Research Group

Asresh Guttikonda

Graduate Research Assistant

As a Graduate Research Assistant supporting the Local Innovation Index project, Asresh is conducting research to inform the development of a quantitative tool that can be used to assess the presence and degree of innovation within a specific local setting. Asresh is completing his Masters in City Planning as a member of the International Development Group at MIT's Department of Urban Studies and Planning, and has a Bachelor of Technology and Master of Engineering in Chemical Engineering from Jawaharlal Nehru Technology University and Cornell University. He brings strengths in quantitative analysis as well as a strong interest in metrics around both sustainability and innovation to his work with IDIN.

Nah-yoon Shin

Graduate Research Assistant

As a Graduate Research Assistant with IDIN, Nah-yoon is conducting research on methods that are currently being used around the world to identify, analyze, map, and describe various elements of local innovation ecosystems. Nah-yoon is a doctoral candidate in the Environmental Policy and Planning group within MIT's Department of Urban Studies and Planning, and has a Masters in City Planning and Bachelor of Science in Human Ecology from Seoul National University and Yonsei University in Korea.  Her dissertation research focuses on identifying novel local institutional arrangements that facilitate stakeholders' discussion of cost, benefits, and risks associated with energy facility siting in developing countries and she brings skills in identifying, mapping, and analyzing stakeholders and their interactions, as well as strong qualitative research skills to her work with IDIN.

Past Research Assistants

Sara Hess
Allegra Fonda-Bonardi
Qianqian Zhang
Lillian Steponaitis