She studied philosophy at UPenn, sharpened her Spanish watching telenovelas with a host mom in silk robes and kitten heels, then moved to Peru and built staircases so families wouldn't fall carrying water. Laura Keen's path wound through cocoa farms in West Africa, anti-trafficking work in the Amazon, and the inner workings of fair trade — each stop ultimately leading her to GiveDirectly and a radically simple idea that's reshaping how we think about poverty. 

References for Our Discussion

◼️The US town that pays every pregnant woman $1,500: ‘We’re not OK with our babies being born into poverty’ 

◼️Direct Unconditional Cash Transfers Boost Well-Being for Mothers and Babies 

◼️Perinatal Cash Transfers and Birth Outcomes: A Population-Based, Quasi-Experimental Study of the Rx Kids Unconditional Cash Prescription During Pregnancy and Infancy 

◼️Hardship and Hope: The Relationship Between Unconditional Prenatal and Infant Cash Transfers, Economic Stability, and Maternal Mental Health and Well-Being

◼️To End Extreme Poverty, Give Cash — Not Advice | Rory Stewart | TED

◼️New research: Cash for pregnant moms in Flint led to healthier births and millions in healthcare savings 

Guest

◼️Laura Keen, U.S. Program Director, GiveDirectly

Host

◼️Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP®

Producer

◼️Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP®

◼️Abhinya Gulasingam

Production Notes

◼️ Music from Johnny Harris x Tom Fox: The Music Room

Leave Us Some Feedback

If you enjoy our podcasts, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcast or Spotify, and spread the word to your friends to help us get discovered by more people. You can also interact directly with the podcast episodes on Spotify using the new “comment” feature! We’d love to hear what you think.

Send us a Text Message to let us know what you think.