Jade Clemons is associate director of the Center for Regional Economics at the Milken Institute in Santa Monica. Her work focuses on transforming research into sound policy initiatives that support sustainable economic development regionally and through a global lens. Financial technology, small business expansion, and the future of work are among her research interest areas. Prior to joining the Milken Institute, she obtained her Master of Economics degree from the University of Southern California, where her studies and research centered on behavioral economics and economic development, notably in Sub-Saharan Africa during an internship with the United Nations Development Programme, Regional Bureau for Africa. She holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Pepperdine University, as well as a law degree from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law and worked for several years as a commercial attorney in the tech sector. In addition, she has studied and interned in France and Serbia, respectively.