Joana is an Associate Professor at the London School of Economics, International Development Department. She is a Research Affiliate in BREAD, the CEPR Public Economics and Development Economics programmes, STICERD Public Economics, Institute for Fiscal Studies, International Growth Centre, and a JPAL-LAC Invited Researcher. She has a PhD in Political Economy and Government (Economics ) from Harvard University, and her main research interests are Public Economics, Development Economics and Political Economy. She has papers published in the American Economic Review and the Journal of Economic History. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Economist, and Folha de São Paulo.