The Program on Law and Political Economy at Harvard Law School is hiring three research
assistants to help develop a research agenda for the program’s Freedom from Want initiative.
This year’s areas of focus will be housing, transportation, childcare, education, energy, and
food. Each researcher will work up to 8 hours/week in close collaboration with Faculty Director
Yochai Benkler and Executive Director R.H. Lossin to produce a “state of the field” report on
two subjects by the end of November. The position is for the Fall 2026 semester with the
possibility of further involvement in research and writing in Spring 2027. We are interested in
applications from JDs and SJDs.
To apply, please send a letter describing your interest in Freedom from Want (see program
description below), as well as your interest in researching two of the topics listed; a C.V.; and
contact information for two references to: [email protected] by September 18 th 2026.
You must be enrolled at Harvard and living in the United States to apply.
Freedom from Want seeks enduring changes in the political and economic policies that determine
access to basic resources such as healthy food, housing, healthcare, expansive lifelong education,
water, air, energy, transportation, communications, child and elder care, freedom from physical
violence, and the means for building a dignified life. We believe that the United States has the material
and institutional resources necessary for every one of its inhabitants to live a life free from the threat
of homelessness, hunger, preventable illness, toxic environments, debt, and state and interpersonal
violence. Freedom from Want aims to assemble the intellectual resources necessary to realize real
freedom through a combination of concrete and achievable policy proposals and political theory
addressed to the structural inequities of the 21st century.
Freedom from Want can only result from the meaningful decommodification of basic needs and the
creation of markets that are both embedded in social life and democratically controlled. This will
require policymaking that takes struggle, conflict, politics, and coalition-building seriously. It will also
require robust and imaginative theoretical contributions capable of shifting intellectual paradigms and
introducing unorthodox ideas into the common political vocabulary.
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The Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator (VPA) is a center housed at Vanderbilt Law School to researching, developing, and advancing innovative ideas in political economy and regulation. VPA focuses on addressing a wide range of critical issues, including competition policy and antitrust, AI governance, public options, networks, platforms and utilities, consumer pricing and protection, and industrial policy.
The Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator (VPA) Legal Fellows program brings together law students (2Ls and 3Ls) interested in government, policy, economic regulation, and public interest. A key focus of the program is the study of Networks, Platforms, and Utilities (NPUs), including the legal and political economy frameworks governing transportation, communications, energy, banking, technology / AI, and many other sectors.
Legal Fellows will have the opportunity to engage with VPA’s work across a multitude of different policy areas through monthly workshops featuring expert guest speakers. In addition, legal fellows can opt to be considered for Research Assistant (RA) positions directly with VPA’s directors. These RA positions offer hands on-research experience and competitive hourly pay.
How to apply/get involved:
If you are interested in joining the VPA legal fellows program, please complete the application form below by 11:59pm CDT on September 21st.
If you have any questions, please contact [email protected].