Dr. Bardasi has been writing and publishing on female entrepreneurship, female employment and gender issues in formal and informal labor markets, wage differentials, occupational segregation, and time use.

She has contributed to the Africa Competitiveness Report and to several Investment Climate Assessments of Sub-Saharan African countries and has co-edited a special issue on Female Entrepreneurship in Small Business Economics.

Prior to her current position, Bardasi was part of the Gender Unit of the World Bank Poverty Reduction and Economic Management network. Before joining the Bank she was Senior Economist at the Institute for Social and Economic Research at the University of Essex (UK), working on issues of labor market dynamics, poverty dynamics, poverty in old age, and family policies in OECD countries.

Elena earned her Ph.D. in Economics from the European University Institute.