Robyn Meeks is an Assistant Professor at the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University, a faculty affiliate of the Duke University Energy Initiative and the Duke Center for International Development, a member of the Faculty Advisory Committee of Duke University’s Energy Access Project, and a research affiliate of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) at MIT.

Her research is at the intersection of environmental and development economics with much of her work focusing on understanding individual, household, and firm responses to the introduction of various water and energy technologies, policies, and types of infrastructure in developing countries. Much of this work relates to and informs climate and development policies.

Professor Meeks has implemented research in a number of countries, including Benin, India, Kyrgyzstan, Kenya, Nepal, Pakistan, Peru, and the United States. Her research using randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and quasi-experimental methods to address topics such as: the impacts of decentralized renewable energy on enterprise development and labor outcomes, barriers to adoption of solar energy in developing countries, the demand for and impacts of energy efficient technologies on household electricity consumption, technological innovations in the electricity sector (e.g. smart meters and aerial bundled cables), electricity reliability and electricity losses, consumer response to electricity pricing and tariff reforms, and the impacts of alternative cooking fuels (such as biogas) on indicators of sustainable development.

Professor Meeks has a Ph.D. from Harvard University, a master’s degree from Yale University, and a bachelor’s degree from Brown University.