Isabelle Cohen is an Assistant Professor at the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance at the University of Washington, focusing on development and public economics. She holds a PhD in Economics from UC Berkeley (2021), and a Master's in Public Policy (2012) and a Bachelor's in International Relations (2011), both from the College of William & Mary.

She studies innovations and their potential to change the implementation of governmental and non-governmental activities and services in developing countries, using large-scale randomized control trials to rigorously evaluate new technologies and organizational methods. Her work also touches on many other important issues, including state capacity, education, financial inclusion, and women's empowerment, in countries including India and Uganda.