The FINANCIAL — The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is delighted to announce the appointment of Stephan Chambers and Professor Nava Ashraf to the Marshall Institute for Philanthropy and Social Entrepreneurship.
The Marshall Institute, founded by Sir Thomas Hughes-Hallett and Paul Marshall with the assistance of a £30 million gift by Paul Marshall, is focused on the transformative impact of private philanthropic action. Stephan Chambers joins as its inaugural Director after a career in both the private sector and at Oxford University, where he chaired the Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship and developed and led Oxford Saïd Business School’s MBA and EMBA programmes for many years. His experience in social entrepreneurship, teaching, research, philanthropy and business is highly unusual and positions him uniquely to lead the Marshall Institute, according to LSE.
Professor Nava Ashraf joins the Marshall Institute as its first Research Director, and the LSE as Professor of Economics. She is currently Associate Professor at Harvard Business School, where she has been on faculty since 2005. Her research combines psychology and economics, using both lab and field experiments to test insights from behavioural economics in Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia. Her papers are published in the top economics journals, and she has been honoured with a Queen’s Jubilee Medal for service. She is co-founder of Innovations for Poverty Action Zambia, where she has developed a field site for the past eleven years. As Research Director, Nava will work closely with academic and research staff across LSE departments on developing and launching the Marshall Institute’s unique research agenda.
Stephan Chambers said: “I am genuinely excited to have the chance to work with LSE’s outstanding faculty and for the opportunity to build the Marshall Institute as the preeminent centre for understanding the effectiveness of private interventions for public good. I look forward enormously to leading the Marshall Institute team at LSE.”
Professor Nava Ashraf said: “We live in a time where there is a tremendous desire to do good – but relatively little that disciplines that instinct or helps us learn how to maximise its positive impact on society. I am deeply excited to work together with the Marshall Institute and my extraordinary new colleagues across LSE to launch frontier scientific research with impact in this vital field.”
Professor Craig Calhoun, Director of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), said: “Stephan brings a wealth of experience to this role and will be a tremendous asset to the Institute as it develops into a leading centre for understanding and informing philanthropy, social entrepreneurship, and creative problem-solving. In Nava we have a brilliant scholar who will shape the Marshall Institute’s research programme and ensure it provides real insights and solutions to policy makers and practitioners. I greatly look forward to working with them both when they join the School next year.”
Sir Thomas Hughes-Hallett, founder and Chair of the Marshall Institute, said: “To have recruited two individuals of such international standing as our leadership team confirms our view that the Marshall Institute will be a leading shaper of the philanthropic and entrepreneurial solutions to the world’s toughest problems.”
Stephan Chambers and Nava Ashraf join the School in 2016.
Discussion about this post