Erina Nishizaki is a second-year MPP student at Harvard Kennedy School. She was accepted into the Growth Lab’s 2026 Summer Internship Program and contributed to our North American Cities research agenda, where we are applying our City Growth Diagnostics framework to understand the unique economic challenges of these urban environments.
Why did you apply to the Growth Lab Summer Internship?
With three years of experience at the Japanese Ministry of Finance, I increasingly perceived a disconnect from the entirety of the policy cycle. As a ministry official, I became adept at distilling policy implementation using data from private-sector counterparts and at facilitating coordination across departments within the Ministry and with other ministries in Tokyo. However, I lacked the technical proficiency to independently compile and analyze data. I believe any public official should possess the expertise to formulate policy, the competencies to execute it, and the communication skills to articulate it. I was especially motivated to contribute at the subnational level, to actively engage with the PDCA cycle, and to invest in my development as a policymaker.
What did you work on?
In Albuquerque, New Mexico, I completed an eight-week graduate internship with the Economic Development Department. While learning the city’s key economic incentives through the Local Economic Development Act (LEDA) and Industrial Revenue Bond (IRB), as well as through site visits and stakeholder meetings, I discovered the city lacked a comprehensive, reliable dataset on these incentives. With my supervisor’s endorsement, I initiated a project to compile a definitive list of all LEDA and IRB projects authorized since their inception and to create an analytical slide deck to visualize the findings. I tracked IRB projects from 1979 and LEDA projects from 2004 through 2026, recording approval dates, company names, approved amounts, and other pertinent data. After assembling two Excel sheets for each incentive, I synthesized my findings into a slide deck of more than 20 pages. The central insight was that the city requires a more robust data infrastructure to fully comprehend these incentives.
In what ways were you challenged?
For IRB projects authorized prior to 1999, I had to rely on departmental paper records, which often contained fragmented and inconsistent information. Consequently, I adjusted the project’s scope from tracking project execution to tracking authorizations. Achieving a comprehensive execution status will necessitate cross-departmental collaboration, and I intended this summer project to serve as an initial milestone toward broader progress in the upcoming months.
What was your most exciting/surprising experience?
The internship underscored the significance and inherent complexity of data tracking. At the Ministry, our department frequently generated slides to visualize data sourced from private-sector partners. This summer, I engaged directly in data collection, which illuminated the necessity for a streamlined and systematic tracking mechanism in policy execution. Regardless of country or governmental tier, robust data is essential to substantive policy rationales and to garner widespread public support.
What advice would you give future Growth Lab interns?
It is crucial to clearly define the skills or experiences you aim to acquire during the internship and recalibrate your objectives as necessary. Articulate your personal motivations for investing time away from a hectic school life, and demonstrate strong initiative in steering your internship experience toward successful completion.
What’s next for you?
I see my project deliverables as a foundation for ongoing progress for both the city and me. With the city’s IRB program, in particular, facing increasing scrutiny, there is a pressing need for a data-driven, comprehensive strategy. A key lesson from this internship was the striking parallelism between the city and Japan regarding policy mechanisms and socioeconomic challenges. The department and I are eager to continue advancing this project to catalyze further progress.
