wicked problems

FIE TIG Week: Donna M. Mertens on Evaluation’s Contribution to Solving Wicked Problems

My name is Donna M. Mertens and I am an independent consultant based in Washington DC; my work is both domestic and international. I had the honor of being the keynote speaker at the Minnesota Evaluation Studies Institute (MESI) in March 2015. The MESI theme was Social Justice amidst Standards and Accountability: The Challenge for Evaluation. The concept of social justice in the context of evaluation implies that evaluators can play a role in addressing those wicked problems that persist in society, such as violence, lack of access to quality education for all, poverty, substance abuse, and environmental pollution.

GAO Week: Complexity and Coherence in Government, Evidence, and Evaluation Methods by Steven Putansu

Hello evaluators! I am Steven Putansu, an assistant director and methodologist in the Government Accountability Office (GAO) Applied Research & Methods team. GAO follows federal dollars everywhere they are spent, which provides many opportunities to apply evaluation across a wide variety of contexts. I have worked across the agency, including work on education, defense, immigration, …

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GAO Week: Finding Our Roots and Bonds, AEA at 35 and GAO at 100 by Valerie Jean Caracelli

Colleagues, Happy Anniversary! Each anniversary is a time when we take stock of what brings us to today and where we are headed tomorrow. This week we celebrate the close collegial relationship between the American Evaluation Association (AEA) and the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) throughout these 35 years. This week’s entries will address GAO’s …

GAO Week: Finding Our Roots and Bonds, AEA at 35 and GAO at 100 by Valerie Jean Caracelli Read More »

MESI Week: Donna M. Mertens on Evaluation’s Contribution to Solving Wicked Problems

My name is Donna M. Mertens and I am an independent consultant based in Washington DC; my work is both domestic and international. I had the honor of being the keynote speaker at the Minnesota Evaluation Studies Institute (MESI) in March 2015. The MESI theme was Social Justice amidst Standards and Accountability: The Challenge for …

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