Rachel Sayers is a Research Scientist at AidData's Research and Evaluation Unit, where she conducts impact evaluations on a number of development topics. She combines econometric and GIS analysis methods to design and conduct rigorous evaluations with an emphasis on causal identification. Her primary research interests are labor markets, human capital, household bargaining, and gender. She co-created AidData's Gender Equity in Development initiative, which focuses on bringing AidData's geospatial and research expertise to the gender space. Prior to joining AidData, Rachel completed her Ph.D. and M.A. in Economics at Duke University.

Andrew Anguko is Chief Quality and Methods Advisor with the Independent Development Evaluation of the African Development Bank. He serves as principal advisor to the Evaluator General, Managers and Evaluation Teams on appropriate evaluation standards, approaches, designs, methods and tools for evaluation work.

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Nicholas Sitko is a Senior Economist in the Inclusive Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). He coordinates a research team dedicated to generating rigorous empirical evidence to improve rural development policies and programmes, with a thematic focus on economic inclusion and climate change in rural space. Prior to joining FAO, Nicholas was an Assistant Professor of International Development in Michigan State University’s Department of Agriculture, Food, and Resource Economics where served as a Co-Principle Investigator for the Food Security Research Project based in Zambia.

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Fiona Kastel is a Research Associate at the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie). At 3ie, Fiona leads the Data Innovations Group and provides research, program management, and data analytics support for multiple programs on agriculture, education, finance, health, and policy and institutional reform. Her primary projects include a geospatial impact evaluation of an agricultural intensification program in Niger, an impact evaluation of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s COVID-19 Solidarity Package, and the strengthening evidence and economic modelling partnership with the Millennium Challenge Corporation. Prior to joining 3ie, Fiona worked as a research assistant at Opportunity Insights, where she examined drivers of upward mobility and the disparate economic impact of COVID-19. She has also worked with NGOs in Latin America and the Caribbean to develop their evaluation capabilities. Fiona holds a Master of Public Affairs from Brown University and a Bachelor of Science in Quantitative Analysis of Markets and Organization from the University of Utah.

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Julius Adewopo is a Postdoctoral Fellow and Geospatial Analyst for Maize-based Systems. Prior to joining IITA, he has acquired multidisciplinary experience in natural sciences, geospatial applications, and corporate management. He earned his PhD in Soil Science from the University of Florida (UF) and M.Sc. in Forest Resources from theUniversity of Arkansas-Monticello, both in the USA. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in Forestry and Wood Technology from the Federal University ofTechnology, Akure, Nigeria. His PhD research focused on the impact of management intensification on soil carbon dynamics and underlines important ramifications for long-term ecological sustainability, especially in subtropical grasslands. He is an ESRI-certified Spatial Analyst and was a recipient of the prestigious UF Graduate Fellowship and USDA-SustainableAgriculture Research and Education grant during his doctoral studies.