Lena Olszewska

Lena Olszewska is a first-year MPP student at the Jackson School of Global Affairs, focusing on the intersection of climate, innovation, and data science. She is particularly interested in aligning climate mitigation with social outcomes such as health, employment, and gender equity in low- and middle-income countries.

Prior to Yale, Lena was a Senior Associate at IDinsight, where she led evaluations of large-scale social programs across India. She conducted the baseline study for an impact evaluation of technical assistance to the national rice fortification program, leading survey design, field management, data quality checks, and analysis. At Giving Green, Lena led the India portfolio, identifying high-impact civil society organizations advancing the energy transition in India and shaping philanthropic funding strategies.

Lena previously worked at Plan International’s EU Office in Brussels and the British Embassy in Warsaw, supporting development cooperation and policy research. She holds a BSc in Political Science (cum laude) from Leiden University and completed a semester exchange at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile. She speaks English, Polish, Spanish, and is currently learning Hindi.