BetterEvaluation blog
Shared knowledge and experience from the global evaluation community.
- As the humanitarian sector reconsiders its purpose and scope, sustainability risks becoming an afterthought, precisely when it is most needed. In this blog, Claudio Alberti (OECD Development Co-operation Directorate), Sofiya Yuvshanova (UNICEF Europe and Central Asia Regional Office), and Samandar Mahmodi (Afghan Evaluation Society) draw on recent evaluations and the OECD DAC criteria to argue that sustainability remains relevant in humanitarian settings when applied flexibly, with attention to systems, ownership, and adaptive pathways.
Using rubrics to explore pathways to scale: Navigating the Integration of Graduation into Public Systems
In this blog, Arnaldo Pellini, Kristian Paolo Torres, and Tania Dora Warokka reflect on their experience developing and testing a rubric to support dialogue and learning as complex initiatives are integrated into public systems.
What does feminist evaluation offer for M&E in fragile and conflict-affected settings?
In this blog, Rai Sengupta examines how feminist principles, including intersectionality, systems thinking, participatory practice, and political reflexivity, can strengthen accountability and justice in crisis contexts.
The five stages of AI adoption: A field guide for evaluators
This blog by Jonathan Kuhn-Patrick (UK Evaluation Society Trustee and AI Working Group Lead) explores the five emotional stages many evaluators experience as they begin working with AI.
Colombia’s journey in sustainability-inclusive evaluation: Insights from the first country-led Footprint Evaluation
This blog describes Colombia’s first country-led application of the Footprint Evaluation approach, where the Department of National Planning integrated environmental sustainability into an evaluation of government IT systems across 110 entities. It shows how sustainability-inclusive evaluation can be implemented within existing budgets and timelines, while also shifting decision-makers’ thinking towards more systemic, procurement-focused responses to environmental impacts.What can we learn from evaluation advocates to help embed evaluation in organisations?
Integrating evaluation into the routine operations of an organisation isn’t easy. In addition to policies and training, it requires the energy and commitment of individuals who help keep evaluation on the agenda. This blog by Alison Rogers and Amy Gullickson shares insights from Alison's doctoral research with evaluation advocates about the strategies they use to embed evaluation in Australian non-profit organisations.From synthesis to practice: Co-creating a toolkit for Feminist Evaluation in crisis settings
In this blog, Rai Sengupta, an evaluation consultant with UNICEF and experienced practitioner in gender and social policy, explores how feminist evaluation approaches are being adapted to meet the complexities of crisis settings.Rethinking impact: How we capture what matters to women entrepreneurs
This blog explores how CARE has worked to strengthen measurement by grounding indicators in the voices of women entrepreneurs.
Rethinking youth engagement in evaluation
In this blog, Daniel Valckx reflects on his experience of conducting evaluations using youth-sensitive approaches, discussing the role of youth in evaluation and making the case for meaningful engagement.Principle-led planning for analysis with artificial intelligence (AI)
Are you thinking about using Generative AI (Gen AI) to analyze your qualitative data? A principle-led analysis plan may help you navigate this process and make decisions that are both ethically sound and practical for your analysis task.How the DECI mentoring framework supports increasing policy influence through evaluation and communication
The Designing Evaluation and Communication for Impact and Adaptation (DECI) project is a research and capacity development project supported by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC).Navigating the social ecosystem: How Looped can help young and emerging evaluators kickstart their careers
Many people enter the field of monitoring and evaluation because they want to have a positive impact on the world and communities around them. But knowing how exactly to put this career goal into action is often really difficult.
Moving organisations from “having to” to “wanting to” evaluate: Five recommendations for practice
Organisations can foster a culture where evaluation is embraced as a valuable tool for learning and decision-making rather than a compliance requirement.
Introducing the new BetterEvaluation career guide: Positionality statement and introduction from Maria Montenegro
Our positionality influences the design, implementation, and interpretation of findings in our evaluations. In the same way, people’s positionality shapes their opinions, the opportunities they have, and the choices they can make in their career.The role of youth in evaluation
In today's world, we are facing a series of interconnected global challenges—sometimes referred to as a ‘polycrisis’. For young people (and many not-so-young people), it often feels like issues such as climate change, social injustice, and inequality have always been a reality.How well do we think about the future? Foresight Evaluation
Foresight is the capacity to think systematically about the future to inform decision-making today. It focuses on investigating the drivers of change and exploring possible futures to inform planning and policymaking (Conway, 2015).