Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies

The Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies' mission is to improve well-being around the world by better understanding the interaction of demographic changes with social and economic development. Our goal is to produce population-based evidence that will better inform policies needed to create healthy and vital societies.

We strive to conduct research, dissemination and public engagement that will enable societies to be more responsive to demographic transitions in terms of policies and culture change. To that end, in broad strokes, our areas of primary interest are: social and environmental determinants of health; population aging, migration; the ways in which women join the paid labor force and make fertility decisions; and the impact of childhood conditions on well-being throughout the life course.