José Ronaldo Souza Júnior completed his doctorate in economics in 2013. Since 2017, he is the Director of Macroeconomic Policy and Research at Instituto de Pesquisa Econômica Aplicada – Ipea (The Brazilian Institute for Applied Economic Research). Dr. José has worked as a researcher at Ipea since 2004 and as a professor at Brazilian Business School (IBMEC) since 2013. He has economic research experience, specializing in economic growth, long-term economic scenarios, and macroeconomic policy.