Ricardo Paes de Barros is an engineer by ITA, Master in Statistics by IMPA, and Ph.D. in Economics by the University of Chicago. He integrated the IPEA for over 30 years, dedicating himself to the themes of inequality and poverty, labor market, and education. Mr. Paes was a visiting professor at Yale University, director of the Social Studies Council of the IPEA, undersecretary of Strategic Actions of the Secretariat for Strategic Affairs of the Presidency of the Republic, and president of the National Commission on Population and Development. He has published several articles and books, receiving significant awards in recognition of his work, such as the Haralambos Simeonidis, the Mario Henrique Simonsen Award, and the first edition of the Celso Furtado Award in Social Studies, of The World Academy of Sciences. He was honored with the commendation of the National Order of Scientific Merit and elected a full member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences. He is currently a Full Professor at Insper, where he dedicates himself to the use of scientific evidence for the identification of national challenges, formulation, and evaluation of public policies.