Radhika Iyengar
Director of Education, Center for Sustainable Development @ Climate School, Columbia University
Radhika Iyengar holds a Ph.D. in the Economics of Education from Teachers College, Columbia University (2011). Her distinguished dissertation on social capital and schooling in rural India earned her the New Scholars Fellowship from the Comparative International Education Society.
Before her doctoral studies, Radhika earned a Master’s in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics and spent several years at Pratham, a leading Indian non-profit. There, she bridged the gap between cutting-edge research and program management, collaborating with researchers from Imperial College and UC Berkeley on pivotal randomized experiment studies regarding health and cognitive outcomes. Her leadership extended to managing large-scale remedial programs for thousands of children and forging vital public-private partnerships.
Currently an Education Specialist, Radhika focuses on evaluating educational programs and international development. She has successfully led initiatives like the Education Sector Scale-up Project in Nigeria, fostering partnerships between the MDG Office and the Earth Institute.
A prolific contributor to the scientific community, Radhika has published numerous articles in journals such as the Comparative Education Review. Her work on Education for Sustainable Development has garnered significant attention from the Government of India.
Radhika is also a dedicated leader and mentor. She founded DISHA (Development in South Asia) at Teachers College and served as the Program Chair for the South Asia Special Interest Group at the Comparative International Education Society. She continues to support global NGOs through technical capacity-building workshops and serves on advisory boards dedicated to rural literacy and women’s empowerment.
