Science & Technology Impact for Emerging Regions (STIER)

New services enabled by information and communication technologies (ICT) represent an opportunity to improve the welfare of millions of people in developing countries—in areas as diverse as agriculture, education, health care delivery, and political participation. However, designing devices and services that reliably improve the welfare of the poor is a formidable challenge, since innovations must be tailored not only for local preferences and environmental constraints, but also to circumvent the pervasive market failures and access gaps encountered in many low-resource settings.

Eric Brewer

The STIER team focuses on the development of a fundamental science and technology that will facilitate the rapid innovation and scalable deployment of ICT-enabled services to improve agriculture, education, health, and participation in democratic processes. The team brings together some of the foremost researchers and practitioners working on ICT innovation, deployment, evaluation and scaling.

Edward Miguel

The STIER team is led by principal investigators Eric Brewer and Edward Miguel. Dr. Brewer is a professor of electrical engineering and computer science at the University of California, Berkeley. At Berkeley, he leads TIER (Technology and Infrastructure for Emerging Regions), a research group that investigates the design and deployment of new technologies for emerging regions. Dr. Miguel is a professor of Economics at UC Berkeley, where he also leads the Center of Evaluation for Global Action.

STIER integrates rigorous, cutting-edge research methods from engineering, computer science, development economics, and public policy to transform the design of ICT and power technologies for low-resource settings throughout the world. By linking diverse partners and disciplines, STIER will accelerate knowledge in three research thrust areas:

1.) Iterative Design of ICTs and Power Infrastructure: STIER investigators are working to integrate prospective randomized evaluations into the deployment and re-design of two model innovations: a low-cost, low-power GSM and WiFi hardware infrastructure (providing coverage in rural areas); and a village-scaled DC microgrid comprised of flexible power generation, charge controllers, and distributed storage.

2.) Improving the Quality of Quantitative Social Science Data: STIER investigators are developing a novel integrated wireless sensor platform adapted for low-power field conditions, designed to radically improve measurements of human behavior and reduce data collection costs.

3.) A Framework for Understanding Technology Adoption: In addition, STIER is developing a systematic framework for understanding the social, economic, and institutional impacts of technology, as well as the factors that facilitate or delay adoption and scaling.

STIER seeks to improve access to transformative technologies for people living in poverty, through improved iterative design and deployment methods; to integrate insights from economic analysis and experimentation into device design, deployment systems, and models of infrastructure redesign; and to train the next generation of faculty, researchers and industry professionals.

Please check back as we develop our website and chronicle our work. We welcome your thoughts and feedback.