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Environmental Program Evaluation

Telling the Stories of challenging but well succeeded evaluation projects in the Amazon

Thursday, October 12, 2023
11:30 AM – 12:30 PM ET
Location: Room 104

Location: Room 104

Abstract Information: The proposed Panel session will host four very different examples of evaluations taking place in the Brazilian Amazon Region: - A Civil Society Organization working with rural communities and collecting M&A data 2014 will share practices and learnings derived from the implementation of different evaluative approaches that, through the voices of the young people in these communities, adopt a methodology (The Journey) especially developed with the objective of telling the stories of the evolution of the initiatives. - A Philanthropic, organization supporting projects and institutions aimed at the economic empowerment and the reduction of inequalities by means of climate change impact prevention and sustainable solutions will present their developments in data-collection, analysis and knowledge dissemination strategies with focus on environmental sustainability. - An Investment Fund created to generate positive social and environmental impact with the purpose of potentializing a fairer and more inclusive economy will share a model developed in 2020 using different instruments and approaches for the management and measurement of results and impacts, thus telling the story of the results planed in their ToC. - A Third Sector organization with relevant history in the promotion of sustainable development, that evaluates and is evaluated for its programs and projects will share their experience in the process of re-signifying the evaluation, democratizing the language and the methods of approaching their publics in order to ensure the actual communication of results and impacts,, permanently searching for producing evidence of the effectiveness of their initiatives, the recognition of their beneficiaries and the trust of their partners. The narratives produced by these experiences require specific solutions, able to ensure both the necessary objectivity and the full comprehension of the context for external stakeholders.

Relevance Statement: The Amazon RainForest is undoubtedly one of the most challenging territories for the implementation of either public or private social policies and programs. Economic, cultural, environmental and social interests and needs are frequently in opposition, requiring – or better, demanding – a deep understanding of those agents that, even when in the best of their intentions, try to promote initiatives aimed at improving the quality of life, the access to rights, the protection of the indigenous cultures alongside with the preservation of natural resources and the recognition of the knowledge of those living in that region. Designing and implementing evaluations in such a complex environment is extremely challenging. A series of severe practical and logistical limitations in terms of communication and access to the areas where the initiatives take place, associated with cultural characteristics of the subjects involved, make the use of most common methodologies (such as face-to-face interviews, application of questionnaires, group discussions and other usual means of collecting data) much more costly and time consuming than in other environments. In addition, usual metrics that ignore the specificities of the context and the characteristics of the subjects involved, will produce observations and conclusions that can be significantly limited or biased. The proposed Panel session will present four very different examples of evaluations taking place in the Brazilian Amazon Region. Four different profiles of players (Civil Society, Philanthropic and Social Investment Fund) will bring light both on common and specific learnings and challenges of producing relevant and consistent data in such a complex environment as the Amazon Region. Special focus will be given, in each presentation, to the story-telling of the results and impacts, especially considering the diversity of stakeholders interested in the evaluation results, among which: national and international funders public policy makers territory-based NGOs beneficiary communities society as a whole The discussion to follow the presentations will allow the sharing of in-depth reflections about communication strategies ranging from the use of contextualized vocabulary and innovative narratives that not only allow to identify and share the results of the initiative itself but also to tell the stories that bring light to the potentialities of the local communities. W will also explore paths that led to the development of indicators that have become a reference in the field of management and impact measurement of initiatives combining environmental issues and social-economic development of the local communities. Although based on examples referred to the specific context of the Brazilian Amazonic Region, the learnings and challenges to be shared certainly apply to many other similar environments in the planet, where combining sustainability and development pose constant risks to the preservation of culture and nature and where philanthropic initiatives and public policies are permanently challenged to tell meaningful and relevant stories about their achievements.

Presentations:

  • 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM ET
    Contextualizing the logistics and cultural challenges of designing and implementing evaluation processes in the Amazon

    Presenter: ANA LUCIA L. LIMA, n/a – CONHECIMENTO SOCIAL

  • 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM ET
    Discussant

    Presenter: Camilla Cirillo, n/a – GIFE

  • 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM ET
    Overcoming challenges for meaninful story-telling on the funding of social impact initiatives in Brazilian Amazon

    Presenter: Juliana Vilhena, n/a – Fundo Vale

    Presenter: Nathalia Cipoleta, n/a – Fundo Vale

  • 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM ET
    Re-signifyng evaluation narratives for ensuring actuak communication with different stakeholders in changelling Amazon Raind Forest territories

    Presenter: Michele Costa, n/a – Fundação Amazônia Sustentável

  • 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM ET
    Telling stories about funded initiatives supporting sustainable economic and social development in the Amazon

    Presenter: Martina Rillo Otero, n/a – Climate and Society Institute

  • 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM ET
    "The Journey": a methodology able to tell stories about a project that for over a decade promotes readiing among children in remote communities in the Amazon

    Presenter: Aline Calahani, n/a – Associação Vagalume

    Presenter: nathalia Flores, n/a – Associação Vagalume