Valerie Mueller received her Ph.D. in Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of Maryland. She is currently an Associate Professor in the School of Politics and Global Studies at Arizona State University (ASU). Prior to joining ASU, she was an economist at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), and an Earth Institute Postdoctoral Fellow at Columbia University. Dr. Mueller has devoted her career to measuring rural household vulnerability to climate variability in Africa and Asia. Her recent interest is in identifying the extent to which existing poverty-reduction programs prompt improved adaptation practices in low-and middle-income country settings.