Yiyuan Qi
Research Fellow, Global China Initiative
- Education
- M.A., International Economics and International Political Economy, Johns Hopkins University
B.M., Accounting, University of International Business and Economics
B.A., Business English, University of International Business and Economics - yqi1@bu.edu
Yiyuan Qi is a Research Fellow at Boston University Global Development Policy Center, where she is the interim lead for the Data Analysis for Transparency and Accountability (D.A.T.A.) workstream. She supports the GDP Center’s public-facing data tools that track Chinese loans and investments across energy and infrastructure sectors, making complex financial flows accessible and actionable for researchers, journalists, and policymakers.
Before joining the GDP Center, Yiyuan worked at the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). At RMI she identified high-value data sources, automated data collection pipelines, and developed interactive dashboards to surface insights for stakeholders. At the IMF she supported economic research for the World Economic Outlook and built and maintained macroeconomic databases covering 190+ member countries.
Yiyuan holds a M.A. in International Political Economy and International Economics from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. While pursuing her degree, she gained research experience at the World Bank, Institute of International Finance, Hoover Institution, and the Atlantic Council. Her work focuses on the intersection of data analytics, energy and climate policy, and international finance.