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Theory of Change

Best of aea365: Carolyn Cohen on Appreciative Inquiry: Small Scale Use

Hello, I am Carolyn Cohen, owner of Cohen Research & Evaluation, LLC, based in Seattle Washington. I specialize in program evaluation and strategic learning related to innovations in the social change and education arenas.  I have been infusing elements of Appreciative Inquiry into my work for many years.  Appreciative Inquiry is an asset-based approach, developed …

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Veronica Olazabal and Karim Harji on Market-Based Approaches to Poverty Alleviation: Ways to Engage as an Evaluator

Hi, Veronica Olazabal, senior associate director of evaluation at The Rockefeller Foundation here with Karim Harji, director at Purpose Capital. As many of you already know, market-based approaches to poverty alleviation are gaining traction across the social sector. A range of innovative strategies are being used to finance these initiatives, including impact investing—an approach to …

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CLEAR Week: Lycia Lima on Improving Impact Evaluation Planning

I am Lycia Lima, the executive coordinator of the newest CLEAR center- for Brazil and Lusophone (Portuguese-speaking) Africa. We’re formally joining CLEAR later this year and are planning our inauguration in October 2015. I was also one of the organizers involved in the formation of the Brazilian M&E Network – Rede Brasileira de Monitoramento e …

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CP TIG Week: Rachel Leventon on Using theory of change in evaluating community coalitions and collaboratives

My name is Rachel Leventon, and I am a consultant at CNM Connect, a nonprofit capacity building organization. Most of my work focuses on training, coaching, and consulting to increase the internal program evaluation capacities of nonprofit organizations and collaboratives. I am a sociologist at heart so theory informs everything I do. As a result, …

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Sheila B. Robinson on Theory of Change vs Logic Model – A LinkedIn Discussion

I’m Sheila B. Robinson, aea365’s Lead Curator and sometimes Saturday contributor. You’ve probably read about AEA’s LinkedIn page for fabulous free discussion about anything evaluation. Today, I want to highlight one particular discussion that has sparked a good deal of participation from a diverse group of evaluators. Terminology has always been a sticky point for …

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OPEN Week: Elizabeth O’Neill on When not to evaluate

I am Elizabeth O’Neill, Program Evaluator for Oregon’s State Unit on Aging and President-Elect for the Oregon Program Evaluators Network. I found myself on this unlikely route as an evaluator starting as a nonprofit program manager. As I witnessed the amazing dedication for producing community-based work, I wanted to know that the effort was substantiated. …

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Carolyn Cohen on Appreciative Inquiry: Small Scale Use

Hello, I am Carolyn Cohen, owner of Cohen Research & Evaluation, LLC, based in Seattle Washington. I specialize in program evaluation and strategic learning related to innovations in the social change and education arenas.  I have been infusing elements of Appreciative Inquiry into my work for many years.  Appreciative Inquiry is an asset-based approach, developed …

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Silvia Salinas-Mulder and Fabiola Amariles on Gender, Rights and Cultural Awareness in Development Evaluation

We are Silvia Salinas-Mulder, Bolivian anthropologist, feminist activist and independent consultant, and Fabiola Amariles, Colombian economist, founder and director of Learning for Impact. We have worked for several years as external evaluators for development programs in Latin America. The following ideas may help to operationalize the principles of gender- and human rights (HR)-responsive evaluation in …

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EdEval Week: Chad Green on Nested Outcome Models

Chad Green here on the utility of Costa and Garmston’s maturing outcomes map from yesterday’s post. If you revisit this colorful framework, you will notice that the nested concepts form a learning continuum, ranging from concrete to abstract, similar to the outcomes in a logic model.  However, if you dabble in cognitive neuroscience like myself, …

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Glenn O’Neil on Evaluating Communications Programs Using ToC

Hello, I am Glenn O’Neil and specialize in evaluating communication programs and campaigns with my own company, Owl RE. My post today is about how to use the theory of change in evaluating communication programs. Hot tip: there is nothing so practical as a theory of change! The theory of change maps out from activities to …

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