The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a network of 55 affiliated professors around the world who are united by their use of Randomized Evaluations (REs) to answer questions critical to poverty alleviation. J-PAL's mission is to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is based on scientific evidence. J-PAL works to achieve this by:

• Conducting Rigorous Impact Evaluations: J-PAL researchers conduct randomized evaluations to test and improve the effectiveness of programs and policies aimed at reducing poverty. There are more than 279 evaluations that have been either completed or are ongoing;
• Building Capacity: J-PAL provides expertise to people interested in rigorous program evaluation, and training to others on how to conduct randomized evaluations;
• Impacting Policy: J-PAL’s policy group performs cost-effectiveness analysis to identify the most effective ways to achieve policy goals, disseminates this knowledge to policymakers, and works with governments, NGOs, foundations, and international development organizations to promote the scale-up of highly effective policies and programs around the world.

J-PAL is organized both by regional offices and by research themes called Programs. J-PAL's headquarters is a center within the Economics Department of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), with regional offices in Africa, Europe, Latin America, and South Asia that are hosted by a local university. J-PAL's Programs include Agriculture, Education, Energy and Environment, Finance, Health, Labor Markets, and Political Economy and Governance.