier/main
Economist (PhD) with sound experience in evidence-based policy advisory and research. Specialized in microsimulation models and the ex-ante evaluation of the budgetary and redistributive effects of fiscal policies, with focus on gender, household consumption and environmental policies. Sound empirical research experience and expertise in use of multiple types of data and estimation strategies (cross-country panels, time series, estimates based on individual-level microdata, etc.). Expertise in research project management and coordination, team-work player and good at communicating highly technical content for broad types of audiences.
Education
PhD in Applied Economics – Economic Policy
University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium (2015–2019)
Full-time Research Grant (BOF), Faculty of Applied Economics – Economic Policy Programme.
Supervisors: Sunčica Vujić & Guido Erreygers
Research Visits: (I) Sep–Dec 2018: Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF)– Mentor: Isaac Baley; (II) Apr–Sep 2018: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona – Mentor: Xavi Ramos
MSc in Economics and Business – International Economics (cum laude)
Erasmus University Rotterdam, Rotterdam, the Netherlands (2011–2012)
One year master, on International Economics, with focus on Development, Poverty and Econometrics.
BA in Economics
Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay (2005–2011)
Extensive (plan 1990) career consisting of 5 year of courses (38) + 1 year of thesis research
Professional Experience
Public Policy Advisor
President’s Office, Government of Spain (La Moncloa) - Madrid, Spain (2025 - current)
Applied research for policy advisory. Elaboration of policy briefs with evidence-based policy advice to senior decision-makers. Quick responses to emerging policy needs, communication of complex analyses to senior decision-makers and management of multiple dossiers under time pressure.
Economic Analyst
European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC), Seville, Spain (2019 – 2025)
Provision of scientific inputs for the ex-ante evaluation of the budgetary and distributional effects of key EU policies, mainly Green Deal’s Fit-for-55 package policies, such as CBAM and the revision of the Energy Taxation Directive, but also for the latest Energy Poverty Recommendation and Pay Transparency Directive
Applied research on distributional effects of changes in the tax-benefit systems, macro shocks (COVID/inflation) and environmental policies for the European Semester cycle.
Part of the team in charge of the annual update and development of the EU’s tax-benefit microsimulation model EUROMOD, as well as of the original team in charge of the transfer of the model from Essex University to the Joint Research Centre, in 2019-2021.
Experience in coordination of model updates and communication with several stakeholders (national teams per each of the EU Member States, EUROSTAT, and the EUROMOD-wide scientific community).
EUROMOD-JRC developer of Malta, Luxembourg and Croatia in 2019-2022; and of Belgium and Germany in 2022-2025.
One of the members of the team in charge of the development of the consumption tax extension in 2020-2024 (so-called ITTv4, before its integration to EUROMOD framework).
Concept developer and coordinator of Green EUROMOD in its first phase (a model that imputes carbon footprints into EUROMOD’s underlying microdata, allowing for carbon pricing simulations).
Consultant on Multidimensional Poverty Analysis and Gender
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Remote (2013 & 2015)
Applied research using time-use data for the estimation of bidimensional (income/time) measures of poverty to improve the design and evaluation of public policies with a gender approach - following the LIMTIP methodology developed by the Levy Economics Institute (Bard College, New York).
Delivery of policy-oriented technical support and training across Latin American countries.
Author of background paper on time poverty, gender inequality and policy challenges in Latin America for the 2016 UNDP Human Development Report in Latin America.
Economic Advisor
Budget and Planning Office (OPP), Presidency of Uruguay, Montevideo (2013 – 2015)
Development of a national microsimulation tool to evaluate policy options ex-ante.
Advisory activities to senior officials using transparent and data-based simulations to support fiscal policy decisions.
Economic Consultant
Carle & Andrioli (Consulting/Accounting firm), Uruguay (2013 – 2015 - External)
Evidence-based economic reports and briefs for public and private sector stakeholders.
Junior Consultant
PwC (ex PricewaterhouseCoopers), Economics Consulting Department, Uruguay (2009 – 2011)
Applied economic consulting projects and communication of findings to non-technical audiences, including radio, TV and newspapers.
Research and Teaching Experience
Research
External Researcher - Energy Transition Project and cosupervisor PhD student, LISER Luxembourg (2025-current)
Full-time PhD research grant - University of Antwerp, Belgium (2015-2019)
Teaching
Assistant Lecturer, Graduate Economic Seminar – University of Antwerp (2017–2018)
Lecturer, Economics I – Universidad de la República (2010–2011)
Secondary School Economics Teacher – Uruguay (2008–2011)
Languages and other skills
Languages
Spanish (Native), English (Fluent), Italian/Portuguese/French (Basic)
Software
Stata (Advanced), LaTeX (Advanced), MS Office (Advanced), R (Basic)
Publications
Peer-reviewed articles
Bridging climate and social equity: Progressive carbon tax simulations for Belgium
with Floore Bursens, Silvia De Poli and Gerlinde Verbist
Ecological Economics, 2026 – [Link to the article]
Minimum energy taxes for climate and clean air in the EU: Environmental and distributional impacts
with Toon Vandyck, Mattia Ricci, Luis Rey, Marie Tamba and Fabian Wagner
Energy Economics, 2025 – Link to the article
Who is "Energy Poor" in the EU?
with Ilda Dreoni
Energy Policy, 2025 – [Link to the article]
Limiting Prices or Transferring Money?
with Antonio F. Amores, Paola De Agostini, Michael Christl, Silvia De Poli
Energy Economics, 2025 – [Link to the article]
Enforcing Equal Pay for Equal Work in the EU: what would it take?
with Silvia De Poli
Journal of Economic Inequality, 2024 – [Link to the article]
Characterizing the Schooling Cycle
with Barbara Sadaba and Sunčica Vujić
Economic Modelling, 2024 – [Link to the article]
Inflation, Fiscal Policy, and Inequality
with multiple co-authors
Review of Income and Wealth, 2024 – [Link to the article]
The Redistributive Impact of Indirect Taxation in the EU
with Mattia Ricci
Economic Analysis and Policy, 2024 – [Link to the article]
Taxing Household Energy Consumption in the EU
with Antonio F. Amores and Mattia Ricci
Energy Policy, 2023 – [Link to the article]
Working Papers and Other Reports
Carbon taxes on consumption: distributional implications for a just transition (with Silvia De Poli and Antonio F. Amores) ; Link: EM WP EUROMOD Working Paper Series
EUROMOD baseline report, JRC Working Papers on Taxation and Structural Reforms No 1/2022 (with many colleagues): Link here (2022 report)
Shedding light on hidden deprivations. Time-income poverty and public policies in Latin America. Lessons from the LIMTIP experiences UNDP background paper for the 2016 Human Development Report for Latin America (available in English and Spanish). HDR 2016. Link to the background paper: English version | Spanish version
La pertinencia y desafíos de incorporar el tiempo en el análisis y medición de la pobreza Brief note (p. 34) in “Tiempo urbano, acceso y desarrollo humano", Cuadernos de Desarrollo Humano I (Human Development Notebooks I), PNUD (UNDP) 2013. Link: CDH I (Spanish)
Impuestos y gasto público: un ejercicio de equidad fiscal para el Uruguay, Macroeconomia del Desarrollo, CEPAL (Aug 2016). Report elaborated within the team of the Social Policy Advisory (2014) of the Budget and Planning Office of the Presidency of Uruguay. Link to the Report (Spanish)
Other training and research-related activities
Training and research visits
2019 Visiting PhD student:
(I) Sep–Dec 2018: Universitat Pompeu Fabra (UPF) – Mentor: Isaac Baley
(II) Apr–Sep 2018: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona – Mentor: Xavi Ramos
2016 Summer School on Socioeconomic Inequality, Bonn (Germany), August 29-September 2, Human Capital and Economic Opportunity Global Working, University of Chicago
2015 Intensive course on Inequality and the Changing Distribution of Income, 15-26 June, CEEL program in Adaptive Economics Dynamics 16th Trento Summer School, Trento (Italy)
2015 Panel Data Methods - with Jeff Wooldridge, CEMMAP, London, 18-19/May/2015
Presentations
JRC B2 internal seminar - Who is Energy Poor? - March 2024
Euromod Annual Workshop 2023: carbon pricing and inequality (Green EUROMOD) - Sep 20, 2023
5th JRC Fiscal Policy Modelling Workshop: "Enforcing equal pay for equal work in the EU: what would it take?" - March 23, 2023
ARC 2022 conference: green and fair? revision of the energy taxation directive (JRC - ECFIN, Seville) - Sep 20, 2022
Tax Talk online seminar: "The redistributive impact of indirect taxation in the EU: Analysis of the pre-COVID decade” (TAXUD, Dec 17, 2021)
CREI Macroeconomics Lunch Seminar: "Economic cycle and vertical mismatches" (Pompeu Fabra/ Barcelona GSE) Oct 3 2018
Webinar UNDP on time-income poverty, gender inequality and public policies in Latin America, May 4 2018
14th Belgian Day for Labour Economists: Safe ports for all? on economic cycle and education (PhD paper) (UCL Lovaina, Belgium) - May 5 2017
3rd Workshop on Educations Economics: Safe ports for all? (PhD paper) KU LEUVEN (Leuven, Belgium) - Mar 30-31 2017
22nd Spring Meeting of Young Economists: Safe ports for all? (PhD paper), (Halle, Germany) - Mar 23-25 2017
28th European Association of Labour Economists (EALE) Conference, Sep 15-17 2016, University of Ghent (Ghent, Belgium)
Lunch Seminar, Department of Economics, Faculty of Applied Economics, University of Antwerp, Nov 2016 (Antwerp, Belgium)
CSP Lunch Seminar, Centrum Voor Sociaal Beleid Herman Deleeck, Faculty of Social Sciences, Jul 2016, University of Antwerp (Antwerp, Beglium)
Doctoral Day. University of Antwerp, Nov 2015 (Antwerp, Belgium)
International Seminar Guest Speaker: Avanzando en la medición de la economía del cuidado: incorporación del tiempo en el análisis de la pobreza? Nov 2014 (Bogotá, Colombia)
Guest speaker to discuss UNDP publication: "The interlocking of time and income deficits: revisiting poverty measurement, informing policy responses?" UNDP workshop Mar 2014 (Lima, Peru)
UNDP and Ministry of Social Development workshop: Taking into account time for poverty analysis and measuring? Mar 2013 (Montevideo, Uruguay)
Peer-review contributions are reviewer
Spring Meeting of Young Economists conferences
Journal of Economic Modeling
International Journal of Microsimulation
International Journal of Finance and Economics