The Women's Empowerment in Development (WED) Lab was created in 2018 in partnership with McGill University's Institute for the Study of International Development (ISID), building on interdisciplinary research to connect academics, practitioners and policy makers in Canada and globally on issues related to women's empowerment in developing countries. 

Today, WEDLab highlights and disseminates the work conducted by its affiliated researchers on women's outcomes in developing countries.  WEDLab researchers are committed to generating rigorous evidence using mostly quantitative methods in the Social Sciences, with a particular focus on Economics and Demography.

Purpose of the Lab

  • To advance knowledge creation, dissemination and outreach on issues of women’s empowerment in global development.

  • To strengthen the evidence-base on what works, and does not work, to empower women in developing countries.

  • To understand how social and economic policy can help in providing real development solutions to eliminate global gender inequality.

  • To enable students, researchers, policy makers and practitioners, including CSOs and NGOs, to address global forms of gender inequality.

Current Funding

  • SSHRC

Past Contributors

  • Dr. Kate Grantham

Past Funders

  • SSHRC, IDRC, Hewlett Foundation, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Photo Credits