Heather E. Lanthorn is a social and behavioral scientist who uses evidence to drive decisions and results. She is Co-Director of the Mercury Project, at the Social Science Research Council, building the evidence base about scalable, cost-effective programming to strengthen vaccine demand and uptake around the world. She is also a Board Member at Feedback Labs.
She aims to bring more evidence into all stages of the policy-making process–including the implementation and organizational change required by programmatic and policy updates–in pursuit of more effective, dignity-affirming systems. Prior to joining SSRC, Heather worked at IDinsight, the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation, and Innovations for Poverty Action.
1
Public policy
I believe our world urgently needs more public policy that promotes dignity, public health, and equality of opportunity.
2
Evidence and implementation
I work at the intersection of evidence, design, and policy implementation.
3
Critical thinking
I value creativity and collaborative approaches to .
4
Details
I think about the nitty gritty details it takes for a policy to happen.
Heather consults on these topics
- vaccine literacy
- health systems
- program design
- preparing for evaluation
- qualitative methods
Experience
The Mercury Project at the Social Science Research Council
Co-Director of The Mercury Project, 2021-Present
Bringing together social and behavior scientists around the world into dialogue with each other. Our goal is to support research on cost-effective and scalable solutions to build vaccine demand and healthier information environments. Our funding partners include The Rockefeller Foundation, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Craig Newmark Philanthropies, and the National Science Foundation.
View projects
Leveraging the Mercury Project Research Framework, by Heather Lanthorn for Items: Insights from the Social Sciences
Supporting the Call for Philanthropy at Scale, by Heather Lanthorn and Rebecca Gluskin for the Social Science Research Council
Feedback Labs
Board Member, 2023-Present
Feedback is a two-way stream of communication between a designer of a program or service and the people who use them. We’re working to make feedback the norm in aid, philanthropy, nonprofits, and government.
IDinsight
Board of Advisors, 2023-Present
Consultant, 2022-Present
Associate Director, 2018-2021
Senior Manager, 2016-2018
IDinsight advises global development leaders to meet their practical questions with rigorous evidence. Heather served on the Research, Evaluation, and Data (RED) team, digging deep on the details of programs and policies: to understand what’s working, what’s not, why not, and where to best allocate resources. Clients include NGOs, governments, philanthropies, and social enterprises.
International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie)
Evaluation Specialist, 2013-2015
3ie is a global leader in funding, producing, quality-assuring and synthesizing rigorous evidence. Heather managed a portfolio of 25+ impact evaluations in health and social protection.
Innovations for Poverty Action (IPA)
Program Associate and co-Principal Invesitgator (PI), 2011
IPA creates high-quality evidence, shares evidence strategically, and equips decision-makers to use it to improve the lives of people living in poverty. We collaborated to conceptualize, execute, and public impact evaluation on adherence to malaria medication.
Find details of Heather’s work experience on LinkedIn.
Leadership, affiliations, and other experience
- Adjunct Professor at the University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health
- Steering Committee member for Boost Blue Ridge, from the Buncombe County immunization coalition.
- Serves on the IDinsight Board of Advisors.
- Advisory Board Member for The Clarity Foundation.
- An affiliate at the Busara Center for Behavioral Economics in Kenya.
- A researcher at The Dignity Project at IDinsight where we provide tools, advice, and new research to support leaders to build programs, services, and funding streams that affirm the dignity of those they seek to support.
- Was a consultant for Bicycle Health, telehealth treatment for opioid use disorder.
- Was a Teaching Assistant and Fellow at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
- Was a Fulbright Fellow at the Madras Diabetes Research Foundation (MDRF) conducting mixed-method research on perceptions of diabetes risk in urban slums.
- Was an AmeriCoprs VISTA volunteer for Habitat for Humanity developing materials on homeownership and home maintenance.
Heather E. Lanthorn 