Mara Balasa

Mara is a PhD Fellow at the Center for Statecraft and Strategic Communication. She is currently researching the clean energy transition with a focus on industrial policy and industrial decarbonisation. Her papers estimate the costs associated with producing low-carbon steel, propose a carbon contracts for difference scheme, and assess the capacity of a state to overcome opposition to climate policy.

During her MSc degree, Mara was the recipient of the UniCredit Foundation Masterscholarship for top students. She has been a short term consultant at the World Bank, a market operations analyst at the European Central Bank and a research executive in public affairs in Brussels, focusing on energy and transport. Mara has also briefly worked in public administration at the Ministry of Economy in Romania and at the Permanent Representation of Romania to the European Union.