Academic staff
The Global Development Institute is made up of over 50 academics from over five continents and 18 different countries. We are driven by the desire to advance social justice by conducting world-class, interdisciplinary research that achieves real impact.
Find out more about our staff and visit their profile pages for further information. A number of our researchers offer PhD supervision, find out more about some of our PhD supervisors.
Academic staff
Dr Lawrence Ado-Kofie
Lecturer in Development Economics
Research specialism: development economics.
Prof Bina Agarwal
Professor in Development Economics and Environment
Research specialisms: gender inequality, agrarian change, environmental governance, property and land rights, group farming.
Dr Shamel Azmeh
Lecturer in Technology, Labour and Production
Research specialisms: global value chains, political economy, trade, labour, technology.
Dr Oliver Bakewell
Reader in Migration Studies
Research specialisms: migration, mobility and refugees, Africa, migration and development, diasporas, integration and belonging.
Dr Nicola Banks
Senior Lecturer in International Development: Urban Development and Global Urbanism
Research specialisms: Tanzania, employment, youth, urban, NGOs.
Prof Armando Barrientos
Emeritus Professor of Poverty and Social Justice
Research specialisms: development economics, social protection, social assistance, Latin America.
Prof Stephanie Barrientos
Emeritus Professor in Development Policy
Research specialisms: global value chains, gender, corporate responsibility, production labour.
Prof Tanja Bastia
Professor of Migration and Development
Research specialisms: migration, Latin America, gender, race and ethnicity, social inequalities.
Prof Anthony Bebbington
Professorial Research Fellow
Research specialisms: governance.
Dr Pritish Behuria
Senior Lecturer in Politics, Governance and Development
Research specialisms: African political economy, India, industrial policy, finance, state-business relations, energy transitions.
Dr Admos Chimhowu
Senior Lecturer
Research specialisms: land reform, sustainable development, national planning, Zimbabwe.
Dr Natalie Cunningham
Lecturer in Leadership for Development
Research specialisms: leadership development, organisational culture, coaching and talent management
Dr Upasak Das
Presidential Fellow in the Economics of Poverty Reduction
Research specialisms: development economics, poverty, poverty reduction.
Dr Ralitza Dimova
Reader in Development Economics
Research specialisms: development economics, labour, food, behaviour.
Dr Richard Duncombe
Senior Lecturer in Information Systems and Development
Research specialisms: ICT4 development, information systems, technology.
Dr Kelechi Ekuma
Lecturer in Governance and Development Leadership
Research specialisms: human resource development, politics of development, the fourth industrial revolution, public policy.
Dr Charis Enns
Presidential Fellow in Socio-Environmental Systems
Research specialisms: human and environmental geography, political ecology, land.
Dr Lujia Feng
Lecturer in Human Resource Management
Research specialisms: human resources, management.
Prof David Fielding
Professor in Development Economics
Research specialisms: economics of ethnic diversity, the economics of violent conflict, monetary unions, altruism.
Dr Chris Foster
Presidential Fellow
Research specialisms: digital development, value chains, digital trade, infrastructure, innovation.
Dr Tomas Frederiksen
Senior Lecturer in International Development
Research specialisms: political ecology, corporate social responsibility, extractive industry, mining, sustainability.
Dr Elisa Gambino
Lecturer in Global Development (Global Political Economy)
Research specialisms: China-Global South engagement, China's political economy, African development
Dr Ping Gao
Senior Lecturer in Information Systems
Research specialisms: information systems.
Dr Tom Gillespie
Lecturer in Global Urban Development and Hallsworth Research Fellow
Research specialisms: urban, Ghana, housing, social movements, urban development.
Prof Richard Heeks
Professor in Digital Development
Research specialisms: digital development, ICT4D, digital economy, digital labour, data justice, China’s digital expansion, resilience
Prof Samuel Hickey
Professor in Politics and Development
Research specialisms: governance, social protection, oil, political development.
Dr Rory Horner
Senior Lecturer in Globalisation and Political Economy
Research specialisms: global value chains, pharmaceuticals, trade.
Dr Farhad Hossain
Reader in Development Management and Policy
Research specialism: management.
Prof David Hulme
Professor in Development Studies
Research specialisms: poverty and poverty reduction, the political economy of development, climate change, NGOs and civil society, global inequality.
Dr Gianluca Iazzolino
Lecturer in Digital Development
Research specialisms: digital development, digital finance, digital platforms.
Dr Mohammed Ibrahim
Lecturer in HRM and International Development
Research specialisms: human resources, policy process, governance, state-society relations, sustainable development, Ghana.
Prof Tim Jacoby
Professor
Research specialisms: Middle East, political violence, faith, culture and humanitarianism
Dr Shirley Jenner
Senior Lecturer in Human Resource Management
Research specialisms: management, human resources.
Dr Nicholas Jepson
Lecturer in International Development and Leverhulme Early Career Fellow
Research specialisms: globalisation, political economy, China, socio-economic change.
Prof Uma Kothari
Professor in Migration and Postcolonial Studies
Research specialisms: migration and mobilities, colonialism and postcolonialism, humanitarianism, environmental change, travel and tourism.
Dr Aarti Krishnan
Hallsworth Research Fellow
Research specialisms: trade, food, agriculture, global value chains.
Dr Tom Lavers
Senior Lecturer in Politics, Governance and Management
Research specialisms: Ethiopia, comparative political economy, agrarian change, social policy, state-society relations.
Dr David Lawson
Senior Lecturer in Development Economics and Public Policy
Research specialisms: extreme poverty, access to justice, economic growth, cash transfers.
Prof Aminu Mamman
Professor of Management and International Development
Research specialisms: management, human resources.
Prof Diana Mitlin
Professor in Global Urbanism
Research specialisms: urban, collective action, housing, urban planning.
Dr Negar Monazam Tabrizi
Lecturer in Information Systems and Digital Development
Research specialisms: ICT4 development, information systems, technology.
Prof Caroline Moser
Emeritus Professor
Research specialisms: urban, gender, housing.
Prof Tanja Müller
Professor in Political Sociology
Research specialisms: citizenship, global solidarity, refugees, revolutions, the horn of Africa.
Prof Khalid Nadvi
Professor in International Development
Research specialisms: political economy, global value chains, production, global standards, corporate social responsibility.
Dr Nafisatu Irene Okhade
Lecturer in HRM and International Development
Research specialisms: Public-Private Partnership (PPP) policy and infrastructure development
Dr Johan Oldekop
Senior Lecturer in Environment and Development
Research specialisms: conversation, sustainability, forests.
Dr Osman Ouattara
Reader in Development Economics
Research specialisms: development economics, environment.
Dr Rose Pritchard
Presidential Fellow in Socio-Environmental Systems
Research specialisms: agriculture, rural livelihoods.
Dr Chris Rees
Reader in Human Resources and Organisational Change
Research specialisms: organisational change, human resources, management.
Dr Dereje Regasa
Lecturer in HRM and International Development
Research specialisms: corporate finance, financial development, banking, economic growth, Finance-Growth Nexus.
Dr Jaco Renken
Senior Lecturer in Information and Communication Technology for Development
Research specialisms: ICT4 development, digital development, data-intensive development, development champions, leadership information systems.
Dr Kate Rowlands
Reader in Human Resource Management
Research specialisms: organisational change, human resources, management.
Dr Maria Rusca
Lecturer in Global Development
Research specialisms: socio-environmental extremes, climate urbanism, natural hazards, experimental political ecology.
Dr Antonio Savoia
Reader in Development Economics
Research specialisms: development economics, governance, development finance.
Dr Seth Schindler
Senior Lecturer in Urban Development and Urban Transformation
Research specialisms: urban, urban planning, deindustrialization, urban transformation.
Prof Kunal Sen
Professor in Development Economics & Policy
Research specialisms: India, development, economics, political economy, growth, social exclusion.
Dr Rory Stanton
Lecturer in Human Resource Development
Research specialisms: Human resource development, human resources.
Dr Alice Sverdlik
Lecturer in Social Development
Research specialisms: informality, shelter, health, climate, and equitable cities.
Dr Gindo Tampubolon
Senior Lecturer in Poverty, Inequality and Growth
Research specialisms: digital health, healthy ageing, blood biomarkers, cognitive function, longitudinal study.
Dr Erla Thrandardottir
Lecturer in Global Development (T&S)
Research specialisms: NGOs, NGO regulation
Dr Matthew Tyce
British Academy Fellow
Research specialisms: political economy, industrial policy, natural resource governance, state capacity, energy transitions.
Dr Vidhya Unnikrishnan
Lecturer in Development Economics
Research specialisms: economics, development economics.
Dr Sophie Van Huellen
Lecturer in Development Economics
Research specialisms: primary commodities, international finance and applied econometrics.
Dr Matt Walsham
Lecturer in Development Studies and Research Associate, South-South Migration Hub
Research specialisms: migration
Professor Dale Whittington
Professor of International Development
Research specialisms: water, dams.
Prof Philip Woodhouse
Emeritus Professor
Research specialisms: irrigation, agriculture, environment.
Dr Yin-Fang Zhang
Senior Lecturer in Development Economics
Research specialisms: development economics, China, corporate governance.
Senior tutors
Dr Adebayo Fasheyitan
Senior Tutor
Dr Son Gyoh
Senior Tutor
Dr Hang-Yue Ngo
Senior Tutor
Abiola Olatunji
Senior Tutor
Dr Mapenzie Tauzie
Senior Tutor
Dr Qingna Zhou
Senior Tutor
Research associates - African Cities Research Consortium
Dr Patience Adzande
Research Associate
Dr Elizabeth Dessie
Research Associate
Dr Miriam Maina
Research Associate
Ademola Omoegun
Research Associate
Smith Ouma
Research Associate
Dr Abdifatah Tahir
Research Associate
Dr Ezana Weldeghebrael
Research Associate