Dr Saite Lu is the Mead Fellow in Economics at Emmanuel College, Cambridge and an Affiliated Researcher at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy. His current research focus is on national accounting and its applications in shaping sustainable development policies. He works closely with Professor Diane Coyle on the Wealth Economy project at the Bennett Institute for Public Policy, which investigates the role of missing capitals (e.g. natural, human and social capital) in the economy and how to improve economic development on the wealth approach. These capitals together with a responsive financial system are the missing pieces that are absolutely essential in achieving the UN's sustainable development goals.

Saite also actively engages in research topics such as macro-finance and empirical macroeconomic modelling. He is currently leading a research project, together with Dr Ken Coutts and Dr Graham Gudgin at Cambridge, that aims to develop an empirical Stock-flow Consistent (SFC) financial forecasting model for the UK economy. The modelling framework would enable researchers to better understand the interlinkages between the real economy and the financial sector. Outside academia, he has spent several years working as a professional economist. He was a macro-fiscal adviser for the governments of Sierra Leone, South Sudan, and Ethiopia. His work on the development of macroeconomic forecasting frameworks has played an essential role in assisting the policy formulation and budget preparation in these countries during some tremendously challenging periods, such as the Ebola crisis and the COVID-19 crisis.