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About Esther
Esther Duflo is the Abdul Latif Jameel Professor of Poverty Alleviation and Development Economics in the Department of Economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), contributing prominently to Business & Economics. She received first degrees in history and economics from the École Normale Supérieure in Paris in 1994, a Master's in Economics (DEA) from DELTA in Paris in 1995, and a Ph.D. in Economics from MIT in 1999 with a thesis titled 'Three Essays in Empirical Development Economics.' Duflo joined MIT as Assistant Professor in 1999, progressed to Castle Krob Career Development Associate Professor from 2002 to 2004, Professor from 2004 to 2005, and has held her current professorship since 2005. She is co-founder and co-director of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL), President of the Paris School of Economics, and Chaire Pauvreté et Politiques Publiques at the Collège de France since 2022.
Duflo's research in development economics employs randomized controlled trials to examine poverty alleviation, health, education, financial inclusion, environment, and governance among the poor. Key books include 'Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way to Fight Global Poverty' (with Abhijit V. Banerjee, Public Affairs, 2011; revised and updated 2025), 'Good Economics for Hard Times' (with Banerjee, Public Affairs, 2019), and 'Handbook of Field Experiments' Volumes 1 and 2 (with Banerjee, North-Holland, 2017). Selected publications feature 'Selecting the Most Effective Nudge: Evidence from a Large-Scale Experiment on Immunization' (Econometrica, 2025), 'Children’s arithmetic skills do not transfer between applied and academic mathematics' (Nature, 2025, with Banerjee et al.), and 'Changes in Social Network Structure in Response to Exposure to Formal Credit Markets' (Review of Economic Studies, 2024). Major awards encompass the 2019 Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel (with Banerjee and Michael Kremer), John Bates Clark Medal (2010), MacArthur Fellowship (2009), Princess of Asturias Award for Social Sciences (2015), and Infosys Prize in Social Sciences and Economics (2014). She edited the American Economic Review (2017-2022), founded the American Economic Journal: Applied Economics (2007-2016), and her experimental methods have shaped global antipoverty policies.