Susan Nicolai is an ODI Senior Research Associate with expertise in education, basic services and poverty and inequality.
Over more than a decade at the institute, most recently as a Senior Research Fellow in the Equity and Social Policy, her previous work included leading its then Growth, Poverty and Inequality programme and serving as head of Development Progress, a cross-institute research initiative involving in-depth case study analysis on data, political economy, and finance to inform the Sustainable Development Goals.
Other highlights over the years included serving as a founding director for EdTech Hub, an architect of Education Cannot Wait, senior policy lead for Education Research in Conflict and Crisis (ERICC), and leading the youth & capabilities domain of the African Cities Research Consortium (ACRC). Susan has written extensively on education in relation to system reforms, coherence, coordination and education technology across both humanitarian and development contexts.
Prior to joining ODI, Susan had worked with the UN SRSG on Children and Armed Conflict, UNESCO’s Institute for Education Planning, Save the Children and IRC. She is currently Save the Children’s Global Director of Education/Learn.
