Development Talks: Community Engagement as a Frontline to National Development

Date: 

Wednesday, April 27, 2022, 12:00pm to 1:15pm

Location: 

Democracy Lab, Rubenstein 414 AB/Zoom

The Growth Lab's Development Talks is a series of conversations with policymakers and academics working in international development. The seminar provides a platform for practitioners and researchers to discuss both the practice of development and analytical work centered on policy. 

Topic: Community Engagement as a Frontline to National Development: The Peace Corps Experience

Speaker: Dr. Josephine (Jody) K. Olsen, Executive Director of U.S. Peace Corps (2017-2021)

Moderator: Tim Freeman, Research Fellow, Growth Lab

Whether attending in-person or watching over Zoom, please register in advance, and contact Chuck McKenney with any questions. Room attendance is limited to the Harvard community.

About the speaker:
Dr. Josephine (Jody) Olsen, PhD, served as the 20th Director of the Peace Corps from March 2018 to January 2021.  In March 2020, at the beginning of the global COVID-19 pandemic, she led the nine-day evacuation back to the United States of all 7,000 Peace Corps Volunteers from 61 countries. During her tenure, she opened a new Peace Corps program in Viet Nam, championed global women's economic empowerment, and led Peace Corps HIV/AIDS mitigation efforts in Africa. Read more