The Challenge

A record number of people have been displaced by violence globally. Immigration issues have roiled U.S. politics, upended the European Union, and sparked debate in countries around the world. In these environments, policymakers have little trustworthy research to guide them, and public opinion is easily clouded by misinformation and partisanship. 

These challenges can seem insurmountable. But there’s no reason why immigration policy can’t benefit from the same kind of ingenuity that brought us dramatic medical advances and game-changing technology—and it’s long overdue. 

Our Approach

That’s where the Immigration Policy Lab comes in. With branches at Stanford University and ETH Zurich, IPL uses large datasets, creative research designs, and cutting-edge analytical tools to bring new evidence to bear on the urgent problems practitioners face. We partner with governments, nonprofits, and service providers working on the frontlines of immigration to design and evaluate policies and programs affecting refugees, asylum-seekers, and migrants. 

When helping our partners better understand flaws in the status quo, we often are asked, “what’s next?” This is why our work goes beyond diagnosing problems to identifying solutions, designing new programs and innovations, and testing them under real world conditions. This model of collaboration ensures that we are not only asking the right questions, but producing actionable evidence and tools that enable our partners to make more informed decisions and improve countless lives.