Centers and Initiatives
Innovation—it's essential to how we move the conversation. Our multidisciplinary research centers, initiatives, and projects create unique approaches and solutions to the world's pressing problems.
Research Centers & Institutes
Financial Access Initiative
What we do: Find solutions to the question: How can we create a better life for low-income households through quality financial services?
Our scope: International
Who we are: A consortium of leading international development economists.
Faculty lead: Jonathan Morduch
Furman Center for Real Estate & Urban Policy
What we do: Understand and solve challenges presented by affordable housing, financing, foreclosures, land use regulation, and neighborhood changes.
Our scope: NYC and urban centers nationwide
Who we are: A joint research center of NYU Wagner and the NYU School of Law.
Faculty lead: Ingrid Gould Ellen
Rudin Center for Transportation Policy & Management
What we do: Explore challenges in urban transportation and infrastructure.
Our scope: NYC
Who we are: Thinkers and policymakers from around the world; public, private, and nonprofit partners; and NYU Wagner faculty and graduate students.
Faculty lead: Mitchell Moss
The Institute for Education & Social Policy
What we do: Identify and tackle critical issues in K-12 education and evaluate local solutions, with the goal of improving education for all children nationwide.
Our scope: National
Who we are: A joint research center of NYU Wagner and NYU Steinhardt, consisting of faculty, scholars, leaders, and institutions in every sector.
Faculty lead: Amy Ellen Schwartz
John Brademas Center for the Study of Congress
What we do: Educate the public about how Congress makes policy—its powers, processes, and responsibilities—and deepen understanding among future and current public servants.
Our scope: National
Who we are: NYU-wide faculty and staff, joined by a prestigious group of political leaders and scholars who comprise our advisory group.
Faculty lead: Paul Light
Institute for Civil Infrastructure Systems (ICIS)
What we do: Develop models for and promote new practices in the world of interrelated, 21st-century urban infrastructure systems.
Our scope: National
Who we are: An interdisciplinary team of researchers working alongside partnering institutions and community groups.
Faculty lead: Rae Zimmerman
Institute of Human Development & Social Change
What we do: Study the effects of complex social forces—among them globalization, technology, and immigration—on human development.
Our scope: International
Who we are: An interdisciplinary network of faculty members, researchers, and students from across NYU and the Office of the Provost in a joint initiative.
Faculty lead: Patrick Sharkey
Marron Institute on Cities & the Urban Environment
What we do: Advance solution-oriented research and teaching on how cities can become more livable, sustainable, and equitable.
Our scope: International
Who we are: A university-wide community of scholars and students in the social sciences, natural sciences, humanities, and professional schools.
Faculty lead: Paul Romer
Initiatives
Innovation Labs
What we do: Promote informed, evidence-based policymaking for a complex world through a series of experimental labs.
Our scope: National
Who we are: Scholars, thinkers, and practitioners.
Faculty lead: Neil Kleiman
Leadership in Action at Wagner
What we do: Advance leadership theory, support effective new practices, and serve as a resource for leaders in all sectors.
Our scope: International
Who we are: NYU Wagner scholars and researchers.
Faculty leads: Sonia M. Ospina and Erica Gabrielle Foldy
Social Innovation & Investment Initiative
What we do: Find innovative entrepreneurial and financial solutions to address pressing social issues.
Our scope: International
Who we are: A consortium of policymakers, philanthropists, finance professionals, researchers, nonprofits, and foundations led by a team of NYU Wagner faculty and graduate students.
Special Projects
NBER Project on the Economics of Food Security, Nutrition, and Health
Faculty Lead: Tatiana Homonoff