“I am a researcher at heart. Curiosity is in my DNA. It has been a continuous quest throughout my career to understand how the world works and how to address problems that matter – as an academic researcher, as a futurist, and now as Managing Director of Dalberg Research. I am always on the hunt for the nuggets of knowledge that open eyes, spark inspiration or reframe entire problems.”

In a world grappling with complex challenges, from climate change to global health disparities, research is critical. By combining rigorous data analysis with deep-rooted human understanding, Dr. Jasper Grosskurth, Managing Director of Dalberg Research, has made significant contributions to generating insights in data scarce geographies in fields as diverse as climate science, public health, and economic development.

Based in Kenya, Jasper Grosskurth has been with Dalberg since 2011 and specializes in designing data driven research studies that facilitate a positive change in the world.

This interview explores the challenges and opportunities emerging markets present, and the transformative power of technology in shaping the future, particularly livelihoods and climate change.

What drives your passion for research?

Problems that matter often require a shift in perspective that comes with research and data analysis. For example, one important insight we gained when studying rural unemployment is that small-scale agriculture, no matter how optimized, will not generate transformative income for rural communities. The breakthrough can come from introducing non-agricultural economic anchors, which can have a far greater impact on rural livelihoods. Whether it’s a well-run school, a research center, or a logistics hub, these anchors can drive meaningful change. This reframes the outdated notion that rural Africa is synonymous with agriculture—it’s time to recognize that rural economies need diversification to truly thrive.

Much of our work also requires us to uncover the small but crucial insights that explain why positive action stalls. For instance, smallholder farmers often prioritize cashflow over profit to ensure immediate survival, and they apply steep risk premiums when evaluating new farming techniques, given the potential downside. These behaviors—while rational in their context—explain why many well-designed projects that appear promising on paper struggle to gain traction in practice. By not accounting for these realities, initiatives that seem viable in theory fail to align with the real-world priorities of farmers, leading to low adoption rates.

In the context of urban development, research has shown that investing in smart infrastructure, like broadband internet and public transportation, can transform urban economies, fostering innovation and creating jobs outside of traditional sectors. This kind of research-driven perspective opens new opportunities in sectors often overlooked.

What is the impact of research?

Good research reduces risk and optimizes chances of success.

The results of great research projects have a profound impact. First and foremost, research generates insights that guide strategies, interventions and investments to where the desired impact is most needed or most likely to unfold to its full potential. In the process, research tests pre-conceived notions, opens alternative pathways, creates alignment and provides direction.

But our research is always in a supporting role – it’s not an end in itself. There are many interesting questions out there to explore, but we focus on those where we expect that stakeholders will genuinely change their actions based on the outcomes, even if those insights are uncomfortable. For example, we found in one evaluation study that out of 1,000 farmers who had been trained in a specific farming technique only 100 were fully trained as intended and only 5 had adopted the practice. The insight created a crisis in the project but led to a much-improved technique and training approach for the next cycle with adoption rates jumping to over 80%, and significantly better outcomes for the farmers.

Similarly, we’ve worked with education initiatives where research confirmed the effectiveness of targeted interventions in increasing school attendance and improving learning outcomes. By testing pre-conceived notions and creating alignment, research can significantly amplify positive outcomes.

Luckily, our work is just as much about the positives: since research also drives positive momentum. Confirming the market size and target populations for a great clean cooking or mobility solution offers the initiators an opportunity to refine their product and to raise the funds required for pilots and roll outs. Over the years we have helped scores of products launch and grow, particularly in African markets.

What are the most significant challenges you face when collecting and analyzing data in emerging markets, and how do you overcome them?

Dalberg Research thrives in data scarce environments, where textbook approaches often need adjustment. Without abundant reference data, basic research skills – such as developing a robust sampling frame, engaging with hard-to-reach respondents, identifying useful control groups or validating a satellite proxy – demand creativity. Here, experience, openness to learn and collaboration are key ingredients to success. Experience allows us to draw on a library of solutions, openness to learn enables us to understand why certain approaches might be more or less useful in a very specific context and collaboration ensures that everyone who will eventually work with the data is aligned with the process and able to use the results as intended. These are the challenges we love tackling.

What recent advancements in research technology have you found most beneficial in enhancing your work?

Advances in satellite technology have driven a lot of our work. Dalberg Research uniquely combines field data collection, secondary data analytics and advanced geospatial expertise at scale. We host LOCAN, one of Africa’s largest geospatial research databases with more than 30 billion data points. It consistently delivers great insights every time we apply it to a new problem. For instance, we developed a tool using LOCAN to identify suitable agricultural land in Malawi. By integrating diverse satellite datasets on land usage, agricultural suitability, land ownership, and infrastructure, we gave investors comprehensive data at each stage of their decision-making process. This allowed them to identify suitable agricultural land based on specific criteria, consult with local experts for deeper insights, and navigate the processes of purchase, registration, and land use more efficiently, ultimately contributing to economic growth in the region.

This tool is just one example of how a promising technology can be leveraged by our teams to support similar initiatives across Africa and beyond to answer questions like: Where are the best places to roll out clean cooking solutions? What is the job potential of agroforestry? How much renewable energy potential exists in Senegal? What is the catchment area of hospitals in Bangladesh?

You mentioned your enthusiasm for problems that matter. One of the biggest problems of our time is the climate crisis. How is that reflected in your research portfolio?

Our climate work focuses on three main angles – vulnerability, opportunity and people. Recently, we helped the Rockefeller Foundation assess which types of infrastructure in India are most susceptible to various climate risks, such as droughts, floods, storms and heat waves. We mapped out the current and future climatic risk hazards associated with drought, heat, precipitation, and cyclones on roads, powerplants and buildings along India’s coast providing crucial information for effective climate preparedness.

Across Africa, we focus heavily on climate opportunities. The continent’s young population, abundant renewable energy potential, and availability of key resources make Africa a highly competitive location for green industrialization and carbon removal at scale. This could be a vehicle to create more than 100 million jobs in Africa and lift much of the continent to middle income status.

Finally, we also study local sentiments and choices. In a recent project, we surveyed tertiary education institutions across Latin America, Africa and Asia about their decisions to adopt or reject new, climate-relevant courses and degrees. Without a deep understanding of such choices, the change we aim for will remain elusive.

Health is another major impact area with rapidly evolving data needs. Can you describe how the role of data in health is changing in the regions you serve?

In emerging markets health data is often scarce, hard to access or both. Government systems typically capture only the most common or most pressing health issues, and the data often suffers from gaps and inconsistencies. Our colleagues at Dalberg Data Insights excel at making this information useful and accessible.

At Dalberg Research we typically work closer to the ground. For instance, we conduct monthly and quarterly visits to health facilities from the Philippines to Senegal to study health related choices people make such as identifying their sources of health information and advice, drivers of healthy choices, behaviors, and the nudges that promote healthier lifestyles.

Our geospatial team is also planning a series of studies that will combine highly specialized geospatial health data with broader socio-economic, cultural, environmental, and cultural data. This will help us develop new hypotheses to explain differences in health outcomes between areas that initially appear very similar.