Footprint Evaluation Initiative

Footprint logo - stand of trees shaped like a footprint on the left with the words Footprint Evaluation: Evaluatio for environmental sustainability

The Footprint Evaluation Initiative is a co-creation and research project hosted by BetterEvaluation and supported by the Global Evaluation Initiative.

It is grounded in the premise that all evaluations should include consideration of environmental sustainability, even when this is not a stated goal of the intervention. This is so that decision-making can take into account the potential and actual impacts of planned interventions (projects, programs, policies) on the environment.

Content supported by this partner

  • This resource, from the Footprint Evaluation Initiative, discusses how the six evaluation criteria of the OECD DAC (Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development – Development Assistance Committee) can be used to get environmental sustainability on the agenda for evaluations and monitoring. Authors and their affiliation Footprint Evaluation Initiative
  • This Footprint Evaluation case study explores the feasibility and value of considering environmental sustainability in the evaluation of personal protective equipment (PPE) provisioning during the COVID-19 pandemic. This case study is not a comprehensive evaluation of PPE provisioning but a scoping of how it might be done.
  • This case study looked at how environmental sustainability might be addressed as part of a mid-term evaluation of a national strategy for private sector development. The case explored possible methods and processes for addressing environmental sustainability in an evaluation at a national scale and some of the factors that support or hinder applying these methods and processes.
  • In part one of this three-part webinar series, Andy Rowe and Patricia Rogers discuss what was learnt during the Footprint Evaluation Initiative’s ‘thought experiments', as well as diving into what it means to evaluate ‘at the nexus’ of human and natural systems.
  • In part two of this three-part webinar series, Jane Davidson and Patricia Rogers discuss several ways to get sustainability on the evaluation agenda, even for projects that have no explicit environmental objectives and where there is no mention of environmental considerations in the Terms of Reference.
  • In the last part of this three-part webinar series, Andy Rowe and Patricia Rogers introduce a typology being developed that will assist a wide range of evaluations in assessing the effect of interventions on natural systems and sustainability. Does the intervention achieve the standard we need where no net harm is caused to natural systems, does it contribute to the restoration of natural systems, or is it harmful to these systems?
  • This Footprint Evaluation Initiative report describes four 'thought experiments' undertaken as part of this project. The thought experiments involved revisiting a past, real-life evaluation and walking through how this could have been done differently to incorporate considerations of environmental sustainability. This resource and the following information was contributed by Alice Macfarlan.
  • This is a simple step by step guide to using The World Factbook to find the international environmental agreements a country has signed up to. This resource and the following information was contributed by Kaye Stevens. Authors and their affiliation Kaye Stevens, BetterEvaluation Key features This is a step by step guide to using The Worldfact Book to identify the international environmental agreements and conventions that a country is a party to, or has signed up to but not yet ratified.
  • The key evaluation questions (KEQs) are designed to support the inclusion of environmental sustainability by embedding consideration of the environment in each evaluation question rather than adding environmental considerations as a standalone question. This resource and the following information was contributed by Kaye Stevens.
  • Las preguntas de evaluación clave (PECs) están diseñadas para apoyar la inclusión de la sostenibilidad ambiental al incorporar la consideración del medio ambiente en cada pregunta, en lugar de agregar consideraciones ambientales como una pregunta independiente. La siguiente información fue aportada por Kaye Stevens.
  • This guidance from the Footprint Evaluation Initiative aims to support those doing or overseeing evaluations to include environmental sustainability in feasible and useful ways. It draws on the authors' work on this issue over the past three years, including proof-of-concept evaluations that have been undertaken, as well as drawing on insights, tools and examples from others' work.
  • This session, presented as part of the 2023 gLocal Evaluation Week, explored different approaches to effectively address ecosystems' health and just transition in evaluations.