Miria A. Pigato

Miria A. Pigato is a Visiting Professor at the Department of Economics, Ca' Foscari University of Venice, teaching "The Economics of Climate Change" (EM1501) during March-June periods from 2023 through 2025. She brings over 30 years of international experience from the World Bank, where she served in various senior positions including Lead Economist and Climate Lead in the Macroeconomics, Trade, and Investment Global Practice (2017-2022).

Her educational background includes a Ph.D. in Economics from University College London (1985), a Master in Economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science (1981), and a Laurea degree in Economics, magna cum Laude, from Ca' Foscari University (1979). She has also completed additional training including Climate Change Policy at the Kennedy School (2021) and a Sustainable Development Leadership Program at Oxford (2008).

Pigato's research focuses on climate economics, macroeconomic and fiscal reforms, trade policies, poverty reduction, and income redistribution. Her work bridges theoretical economic frameworks with practical policy implementation in developing countries. She has extensive experience integrating climate considerations into macroeconomic frameworks and fiscal policy design, particularly through her leadership in creating the Climate Action Peer Exchange (CAPE) and the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action.

Her publication record demonstrates consistent contributions to development economics, with recent work heavily focused on climate economics and low-carbon development. The trend in her research shows an evolution from traditional development economics and trade policy toward the integration of climate considerations into macroeconomic and fiscal frameworks, reflecting the growing importance of climate action in development policy.

Pigato has supervised approximately 50 development policy operations across Africa, South Asia, Central Asia, North Africa, and the Caribbean during 2005-2017. She has led major initiatives including the first Economic Rehabilitation Support Credit for Ethiopia post-conflict and the Country Assistance Strategy for Tanzania. Her work with the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Action has brought together fiscal policymakers from over 80 countries to advance global climate response.

She has been instrumental in organizing numerous high-level workshops and conferences on climate economics, including the Climate Action Peer Exchange workshops on Environmental Fiscal Policies for Climate Action in Shanghai, Arusha, and Marseille, as well as technical workshops on the Macroeconomics of Climate Change in Washington D.C.