HOPE MICHELSON

My research is at the intersection of development and agriculture. I focus on small farmers in low income countries and on the relationships between agriculture, natural resources, markets, and household outcomes. I have a special interest in household poverty dynamics and food security at multiple spatial scales.
 
I use household and firm panel data, randomized controlled trials, lab-based measures of soil and fertilizer quality, and experimental methods. Current projects are mostly in East and Southern Africa but I have also worked in Mexico, Nicaragua, and China.

In addition to my position at UIUC, I am an Associate at the Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago and an affiliate at J-PAL. I serve a Co-Editor at the Journal Food Policy. In the past, I have served as an Associate Editor at AJAE and the International Development Editor for JAAEA. I was also a Non-Resident Fellow at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.

In 2025, I am on sabbatical in The Netherlands based at Wageningen University.