Lukas Wellner

Lukas Wellner is a Research Fellow at Monash University affiliated with SoDa Laboratories, specializing in political economy and development research. His work integrates large-scale spatial data and applied econometrics to address migration-development dynamics, foreign aid efficacy, public perceptions, and conflict analysis, with direct policy relevance.

His academic credentials include:

• PhD in Economics from the University of Göttingen
• Master's in International Political Economy from the London School of Economics and Political Science
• Undergraduate Economics studies across Bayreuth, Bordeaux, and São Paulo universities

Wellner's research program critically examines how bureaucratic behavior influences development outcomes and how foreign aid shapes migration patterns. His methodological approach combines spatial econometrics with large-N datasets to generate policy-relevant insights, particularly regarding perception-formation in conflict zones and aid effectiveness.

His publication record features high-impact outlets including the American Journal of Political Science, with recent work analyzing bureaucratic bias and foreign aid-migration linkages demonstrating interdisciplinary reach across political science and development economics.

Scientific recognition includes:

• Bojanovsky Prize (University of Mannheim, June 2025) for research on biased bureaucrats

No information regarding student supervision or research grants appears in available sources.

As a core member of Monash University's SoDa Laboratories, Wellner contributes to advanced data-driven social science research initiatives focusing on development challenges and policy evaluation.