Alumni Profile: Liana Lan, IPAL’20, MPP’23

It is a Saturday in mid-May and Liana Lan, IPAL’20 and MPP’23, sits poised at a piano as the last of Chopin’s Nocturne No. 20 rings out in the University of Chicago’s Goodspeed Hall. She is in her element in the place where she has volunteered, played, and hosted many concerts over her two years as a student at the Harris School of Public Policy.

Born in Wuxi near Shanghai, Lan first began playing piano when she was five years old. “Chopin is the reason I picked up this instrument,” she said. “Brilliant composers like him have so many colors, textures, and emotions in their music. During a time of depression—especially in the very competitive social environment of high school in China—I found a lot of comfort in Chopin’s melodies.”

Lan said she first became interested in the University of Chicago while pursuing her BA in economic geography and geographical information system at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. “Since my bachelor’s degree is in science, I studied coding, math, and other quantitative skills. A few summers ago, I saw that Harris was recruiting students for the International Policy Action Lab (IPAL). The Lab’s description, exploring the intersection between data science and sociology, seemed a great way to practice my quantitative skills in a way that makes a social impact.” Lan said her IPAL experience made such an impression that she not only went on to be a Coding Teaching Assistant for the program but also decided to apply to the Harris Master of Public Policy program.

While at Harris, Lan has found her passion for Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) and Impact Investing. “In one class on ESG impact investing, we had talks with industry specialists each class session. We were exposed to new and diverse concepts, as well as ways to measure social and climate impact as it relates to finance.”

A few months before graduation, through an information session organized by the Career Development Office (CDO), Lan connected with her current supervisor from HIP Investor, which led to Lan securing her role as an ESG Impact Investing Analyst. “CDO was a great resource—they helped me improve my resume and prepare for interviews. It’s so inspiring to have this opportunity to pivot to impact investing based on my experiences here. I mean, without Harris, I wouldn’t even know about ESG—or this career path.”

While at Harris, Lan also pursued a Certificate in Finance and Policy and worked as a research assistant at the Center for Spatial Digital Science. She also served as a research fellow at the Energy Policy Institute of the University of Chicago (EPIC), where she supported Assistant Professor Shaoda Wang with data acquisition and cleaning. “I was lucky to work for such a passionate and successful young economist and researcher. He was incredibly encouraging and actually wrote me a letter of recommendation for my job hunting.”

At HIP Investor, Lan will be developing a more comprehensive and scientific framework to provide ESG ratings for municipal bonds and evaluate client companies’ investment portfolios for social and environmental responsibility. “The social issue that I am most concerned about is global equity—I’m looking forward to delving into that work at HIP Investor. Hopefully, we will foster the transition toward a more environmentally sustainable, socially inclusive world.