Capstone
Authors
Melissa Morgan
Mi Jin RYU
News Type
Blogs
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For forty years, the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy program has offered students a unique approach to studying policy and the complex challenges of an ever more connected global community. No where does the combination of theory, practical application, and hands-on learning come together more clearly than the annual Policy Change Studio, the capstone experience of second-year MIP students. 

The two-quarter course allows MIP students to put their classroom learning into practice by partnering with organizations actively working on global policy problems. Working in coordination with local organizations, students analyze specific policy problems, craft solutions, and develop implementation plans alongside stakeholders in communities around the world.

This year, our students criss-crossed the globe from England to Egypt, the Maldives to Switzerland, Japan and Vietnam, Kenya, Ghana, Fiji, and beyond to meet with their organizations and hone their policy plans. Keep reading to learn more.
 

Ghana

Arden Farr, Corinna Ha, and Munashe Mataranyika have been in Ghana working with the Centre for Democratic Development - Ghana (CDD - Ghana) on a project aimed at developing parity and addressing barriers to women's representation in local government.

Egypt and England

Luis Sanchez, Taimur Ahmad, Jasdeep Singh Hundal, and Shiro Wachira visited Cairo, Egypt and London, England to work with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to better understand the barriers small and medium-sized enterprises face in making contributions toward food security in Egypt. While in Cairo, the team attended various regional conferences and met with entrepreneurs, investors and experts working in the African innovation ecosystem.

Japan and Vietnam

Omar Pimentel, Jonathan Deemer, Miku Yamada, and Mi Jin Ryu, partnered with the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), traveled to Tokyo, Japan and Hanoi, Vietnam to research the implications of China’s plan to deploy floating nuclear power plants in the South China Sea.

Europe

Angela Chen, Brian Slamkowski, and Francesca Bentley travelled to Europe to partner with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)'s Innovation Unit, working together to determine strategies to promote responsible biotechnology innovation while reducing its potential for misuse.

Kenya

Ben Zehr, Chubing Li, Joyce Lin and Kyle Smith traveled to Homa Bay and Isebania in Western Kenya to better understand Nuru Kenya’s efforts in supporting farmers’ cooperatives to build sustainable horticultural and dairy agribusinesses while practicing more conscientious water resource management.

Fiji

Ilari Papa, Daniel Donghun Kim, Caroline Meinhardt, and Tanvi Gupta visited Fiji to work with the Oceania Cyber Security Centre (OCSC) to identify the root causes of online misinformation in the country and brainstorm solutions to counter them.

The Maldives and Switzerland

Ben Zuercher, Dulguun Batmunkh, and Suman Kumar traveled to the Maldives and Switzerland and met with local government agencies, NGOs, and private sector representatives to learn more about domestic and international challenges to financing climate change adaptation and mitigation. Anna Kumar traveled to New York and Washington, D.C. to participate in a UN conference and hear from representatives of multilateral organizations, different countries, and leading climate finance start-ups about the progress being made on the goals set out in the Paris Climate Agreement.

The Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy

Want to learn more? MIP holds admission events throughout the year, including graduate fairs and webinars, where you can meet our staff and ask questions about the program.

Read More

Francis Fukuyama instructs students from the 2023 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy in the Policy Impact Lab.
News

The 2023 MIP Cohort Gears Up For Their Policy Impact Projects

The 2023 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy are spreading out across the globe to practice their policymaking skills on issues such as women’s political representation in Ghana and food insecurity in Egypt.
The 2023 MIP Cohort Gears Up For Their Policy Impact Projects
Luis Sanchez at the Summit for the Future of Central America
Blogs

Bringing the Green Revolution to El Salvador

Over the summer of 2022, Luis Sanchez worked in the Executive Office of the President Nayib Bukele and Vice President Felix Ulloa of El Salvador.
Bringing the Green Revolution to El Salvador
The Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy Class of 2024 at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies.
Blogs

Meet the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy Class of 2024

The 2024 class of the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy has arrived at Stanford eager to learn from our scholars and tackle policy challenges ranging from food security to cryptocurrency privacy.
Meet the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy Class of 2024
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From Egypt to England, the Maldives to Switzerland, Vietnam, Ghana, Kenya, and Fiji, the 2023 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy has criss-crossed the world practicing their policymaking skills.

Authors
Mi Jin RYU
Melissa Morgan
News Type
News
Date
Paragraphs

After a year of book learning and studying theory, students from the 2023 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy are getting hands-on with their policymaking skills.

During their second year of study, each of our master's students has the opportunity to participate in the Policy Change Studio, a pioneering program at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies which pairs students with organizations across the globe to work on policy challenges in real-time.

From faba beans in Egypt to biotech at NATO and water management in Kenya, learn where our students are teaming up to make an impact, in their own words.


 

The Local Government Parity Puzzle in Ghana

Our team is working with the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana) on the local gender parity puzzle. CDD-Ghana is dedicated to advancing democracy, good governance, and inclusive growth and development within Ghana.
Aden Farr, Corinna Ha, and Munashe Miranda Mataranyika
Arden Farr, Corinna Ha, and Munashe Miranda Mataranyika

The state, political parties, and CSOs in Ghana have recognized the importance of women’s political representation. This is seen in international conventions, the 1992 Constitution, affirmative action bill proposals, and efforts to target direct participation of women. Women’s representation at the parliamentary level stood at 14.5% in the 2020 General Elections, its highest level over the past 30 years; however, women’s representation in local councils has declined from 10% in 2010 to 7.6% in 2019. 
 
We aim to better understand the drivers of low political representation of women at the local level, with attention to sociocultural factors, education, financial barriers, and performance barriers. We are excited and humbled to work with CDD-Ghana on such a critical issue.
 

Barriers to SME Contributions to Food Security in Egypt

Middle and low-income families in the urban areas of Cairo have limited access to affordable food. Over the next few months, we will be conducting research on how value chain interventions can increase the domestic supply of faba beans for these households.
Luis Sanchez, Taimur Ahmad, Jasdeep Singh Hundal, and Shiro Wachira [not pictured]
Luis Sanchez, Taimur Ahmad, Jasdeep Singh Hundal, and Shiro Wachira [not pictured]

We have chosen faba beans because they are currently one of the most important protein sources in the market and  in the Egyptian diet. The  majority of faba beans in Egypt are imported and are highly price sensitive to fluctuations and global supply chain disruptions. Egypt is highly reliant on imported food, which creates a tenuous food security situation for its >100M citizens, and in particular, the ~27% poor living below the $3.20 poverty line. Currently, inability to produce adequate food exposes Egyptians (especially those in poverty) to chronic food insecurity. 

Our team is super excited to work with our partner organization and the communities that will be part of our research. We look forward to enhancing our knowledge of food security and provide the most comprehensive solutions to our partners as well as all the stakeholders involved in the project.
 

Floating Nuclear Power Plants in the South China Sea

Our team is exploring the security risks of potential Chinese plans to develop and operate floating nuclear power plants in the South China Sea, partnering with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
Omar Pimentel, Mi Jin Ryu, Miku Yamada, and Jonathan Deemer
Omar Pimentel, Mi Jin Ryu, Miku Yamada, and Jonathan Deemer

While proponents argue that floating nuclear power plants have climate, industrial and potential economic benefits, lack of safeguards and international regulations raise questions about the safety of these deployments. Moreover, the possibility of deployment in the disputed waters of South China Sea present a grave risk to sovereignty claims of Southeast Asian countries, and may accelerate further militarization of the South China Sea.

We are aiming to identify the key security risks of these plans, and to develop policy recommendations for concerned governments and stakeholders.
 

Responsible Use of Biotechnology in Security and Defense

Our group is focused on the responsible implementation of solutions for emerging security challenges, specifically related to biotechnology and human enhancement. In an age of renewed geopolitical competition, the ethical employment of biotech is critical.
Angela Chen, Brian Slamkowsk, and Francesca Bentley
Angela Chen, Brian Slamkowski, and Francesca Bentley

To that end, we are working with the NATO Innovation Unit to define a strategic approach to these advanced technologies that ensures access to cutting edge capabilities, informed adoption, and responsible use. The advent of human-machine integration, genetic editing, and other forms of biological manipulation represents a new front in the global innovation race.
 

Water Resource Management in Kenya

We are working with Nuru International to address the challenges facing smallholder farmers in Homa Bay County, Kenya. We aim to better understand the specific needs in West Kenya to sustainably improve their agricultural productivity and livelihoods.
Chubing Li, Joyce Lin, Kyle Smith, and Ben Zehr
Chubing Li, Joyce Lin, Kyle Smith, and Ben Zehr

Agriculture is the backbone of many developing countries, and smallholder farmers play a critical role in this sector. However, these farmers often face numerous challenges, from incomplete irrigation infrastructure, low-quality agriculture inputs (seeds, fertilizers, etc), to the lack of market linkages. By working with Nuru International, a non-profit organization that works to improve the lives of smallholder farmers by providing them with training and resources, we want to help create a more equitable and prosperous future for rural communities in Kenya.
 

Misinformation and Disinformation in the Pacific Islands

Our team is exploring the root causes of the spread of misinformation and disinformation in the Pacific Islands, focusing on the Republic of Fiji. We are working with the Melbourne-based Oceania Cyber Security Centre (OCSC), a not-for-profit research institute, to devise potential solutions to counter the prevalence of false and misleading information in Fiji.
Ilari Papa, Caroline Meinhardt, Tanvi Gupta, and Daniel Kim
Ilari Papa, Caroline Meinhardt, Tanvi Gupta, and Daniel Kim

Following a rapid phase of digitization and social media adoption, Pacific Island nations are struggling to counter a large variety of mis- and disinformation that is being spread via online sources largely trusted by citizens. We aim to understand Fiji’s unique socio-cultural context in order to propose tailored solutions for increasing citizens’ ability to verify information.
 

Challenges in Policy Making and Financing of Paris Agreement Goals

Our team is working with UNFCCC which is the United Nations entity tasked with supporting the global response to the threat of climate change. We are working to address Article 2.1(c) of the Paris Agreement, which calls for “…making finance flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development.”
Dulguun Batmunkh, Ben Zuercher, Suman Kumar, and Anna Vladymyrska
Dulguun Batmunkh, Ben Zuercher, Suman Kumar, and Anna Vladymyrska

Especially in the absence of significant public resources, current flows of private investment in the final sector toward climate change adaptation and mitigation measures are insufficient to support the efforts of developing nations to limit the impact of global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. 

Our team will be examining two case studies, Switzerland and the Maldives, to provide context and insights on the reason for the lack of an established reliable funding mechanism to address climate change.and effective coordination of initiatives to operationalize solutions to combat climate change.
 

The Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy

Want to learn more? MIP holds admission events throughout the year, including graduate fairs and webinars, where you can meet our staff and ask questions about the program.

Read More

The Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy Class of 2024 at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies.
Blogs

Meet the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy Class of 2024

The 2024 class of the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy has arrived at Stanford eager to learn from our scholars and tackle policy challenges ranging from food security to cryptocurrency privacy.
Meet the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy Class of 2024
Abuzar Royesh ('20), and Amélie-Sophie Vavrovsky ('22), and Alex Laplaza ('20).
News

Three MIP Alumni Named to the 2023 Forbes ‘30 Under 30’ List

Alex Laplaza ('20), Abuzar Royesh ('20), and Amélie-Sophie Vavrovsky ('22), alumni of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy have been recognized for their impacts on global social issues and venture capital.
Three MIP Alumni Named to the 2023 Forbes ‘30 Under 30’ List
The Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy class of 2023
Blogs

Meet the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy Class of 2023

The 2023 class of the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy are finally here on campus and ready to dive into two years of learning, research and policy projects at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies.
Meet the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy Class of 2023
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The 2023 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy are spreading out across the globe to practice their policymaking skills on issues such as women’s political representation in Ghana and food insecurity in Egypt.

Authors
Melissa Morgan
News Type
Blogs
Date
Paragraphs

Every year, students in the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy (MIP) at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies participate in the Policy Change Studio, a pioneering two-quarter program designed to provide our master's students with the know-how to bring about change in the world.

In 2020, many of the internships and outreach opportunities for our students were reduced or cancelled altogether because of the COVID-19 pandemic. By 2021, most of our students were able to participate in virtual programs with our policy partners. After two years of adapting, we're excited that the 2022 cohort of MIP students once again has the opportunity to work in-person with their partner organizations and meet changemakers on the ground to evaluate and fine-tune the impacts of their policy work.

Keep reading to see where our students have been working around the world.
 

Tunis, Tunisia

Emily Bauer, Soomin Jun and Kyle Thompson have been in Tunisia working with Wasabi, a communications company, working to understand the root causes of Tunisia’s large informal economy and find incentives for greater formal sector participation.

Pretoria, South Africa

Janani Mohan and Eli MacKinnon have been in South Africa with a local branch of the United Nations Development Programme to work on the longstanding problem of South Africa's highly skewed income distribution and vast disparities in employment access across different regions and social groups.

Jakarta, Indonesia

Sylvie Ashford, Calli Obern, Daniel Gajardo and Sarah Baran traveled to Indonesia to work with the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory's (NREL) local branch that is tackling policy barriers to decarbonizing industrial heat sources in the country.

Washington D.C., United States

Eyal Zilberman, Chaeri Park, Me Me Khant and Mikk Raud went from the West Coast to the East to the Washington D.C.-based Cyber Threat Alliance (CTA) to identify ways the U.S. government can reduce the prevalence of ransomware attacks against public and private entities.

India

Shirin Kashani, Madeleine Morlino and Amanda Leavell are working with SheThePeople, a female-first digital media website founded by Draper Hills alumna Shaili Chopra, that focuses on women-related journalism.

Tallinn, Estonia

Johannes Hui, Dave Sprague, Bradley Jackson and Arelena Shala partnered with the International Centre for Defense and Security (ICDS), a strategic policy think tank, to investigate the use of sub-threshold, grey-zone and hybrid military countermeasures to deter Russian provocations in the Baltic-Nordic region.

The Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy

Want to learn more? MIP holds admission events throughout the year, including graduate fairs and webinars, where you can meet our staff and ask questions about the program.

Read More

Students from the 2022 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy participate in the Policy Change Studio.
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Where Our Master's Students are Making Policy Impacts in 2022

From women's health and reproductive rights in India to cybersecurity issues in Washington D.C., students from the 2022 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy are tackling big policy projects in the Policy Change Studio.
Where Our Master's Students are Making Policy Impacts in 2022
The Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy class of 2023
Blogs

Meet the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy Class of 2023

The 2023 class of the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy are finally here on campus and ready to dive into two years of learning, research and policy projects at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies.
Meet the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy Class of 2023
Protestors wave flags in front of San Francisco's Ferry Building against the military coup in Myanmar
Blogs

Working from Home While Worrying For Home

About the author: Me Me Khant ’22 was an FSI Global Policy Intern with the The Asia Foundation. She is currently a Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy student at Stanford University.
Working from Home While Worrying For Home
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The 2022 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy has been busy this quarter getting out of the classroom and into hands-on policymaking with partner organizations in Tunisia, Estonia, India and beyond.

Authors
Melissa Morgan
News Type
Q&As
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Paragraphs

Every year, students in our Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy are given assignments in the Policy Change Studio. This unique aspect of the coursework partners students with government programs, NGOs and foundations across the globe to give them opportunities to solve problems and gain experience working on policy issues in a hands on, on-the-ground way.

In 2021, Serage Amatory, Hallie Lucas, Samantha Lee and Angela Ortega Pastor were partnered with a project at the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) focused on finding ways to help micro, small and medium sized businesses in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico access affordable, clean energy.

After a year of hard work, we checked in with Hallie and Angela to see how the project they started as students has grown and what has come of their efforts. As alumni of FSI, Hallie is now a formal employee at NREL, and Angela continues to support the partnerships their student group formed with the NREL team and local community members in Mexico in a personal capacity.


How did you initially get involved with the NREL group and their work on the Yucatan project?

Hallie Lucas: Our MIP practicum team was initially introduced to this effort in January 2021, through a challenge from NREL to “advance clean, affordable, and reliable energy for micro, small, and medium-sized businesses (MiPyMEs) in the Yucatan region of Mexico as part of our master’s capstone project.

Angela Pastor: We set out to scope the problem and connected with stakeholders on the ground. Throughout our project, it was very important for us to connect with local partners and to listen to the needs of the businesses we were trying to help.

Lucas: Through focused and intentional stakeholder discussions, it became apparent that access to affordable finance and technical knowledge gaps were the greatest barriers to energy efficiency and DPV adoption within the region. We also identified that behind-the-meter technologies like distributed photovoltaics (DPV) could be used as an energy and cost-savings mechanism to reduce grid-scale power emissions and empower consumer agency in addition to the enhancing consumer reliability.

Pastor: Since we graduated from MIP, we have continued to work with NREL and our local partners at the Instituto Yucateco del Emprendedor (IYEM) and the Instituto Tecnologico Superior Progreso (ITSP) to build what we are calling the MIPyMEs Futuros Verdes program. Currently the program has launched with a pilot in Merida, Yucatan supported by the Government of the State and IYEM, which really is a testament to the commitment and perseverance of our partners in Yucatan who have relentlessly believed in our vision and helped us push it through to this pilot phase.

What were some of the challenges of this particular project, and what excited you about this work?

Lucas: The challenge with this work was to demonstrate two critical components of our theory of change: 1) that the energy DPV and energy efficiency investments were sufficient to offset the initial cost of the loan within a reasonable time period for MiPyMEs and 2) that we could successfully de-risk lending to applicants with minimal or no credit history through this alternative credit mechanism.

Pastor: It definitely took a while for us to land on the root cause of the energy access issue in the Peninsula, and we did a lot of technical scoping work early in the process, and those co-creation workshops where we got input and feedback from partners on the ground was critical for us to finally read that, “ah, ha” moment.

We eventually realized that the key issue was not a lack of technical options, but rather a lack of access to affordable finance to invest in these interventions. We also realized that most businesses are connected to the grid and as such, while some will benefit from distributed solar generation systems, this will not be the case in general. Instead, focusing on bringing awareness and introducing energy efficiency and conservation measures is key to helping more businesses lower their electricity bill burden. The cheapest megawatt, after all, the one you don’t use.

In the year you’ve been working with NREL, how has this project grown and changed? What’s are some of the victories? What areas are you still working to make better?

Pastor: When we started this project, we had no idea what it would turn out to be. It was a class project, a challenge that we had to come up with a solution for. I don’t think any of us thought we would get to actually implement our idea. But today MIPyMEs in the Yucatan are able to get a free energy audit and apply to MicroYuc Verde for an affordable line of credit that enables them to both reduce their energy consumption and grow their business.

Lucas: I also see the multi-stakeholder coalition we’ve built as a major team victory – working with local government leaders, researchers, and changemakers in this space is really encouraging.

Pastor: We are also working to scale up the program and develop energy audit training modules that other local institutions across Mexico will be able to use to offer free energy audits to businesses. Receiving the endorsement of the Governor of Yucatan was a great win for the program. And as Hallie mentions, the multi-stakeholder coalition we have built is a true victory, and something that makes me confident that the program will continue.

Participants on the stage at the launch event for the MIPyMEs Futuros Verdes program. The MIPyMEs Futuros Verdes program, which MIP alumni Angela Pastor and Hallie Lucas helped build, was launched in February 2022. Angela Pastor

How do you hope to see this project continue to develop in the coming years?

Lucas: In the next phase of this project, NREL, IYEM, and ITSP are working to develop a robust technical training curriculum for university students to conduct energy efficiency audits for local businesses seeking to reduce their energy consumption. Student and university-led technoeconomic analysis will support data-driven decisions on investment and lending and will equip students with the advanced skill set they need to succeed in a clean energy futures workforce. These targeted training materials and analytical tools will be made publicly available when complete.

Pastor: I would love to see this project grow in its pilot phase to offer more audits and microloans to MIPyMEs in the Yucatan, and even go beyond Yucatan to other Peninsula states, as I truly think it can make a different.

And at a higher-level, I am really looking forward to seeing whether our theory of change is legitimate – if we can prove that SMEs can leverage affordable financing to access clean energy that would be consequential for broader energy transition efforts around the globe.

How did having the chance to work on a project like this as a Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy student impact your studies and how you think about your role and future in the world of policy and international development?

Pastor: Getting the chance to work on a project like this has definitely shaped the type of work and impact I want to have. I am currently working in the sustainable finance space, as I really believe that part of the key to achieving our climate goals lies with closing the mitigation and adaptation finance gap, and especially focusing on bringing financing solutions to those who are often left behind by the system.

Lucas: I’ve been prompted to reflect more about institutionalized and systemic barriers to energy equity, as well, and to think more critically about what inclusive clean energy transitions look like in practice. The next several decades are humanity’s most critical – as the entire world mobilizes to combat the climate crisis, global energy and economic structures will be fundamentally transformed. In this, we have an unparallel opportunity to choose – and create – a better, more inclusive, more sustainable, future.

What are each of you hoping to do next in your careers?

Pastor: I hope to keep growing my knowledge of climate finance and to keep working to make an impact and accelerate climate transition efforts around the world. It’s been so moving to see the passion and commitment everyone we have worked with has shown. The fact that some of the Yucatan participants would take two days out of their busy schedules to come together to discuss what could be done to solve this problem is very inspiring. And even since our initial investigations have ended, they have continued to show up for the project, and are very much driving it forward at this point. It is truly great to see them believe in our vision for a clean energy future

Lucas: I agree. I want to keep doing what I am doing now!

 

The Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy

Want to learn more? MIP holds admission events throughout the year, including graduate fairs and webinars, where you can meet our staff and ask questions about the program.

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Students on the NREL policy team
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Stanford Students on Track to Bring Clean, Affordable Energy to Businesses in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico

As part of FSI's Policy Change Studio, four master's students have partnered with the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory to connect businesses in the Yucatan Peninsula with reliable, inexpensive, and clean energy.
Stanford Students on Track to Bring Clean, Affordable Energy to Businesses in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico
Students from the 2022 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy participate in the Policy Change Studio.
News

Where Our Master's Students are Making Policy Impacts in 2022

From women's health and reproductive rights in India to cybersecurity issues in Washington D.C., students from the 2022 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy are tackling big policy projects in the Policy Change Studio.
Where Our Master's Students are Making Policy Impacts in 2022
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As alumni of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Angela Ortega Pastor and Hallie Lucas continue their efforts to bring clean, affordable energy to businesses in Mexico.

Authors
Soomin Jun
Melissa Morgan
News Type
News
Date
Paragraphs

Theory and classroom learning are critical, but in the world of policymaking, nothing is as instructive as hands-on practice in problem-solving.

To better facilitate this kind of learning, our second-year Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy (MIP) students participate in the Policy Change Studio, a pioneering program at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies which pairs students with organizations across the globe to work on policy challenges in real-time.

As the first quarter of their capstone assignments gets underway, students from our 2022 MIP cohort share what they’re working on and how they hope to contribute to their partner organizations in the coming months.


 

The Informal Economy and Economic Inclusion in Tunisia

Our team is working with Wasabi, a communications company dedicated to community-building and freedom of expression in Tunisia. We aim to better understand the root causes of Tunisia’s large informal economy and find incentives for greater formal sector participation.
2022 MIP students Emily Bauer, Soomin Jun, and Kyle Thompson
Emily Bauer, Soomin Jun and Kyle Thompson

Currently, the informal sector makes up about 40% of Tunisia’s GDP, which limits the country’s overall economic growth due to limitations such as lost tax revenue, stymied workers’ productivity, and disincentives to foreign direct investment.

Moving forward, our team is prioritizing collaborative outreach and learning from others, as well as iterative problem-solving and dynamic policy solutions. We hope our approach is able to contribute to positive change and continued learning both for us and for the stakeholders we are working to support.
 

Our team is working with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on addressing the longstanding problem of spatial inequality (defined as the unequal distribution of resources and services across different areas or location) in South Africa.
Janani Mohan, Eli MacKinnon and Leonel Diaz [pictured on phone]
Janani Mohan, Eli MacKinnon and Leonel Diaz [pictured on phone]

South Africa is one of the most unequal countries in the world, with a highly skewed income distribution and vast disparities in employment access across different regions and social groups. If measured with the Gini coefficient, it is the most unequal country in the world. This inequality has been stubbornly resistant to decades of post-apartheid policy intervention and is a vital issue threatening the country’s prosperity.

We are humbled and extremely excited to delve into this problem with our partners at UNDP. We think that approaching it with humility, an open mind, and a willingness to engage with the people directly affected by inequality — especially young South Africans experiencing high unemployment — will be key to uncovering meaningful ways to address this challenge.
 

Market and Policy Barriers to Emissions Reduction in Indonesia

We are working with the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to analyze market and policy barriers to decarbonizing industrial heat in Indonesia. Industrial heat refers to the energy-intensive heating and cooling processes involved in manufacturing.
Sylvie Ashford, Calli Obern, Daniel Gajardo, and Sarah Baran
Sylvie Ashford, Calli Obern, Daniel Gajardo, and Sarah Baran

These processes account for 29% of global energy demand and around 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and overwhelmingly rely on fossil fuels and are a significant contributor to climate change. Challenges to switching fuel sources range from affordability to technological obstacles around generating high temperatures.

Since trends in development and population growth place Indonesia as a key player in the fight against climate change, we are looking forward to helping NREL identify barriers and solutions to the coutnry's current industrial heat situation while also exploring clean energy opportunities.
 

Ransomware Attacks and Government Legislation in Washington D.C.

We are working with the Washington D.C.-based Cyber Threat Alliance (CTA) to identify ways the U.S. government can reduce the prevalence of ransomware attacks against public and private entities. Even with cyberthreats on the rise, policies to address these issues remain largely undefined.
Eyal Zilberman, Chaeri Park, Me Me Khant and Mikk Raud
Eyal Zilberman, Chaeri Park, Me Me Khant and Mikk Raud

Currently, the team we are partnered with is working with stakeholders in government, industry and academia to understand the effects that various regulatory and legislative tools have on prohibiting ransomware payments and on the frequency of such attacks. Based on this research, we will help identify key actions the government can take to further combat cyberattcks.
 

Lack of Information about Reproductive Rights and Sexual Health in India

We are working with SheThePeople, an Indian digital media website that focuses on women-related journalism. We aim to better understand — and start to address — some of the root causes that are contributing to women in India's lack of autonomy over decisions that relate to their bodies.
Shirin Kashani, Madeleine Morlino and Amanda Leavell
Shirin Kashani, Madeleine Morlino and Amanda Leavell

We are currently reaching out to a range of academic experts and practitioners working in the field in order to fully understand the extent of the problem as well as its causes. Ultimately, we seek to identify interventions that can help empower women in India to make informed choices about matters of health, fertility and other decisions related to their bodily autonomy and integrity.
 

Russian Hybrid Attacks and Military Provocations in Estonia

Our team is exploring the use of sub-threshold, grey-zone and hybrid military countermeasures to deter Russian provocations in the Baltic-Nordic region. We are partnered with the International Centre for Defense and Security, a strategic policy think tank in Tallinn, Estonia.
Johannes Hui, Dave Sprague, Bradley Jackson and Arelena Shala [not pictured]
Johannes Hui, Dave Sprague, Bradley Jackson and Arelena Shala [not pictured]

Russian aggression in the Baltic region in the form of hybrid acts has continued unabated because meaningful costs sufficient to prompt changes in this destabalizing behavior have yet to be imposed on Russia. In the meantime, vulnerable, less powerful regional states in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania continue to bear the costs.

We are seeking to better understand the depth of Russian provocations in the region, what practices already exist to counter them, and what emergent threats may be developing. Our research in these areas will be used to provide policy recommendations to ICDS and its partnered Baltic states.
 

The Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy

Want to learn more? MIP holds admission events throughout the year, including graduate fairs and webinars, where you can meet our staff and ask questions about the program.

Read More

Stanford
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Call for Stanford Student Applications: APARC Hiring 2022 Summer Research Assistants

To support Stanford students working in the area of contemporary Asia, the Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Center is offering research assistant positions for summer 2022. The deadline for submitting applications and letters of recommendation is March 1, 2022. 
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The Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy class of 2023
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Meet the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy Class of 2023

The 2023 class of the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy are finally here on campus and ready to dive into two years of learning, research and policy projects at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies.
Meet the Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy Class of 2023
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From women's health and reproductive rights in India to cybersecurity issues in Washington D.C., students from the 2022 cohort of the Ford Dorsey Master's in International Policy are tackling big policy projects in the Policy Change Studio.

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A partnership between four students of the Stanford Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy (MIP) program and the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy has culminated in a long-awaited and direly needed coalition to help micro, small and medium sized businesses (MIPyMEs) in the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico.

With the support of Blas L. Pérez Henríquez of Stanford’s Mexico Clean Economy 2050 and MIP faculty and administration, the graduating students hosted a widely attended and highly commended co-creation workshop that brought together almost 50 government officials, universities and research centers, funders and development banks as well as community leaders and business associations over the course of two days.

Committed to Solutions

Every year, graduating students of the MIP program, part of Stanford’s Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI), are assigned a real policy problem with an external partner to apply their two-year learning experience and produce innovative solutions. The experience is part of the Capstone Practicum of the Policy Change Studio taught by professors Francis Fukuyama and Jeremy Weinstein.

When Angela Ortega Pastor, Hallie Lucas, Samantha Lee and Serage Amatory were assigned NREL as their partner, they were tasked to address the “lack of access to reliable, inexpensive, and clean energy for microbusinesses in the Yucatan Peninsula.” At that point their work could have either become a successful completion of a graduation requirement or been taken beyond the limits of the classroom and turned into a real, sustainable and concrete solution. Samantha Lee confirms that her team has opted for the latter. “As a team, we had decided right from the start that we wanted this project to have real impact on real people,” said Lee. “That goal drove us to reach out to more stakeholders on the ground and be more thoughtful about the solutions we were developing, which eventually culminated in this co-creation workshop.”

Gathering Stakeholders

The team organized their two-day workshop around key themes of problem identification, solution development and implementation. They concluded that access to affordable finance remains the ultimate obstacle for businesses in the Yucatán Peninsula who seek to invest in energy efficiency and clean generation upgrades.

Team member Hallie Lucas further contextualized the problem: “MIPyMEs in the Yucatan pay the second highest electricity tariff in Mexico, so there is significant potential for energy cost-savings on both the generation and demand side…However, the upfront capital needed to finance these systems is cost-prohibitive for many MIPyMEs that operate in the informal economy and are assessed a high risk premium by formal lending institutions.”

From their extensive work, research, and conversations with vital stakeholders over the past six months, the team engendered three critical action points to address the barriers to clean energy investments:

  1. access to finance
  2. cost of finance
  3. financial and technical literacy.

Team member Angela Ortega Pastor expressed her pride in “the level of enthusiasm and commitment from participants.’’ She said that the team “could not have pulled it together without the guidance and feedback of all partners — especially FSI who provided great insights into how to host a successful zoom conference and allowed us to have live interpretation, which was a serious game changer and took our event to the next level.”

In light of the pandemic restrictions, costs of the workshop were covered by MIP in lieu of the usual funding dedicated for a field trip.

Defining the Action Plan

Following the April MIPyMEs Verdes co-creation workshop series, the Stanford-NREL team remains determined to work alongside local partners to address each of the three key barriers in turn. The team has proposed a solution that leverages payment of month-to-month electricity bills as an alternative measure of credit and establishes a community revolving fund to help MIPyMEs build or improve their formal credit history through microloan energy efficiency investments.

The team has recommended a pilot phase in the form of a social impact lab, implemented by partners in local government and academia to test this theory of change. Additionally, the team sees significant potential for a fintech solution in the form of an online platform that integrates publicly available financial data and utility payments to automate alternative credit-ratings and provide recommendations on suitable financing schemes. By using simple user-input metrics and decreasing informational asymmetries between lenders and borrowers, such a platform could help more MIPyMEs gain access to the affordable financing they need.

Putting Community First

From the outset, the Stanford team has sought to center community agency and leadership and to maximize social and environmental co-benefits of energy cost savings wherever possible. Serage Amatory affirmed his team’s vehement belief in the importance of meticulously considering the social impact of the program, stating that “any intervention that fails to consider the well-being of the community, the environment and the end-users will be rendered incomplete and probably counter-productive.” He proceeded to explain that besides aspiring to create a scalable model of a clean economy, their project will empower micro, small and medium sized business owners and will promote access to credit for indigenous and women-business owners who face disproportionate barriers to doing so.

After the end of their Stanford journeys this June, Samantha Lee and Angela Ortega Pastor reiterate that “the team remains committed to our goals and looks forward to continuing our work with partners in the region.” Discussions with NREL, the Stanford Mexico Clean Economy 2050 and MIP are ongoing regarding taking this initiative forward.

Learn more about Stanford’s Ford Dorsey Master’s in International Policy (MIP) program.

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Radhika Lalit is Leading the Charge in the Fight Against Climate Change

Lalit, who graduated from the Master’s in International Policy program in 2016, is making a policy impact on environmental issues in a number of ways, and recently received two awards for her efforts.
Radhika Lalit is Leading the Charge in the Fight Against Climate Change
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As part of FSI's Policy Change Studio, four master's students have partnered with the U.S. National Renewable Energy Laboratory to connect businesses in the Yucatan Peninsula with reliable, inexpensive, and clean energy.

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