CBE Alumnus John Mitchell has generously donated $1.25 million to establish the new John Mitchell Economics of Poverty Lab that aims to understand and generate policies that alleviate poverty through an evidence-based framework.
The Lab will be run out of the Research School of Economics (RSE) and is a response to an urgent need to take the vast literature of economic theory related to poverty and translate it into real-world policies and outcomes. Many of the problems facing the world’s poorest communities could have universal solutions and with a global scope, the Lab is hoping to have a world-wide impact.
RSE is committing a further $1.9 million dollars to the Lab over the next 10 years. Although the Lab will be anchored in economics, its research will draw upon expertise from areas such as statistics, business and psychology, based on the particular project.
John Mitchell is a successful farmer and investor with a passion for economics and reducing income inequality. In 2016, he established the John Mitchell Research Fellowship with a $490,000 gift to RSE and has also provided a $5 million bequest for an Endowed Chair at RSE. Through John Mitchell’s generosity, these donations and the new John Mitchell Economics of Poverty Lab ensure an ongoing commitment to world-leading research, aimed at reducing income inequality and poverty.