Katja Vinha

Senior Policy Research Analyst

Katja Vinha is the Senior Policy Research Analyst at the Sycamore Institute, an independent, nonpartisan public policy research center for Tennessee. She brings over 15 years of applied research experience translating data and evidence into actionable insights on poverty, health, and welfare policy. In this role, Katja merges her passion for research-informed decision-making with her extensive background in applied welfare and development economics, working to turn complex data into clear, actionable information on Tennessee public policy. 

Prior to joining Sycamore, Katja was an independent consultant for the World Bank, researching poverty and welfare outcomes across Sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia and Pacific, and Latin America — including work on labor markets, agricultural shocks and drought resilience, and health and nutrition outcomes. Her research has been published in peer-reviewed journals and she contributed to numerous World Bank publications, such as Forward-Looking Household Climate Vulnerability Curves to Inform Poverty Reduction Policy and All Hands on Deck: Reducing Stunting through Multisectoral Efforts in Sub-Saharan Africa. She has also taught at the Faculty of Economics at Universidad de Los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia. 

Katja holds a Ph.D. in agricultural and resource economics from the University of Maryland, College Park, and a bachelor’s degree in economics and in environmental studies from Macalester College. 

She moved to the Nashville area in 2020 with her husband and two children and enjoys exploring the local scene as well as traveling to far-flung places. 

OUR TEAM
MORE ABOUT SYCAMORE
Why Our Work Matters

We all want thriving communities where people enjoy good health, social and financial well-being, and the chance to make meaningful contributions to society. Most of our disagreements are about how to get there.

Sycamore plays a unique role in Tennessee’s civic life—bridging those divides by equipping decision-makers, journalists, citizens, and public and private sector leaders across the state with impartial, data-driven resources to identify, understand, and solve big challenges. We empower people to more effectively weigh—and weigh in on—the policy and institutional questions that shape our daily lives.

Tennesseans with wide-ranging perspectives rely on Sycamore’s clear and actionable insights and analyses.  Over the years, our work has informed public and private sector decisions on state and local education funding, TennCare, medical debt, philanthropy, transportation, criminal justice, the state budget, and more.

Many nonprofit organizations also rely on Sycamore for trusted, objective information about issues that affect their work—including both policy analyses and technical assistance on strategic and program planning.

No matter how you use Sycamore’s work, we are proud to help Tennesseans make informed decisions and navigate complex challenges.

What Is Public Policy?

Public policy is what governments choose to do (or not do) about public problems. It includes laws, regulations, funding priorities, and any actions of our governing institutions and the people who run them. Public policy affects almost every aspect of our lives—where we live, where we learn, where we work, and where we wander.

How We Engage

By fostering open dialogue and providing unbiased, data-driven insights, we empower Tennesseans to participate in the policy-making process and advocate for their communities. We do this by:

1. Producing and communicating relevant, accessible, impartial, and data-driven research and analysis.

2. Engaging and building strong relationships with decision-makers and stakeholders from across Tennessee.

3. Convening and equipping Tennesseans to thoughtfully assess and address public challenges.

To get involved with Sycamore’s work, subscribe to our emails, follow us on social media, attend our events, and join the ranks of our donors!

Our Origin

The Sycamore Institute grew out of the bold vision of a diverse group of community leaders from across Tennessee who saw the need for an independent, nonpartisan public policy research center focused on our state.

With the leadership and support of The Healing Trust, approximately 80 of these leaders representing a broad range of professions, political views, and personal experiences engaged in a 3-day collaborative design process. Their goal: design an organization to inform and support the creation of sound, sustainable public policy for Tennessee through reliable, accessible, and data-driven research and analysis.

The name they chose reflects the strengths of Tennessee’s native sycamore: a unique, long-lived tree with strong roots that stands tall and spreads seed far and wide.

The Sycamore Institute launched in 2015 and quickly built a reputation as a reliable source of unbiased information about issues that affect and connect Tennesseans’ health, prosperity, and public policy.