National Council of Applied Economic Research
NCAER Professor, Sonalde Desai, who holds a joint appointment as Distinguished University Professor at University of Maryland, has recently been appointed to the Committee on Population of the National Academy of Sciences based in Washington, D.C. The Committee on Population was established by the Academy in 1983 to bring the knowledge and methods of the population sciences to bear on major issues of science and public policy, and to support the informed development of population-related policies. More details about the Committee and its members can be seen here.
This prestigious appointment follows years of original research. Professor Desai’s research portfolio includes wide-ranging assessments of the nature and composition of India’s population in addition to the India Human Development Survey (IHDS), the first-ever nation-wide longitudinal survey of Indian households. Conducted in two rounds by NCAER in collaboration with the University of Maryland, this multi-sectoral survey of over 40,000 households across India is a rich data resource on poverty, gender inequality, public policy, and different dimensions of human development. The third iteration of IHDS is slated to commence soon.
Professor Desai has also been elected as President of the Population Association of America (PAA) for 2022. PAA is a non-profit scientific organisation that promotes high-quality population research. The annual meeting of PAA, which is being held regularly since 1932, is a premier conference where demographers and social scientists from across the world present their research on key topics ranging from migration to reproductive health to race and gender issues. The forthcoming PAA meeting is slated to be held in Atlanta (Georgia), United States, during 6-9 April 2022.
Congratulations, Professor Desai, for these appointments!