James Foster

James Foster and Sabina Alkire developed the Alkire Foster Method for Multidimensional Poverty Measurement, a measurement that allows for a more holistic approach to identifying poverty globally, taking into account dimensions like health or education, in a departure from traditional income methods. Today, dozens of countries have adopted the method in their approach to poverty alleviation and the index is famously used in Bhutan's Gross National Happiness Index. In August 2015, multidimensional poverty was written into the United Nations Agenda for its Sustainable Development Goals, which was ratified in September of the same year.

His 1984 Econometrica paper, written jointly with Joel Greer and Erik Thorbecke, is one of the most highly cited papers on poverty. The paper established the Foster-Greer-Thornbecke Index, which has expanded into a family of poverty metrics. The paper was revisited in 2010 by Foster, Greer, and Thornbecke. Throughout his career, he also collaborated with Amartya Sen on economic inequality and Kaushik Basu on literacy.

James Eric Foster (born November 4, 1955) is Professor of Economics and International Affairs at the George Washington University, in the Elliott School of International Affairs, researching welfare economics and poverty measurement. He is known for developing the Alkire Foster Method, with fellow GW professor Sabina Alkire. He is a board member for the World Bank.