Garcia, Antonio
Social Policy and Practice
Domestic Violence - Intimate Partner Violence - Child Maltreatment
Domestic Violence - Intimate Partner Violence -- Child Maltreatment Research -- Social Sciences, Medicine, Public Health, Law
Dr. Prah is Director of the Ortner Center on Violence and Abuse and the Health Equity and Policy Lab (HEPL)
Using AI to improve the environmental and nutritional efficacy of food subsidies
Food consumption is a key lever for enhancing human health and environmental sustainability on earth. Our goal in this research is to better understand and find effective approaches to jointly alleviate malnutrition and climate-change outcomes in developing countries. In-kind food subsidies are a primary policy intervention in economically underprivileged communities. However, despite the proven efficacy of machine learning and data analytics in various industries, these technologies have not been widely adopted to enhance the design and impact of such subsidies. We aim to bridge this gap: this study develops a method to design nutrition- and climate-targeted food programs i.e., we algorithmically decide which foods to subsidize to maximize the nutrition value and minimize the carbon footprint of a subsidy program. This project builds on extensive field data collection in an underserved community in India, which comprises a randomized controlled trial, collection of large-scale point-of-sale transaction data, and survey data. Our methodology will combine a predictive choice model based on machine learning techniques and an optimization algorithm. Through this research, we aim to offer policymakers a tangible, data-driven pathway to refine food subsidy schemes, achieving healthier populations and a reduced carbon footprint.
The undergraduate RA is expected to have strong proficiency in coding, and basic understanding of statistics and/or econometrics.
Global Philanthrophy
If you are interested the practice of philanthropy in different countries then read on:
My colleague Pamala Wiepking and I are editors for a book on global philanthropy titled “Philanthropy: Key debates and contending perspectives”. commissioned by Edgar Elgar Press.
We are looking for a student assistant who is interested in the topic and willing to help us with coordinating submissions from across the globe authors, editing and other tasks involved in seeing the book in print.
The volume will include a comprehensive exploration of contemporary philanthropy with focus on the following broad topics:
- Global Philanthropy: Concept, Meaning, and Practice
- Public Policy: Shaping the Philanthropic Sector
- Adoption of Digital Technology: Opportunities and Risks (including AI)
- Legitimacy in Philanthropy: Philanthropy as a Negative Force in Society
- Philanthropic Foundations: Family, Corporate, and Community-Based
- Trust-Based Philanthropy: Unrestricted Giving and Participatory Grantmaking
- The Practice of Philanthropy: Fundraising and Grantmaking
- Laws and Regulation: Governance in Philanthropic Institutions
- Collaboration: Within, Between, and Among Stakeholders
- Ethical Leadership: Donors and Fundraisers
- Advances in Data and Methodology
Undergraduate Research Assistant for Young Adult Holistic Public Defense Project
Our team is conducting mixed methods research examining the impact of holistic public defense teams on young adults' (18-25 year olds) legal and psycho-social outcomes.
Project activities include analyzing participant observations, conducting interviews with public defense team stakeholders, completing literature reviews, participating in a scoping review, and conducting qualitative and quantitative analyses.
We would love for an undergraduate student to join our team for the 2024-2025 academic year! Please contact Dr. Noor Toraif at the School of Social Policy and Practice to express interest (ntoraif@upenn.edu).
#PoliceFreeSchools, Discourse Analysis, and Abolition
In 2020, during a moment of "racial reckoning," many school districts passed resolutions to terminate contracts with law enforcement and remove police from schools. The decision sparked contention debates across the U.S. and globally. This project examines the contours of those debates by focusing on school board meetings from 50 districts.
Mixed-Income Housing, Urban Development, and Educational Opportunities
Housing policy is education policy! This research project examines the relationship between a national housing initiative (Choice Neighborhood Initiative) and educational opportunities for low-income Black communities. Specifically, this multi-institutional research program asks (1) how mixed-income neighborhoods influence the social networks of Black, low-income residents and (2) how educational opportunities are shaped by housing policies and changes in neighborhood composition.
Gender-Based Violence Research Group
The Gender-Based Violence Research Group (GBVRG) performs mixed-methods research to understand the social ecology of GBV, with particular attention to intimate partner violence-related fatalities. The GBVRG works on various projects, from collaborating with local anti-violence nonprofits on evaluations to quantitative data analysis of national administrative data.
Visual and Textual Depictions of Philanthropists
Donor Representation Through the Ages: An Examination of Visual and Textual Depictions of Philanthropy and Power in Historical Context
Handy Femida
Social Policy and Practice
Service System Issues Related to Adults with Severe Mental Illness
Service System Issues Related to Adults with Severe Mental Illness
Solomon Phyllis