Riccardo speaks with Ariel Zucker, Assistant Professor of Economics at UC Santa Cruz, about her paper “Price Incentives for Conservation: Experimental Evidence from Groundwater Irrigation.”
The conversation explores the logistical challenges of running a large-scale field intervention, the lessons learned from multiple pilot attempts, and the trade-offs graduate students often face when conducting fieldwork on a tight budget. It concludes with a broader reflection on what draws Ariel to her field of research and to academia more generally.
You can find the working paper (coauthored with Nick Hagerty) here: https://www.arielzucker.net/_files/ugd/2eee53_ed03d0df4bfb4e5694b95deb022c6768.pdf

Mikey speaks with Lauren Falcao Bergquist, an assistant professor of economics and global affairs at Yale. Lauren talks about how and why she studies agriculture in developing countries, the challenges that entails, and how she and her co-authors overcome those challenges in her new paper on Ugandan coffee farmers and their supply chains.

Precious speaks with Paul Christian, an Economist in the Development Impact (DIME) Department at the World Bank, whose research explores how agricultural and food security programs can better target and manage irrigation and subsidy projects across the Global South.

Paul shares the story behind his paper “Shaping Productive and Progressive Agricultural Subsidies in Mozambique,” which examines how the design of subsidy price schedules can influence both productivity and equity. He reflects on what first drew him to agricultural economics, how to design field experiments that balance rigor with real-world relevance, and why open-mindedness and opportunism matter in development research.

Santiago speaks with Dean Spears, a Professor at University of Texas at Austin. Dean shares the backstory of his new book with Michael Geruso. He tells us how he bridges working across economics, demography and ethics and why he thinks we should all engage in the topic of depopulation.

His new book is available here: https://deanspears.net/books/after-the-spike-population-progress-and-the-case-for-people/

Join Maddison as she speaks with Madeline McKelway, an Assistant Professor of Economics at Dartmouth College. Maddie shares the backstory behind her paper with Namrata Kala, "The Power of Persuasion: Causal Effects of Household Communication on Women's Employment." She also shares her experience navigating field work and getting started with RCTs.

The working paper can be found here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LgQtwvTMExxf49YvnkgWugxhffJ2rqlF/view

In this episode, Maddison interviews Yasir Khan, an Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Pittsburgh, about the backstory behind his paper coauthored with S.K. Ritadhi, “Economic and Political Consequences of Credit Policy for Minorities: Evidence from India.” Yasir also shares his experience and his advice about starting and navigating collaborations in grad school.

The working paper can be found here: https://y-khan.github.io/yasirkhan.org/khan_ritadhi_minority.pdf

In this episode, Santiago interviews Oeindrila Dube about her work in progress "Can Contact Reduce Conflict? Experimental Evidence from Nigeria", coauthored with Soeren Henn and James Robinson. Oeindrila discusses the importance of keeping an eye out for interesting stories that can become new projects, as well as how to conduct research in sensitive places and the process of teaming up with NGOs.

In this episode, Riccardo interviews Loren Brandt about the paper “Labor Force Participation and Structural Change,” coauthored with Chaoran Chen and Xiaoyun Wei. Loren reflects on his journey into research and academia, from his early work on China’s economy to the broader questions that have guided his career. He explains what it takes to build a coherent research agenda and why he found academia the best path for exploring the questions that interest him.

Join Riccardo as he talks to Nathan Nunn about his paper “Zero‑Sum Environments, the Evolution of Effort‑Suppressing Beliefs, and Economic Development.” They explore how Nathan’s idea‑generation process has evolved over the years, the value of reading beyond economics, and the challenges and rewards of bringing insights from other disciplines into economic research. Nathan also offers a behind‑the‑scenes perspective on what it’s like to break new ground in economics and how that shapes both the questions we ask and the way we measure them. Finally, he shares insights from his role as an editor at the Quarterly Journal of Economics, sharing tips about the publication process.

Here is a link to the working paper, coauthored with Augustin Bergeron, Jean-Paul Carvalho, Joseph Henrich, & Jonathan L. Weigel: https://www.nber.org/papers/w31663

Riccardo talks to Raúl Sánchez de la Sierra about the backstory of his paper “Moral Violence: Unbundling Social Preferences at the Heart of a Major Armed Group in Congo” (with Louis Dunia and Hilary Yu). This episode uncovers a unique journey that takes us back ten years, when Raúl was forging the connections and friendships that gave him access to the inner circles of Congolese armed groups. What makes this episode special is that we not only see how Raúl’s research developed and how he approaches projects many would consider too risky, but we also get a glimpse of Raúl as a person and what he values in both academia and his work. Enjoy!

Here is a link to the working paper: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/ng1vm6vgg1twu5kwa9q92/4.-Moral-Violence.pdf?rlkey=0c25yxzi097u691g62bcc2ytl&e=1&dl=0