This study was conducted through student course work focused on the challenges posed by massive and persistent poverty across the world from a primarily economics perspective. This course included eight staff members from Busara Staff and students from Loyola Marymount University in the US. The research explored five key themes: risk aversion among Kenyan small-business owners, focusing on financial decisions, ii) women’s financial inclusion through the use of the ‘Hustler Fund’, iii) perceptions of the National Health Insurance Fund, iv) factors influencing credit use in low-income communities and lastly v) socioeconomic determinants of mental health and infectious diseases. The goal was to inform financial inclusion and public health strategies.