Projects

Laudes Foundation, an independent, Europe-based foundation, is responding to the dual crises of inequality and climate breakdown through synergistic and collaborative efforts in finance and capital markets, the fashion industry, and the built environment. With an ambition this broad, a global system so huge and complex, and so many potential change levers to pull, what kind of evaluation and learning system would be needed to guide the change?

In 2020, Drs. Jane Davidson and Thomaz Chianca developed a systemwide theory of change and a rubric-enhanced measurement and learning system for Laudes. Its purpose was to ensure that monitoring and evaluation conducted across the entire system could provide succinct answers to leaders’ most important evaluation questions and would allow Laudes to keep its fingers on the pulse of this large-scale emergent change – from the Board through senior leadership to the programmatic teams overseeing specific projects. [Other key advisors on this project included Drs. Patricia Rogers, Katrina Bledsoe, and Andy Rowe.]

Fashion For Good – In 2020, Jane and Thomaz also completed an independent evaluation of this Amsterdam-based accelerator and scaling program. The Fashion for Good startups are developing new technologies and business models to help the fashion industry transform its practices so that they are regenerative, climate-positive, and in service of equity.

Save the Children – In 2019-2020, Jane and Thomaz completed a mixed method, rubric-enhanced Retrospective Impact Evaluation (RIE) of Save the Children’s first Child Sponsorship-funded community development project in Ethiopia, 9 years after closeout. We are currently building this out into an e-course offering that will cover a wide range of cutting-edge evaluation methodologies and approaches.

Footprint Evaluation focuses on the ‘footprint’ that human systems make on natural systems. This requires attention to the nexus between human systems and natural systems. Jane is part of a BetterEvaluation-hosted collaboration to develop guidance for this important topic with Patricia Rogers, Andy Rowe, Dugan Fraser, and a gradually increasing circle of thought partners.

Footprint Evaluation 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.

Núcleo Ciência Pela Infância (NCPI) – In 2019, Jane and Thomaz completed an evaluative assessment of NCPI, a collaborative early childhood development initiative of Fundação Maria Cecilia Souto Vidigal (FMCSV), the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard (HCDC), the Bernard van Leer Foundation (BvLF), and Porticus. NCPI had been implemented only in Brazil; this assessment is being used to inform rollout in other Latin American countries.

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) – In 2016, UNDP asked for a review of the methods and methodologies used for Corporate Thematic Evaluations covering major aspects of UNDP’s work globally (e.g., gender equality and women’s empowerment; poverty; mine action; the strategic plan). [Collaboration with Drs. Thomaz Chianca and Jennifer Mersman.]

Oregon Community Foundation – Advice, support, and coaching for the development of a set of rubrics to support principles-focused evaluation of the Studio to School arts education initiative.

UK Department for International Development (DFID) – “Influence by Design” – an overhaul of DFID’s guidelines for evaluation so that it is purposefully designed and proactively managed for use and influence; creation of a self-paced learning module for non-evaluator managers on this topic.

Center for Creative Leadership – Coaching and technical support for the development of rubrics to assess baseline and changes in leadership culture.

McKnight Foundation – Provided expert advice, coaching, and support for the development of rubrics for the Collaborative Crop Research Program. Facilitated a webinar on rubric theory and methodology.