B.A. in Biochemistry & Cell Biology and B.S. in Managerial Studies with a Minor in Statistics, Rice University
Faculty Supervisor: Amir Jina
Kate Champion is a pre-doctoral fellow at the Climate Impact Lab within EPIC. She initially started her career in Silicon Valley working in data and product management. Eventually she decided she would rather serve the public over firms and pivoted to into economics and public policy. She received her Masters of Public Administration from Columbia University where she was part of the Environmental Science and Policy program. After a summer fellowship at Advance Research Projects Agency – Energy at the Department of Energy, she is excited to be working for the Climate Impact Lab. Her research at CIL focuses on the unequal impacts of climate change and how adaptation may reduce or exacerbate those differences.
“You know that feeling where you’re so excited can’t speak, you can’t focus all you can do is wander around with a huge smile on your face. That’s how I felt when Amir called to offer me a position at CIL. I knew that this would be a huge opportunity for me. Completing my MPA was my attempt at making our government slightly more rational. I focused on climate and environment because I figured I should start with the biggest problem. But I quickly realized that there is so much we don’t know about our impact on the planet or best way to mitigate the damage already done. Even when we have the data it’s often misused by those who have the power to change things. The only way for me to discover how to make to make our policies more effective would be for me to discover the answer myself. That is why I chose to join CIL and why I want to continue on to a PhD program.”