The Growth CoLab seeks to tackle pressing public policy issues. Research into global migrants' integration and displaced Ukrainians' role in Austria and Germany has already begun.
Vienna, September 9, 2024 - The Complexity Science Hub (CSH), Growth Lab at Harvard University, and Central European University (CEU) are launching a joint research initiative aimed at advancing global economic prosperity and sustainable growth. The Growth CoLab, hosted by CEU's Department of Public Policy, brings together the academic and policy expertise of these three organizations to address critical economic challenges.
"The Complexity Science Hub develops and uses science to solve societal problems, and economic policy is an important aspect of this. This research collaboration will help us push the frontiers of research and practice in economic policy," says CSH president Stefan Thurner.
Pioneering Public Policy Solutions
The Growth CoLab stands at the cutting edge of public policy research, bringing together scholars and policy experts from CSH, the Growth Lab, and CEU. The initiative aims to support governments in addressing their most pressing public policy concerns.
"We're super excited and eager to kick off this fantasic collaboration with the Complexity Science Hub and the Central European University," says Ricardo Hausmann, director of the Harvard Growth Lab and the Rafik Hariri Professor of the Practice of Political Economy at Harvard Kennedy School. "And I have full confidence in Frank Neffke and Ljubica Nedelkoska to lead the CoLab," adds Hausmann. The Growth CoLab is directed by Neffke and Nedelkoska, both senior researchers at CSH.
Empowering Students
"One of our key goals is to provide students with hands-on experience in economic policy," explains Nedelkoska. "Working alongside a multidisciplinary team that includes experts from economics, physics, and computer science, students will engage in projects ranging from economic policy in developing economies to top notch expertise in European policy issues."
"This innovative space for research and learning offers public policy students a unique opportunity to acquire hands-on skills conducting project-based, quantitative research," adds Michael Dorsch, head of CEU's Department of Public Policy. "Combining faculty expertise in cutting-edge quantitative methods with the energy and enthusiasm of public policy students, Growth CoLab projects will contribute to understanding contemporary economic growth and development issues."
Focus on Displaced Ukrainians and Global Migrants' Integration
The collaboration is already making strides. As Nedelkoska explains, the three organizations are cooperating on a research project examining the role of displaced Ukrainians in Austria and Germany and their potential impact on Ukraine's long-term integration into the European Union.
"In another project, CSH and the Growth Lab researchers developed measures for assessing countries' openness to immigration and the success of migrant integration. These findings are being brought to life through interactive visualizations by CSH's data visualization team, with contributions from a CEU data science student who interned with us this year," added Nedelkoska.
