You might not be as agile as you think you are - Lindpaintner, Julia; Rivera, Stephanie (18F, 2019)
The mandate to be agile is everywhere. But agile isn’t an on-off switch. It’s a skill and a mindset that is developed over time, through dedicated work, open teams, and lots (and lots) of practice

‘You Have to Raise a Fist!’: Seeing and Speaking to the State in South Africa - Mills, Elizabeth (IDS Bulletin, 2016)

You Cannot Go it Alone: Learning from Cooperative Relationships in Civil Society Budget Campaigns - Larsen, Jillian (IBP, 2016)
Keywords: IMPORTANT

World Development Report 2017: Governance and the Law - World Bank (The World Bank, 2017)

World Development Report 2015: Mind, Society, and Behavior - World Bank (The World Bank, 2015)
Development economics and policy are due for a redesign. In the past few decades, research from across the natural and social sciences has provided stunning insight into the way people think and make decisions. Whereas the first generation of development policy was based on the assumption that humans make decisions deliberatively and independently, and on the basis of consistent and self-interested preferences, recent research shows that decision making rarely proceeds this way. People think automatically: when deciding, they usually draw on what comes to mind effortlessly. People also think socially: social norms guide much of behavior, and many people prefer to cooperate as long as others are doing their share. And people think with mental models: what they perceive and how they interpret it depend on concepts and worldviews drawn from their societies and from shared histories.The World Development Report 2015 offers a concrete look at how these insights apply to development policy. It shows how a richer view of human behavior can help achieve development goals in many areas, including early childhood development, household finance, productivity, health, and climate change. It also shows how a more subtle view of human behavior provides new tools for interventions. Making even minor adjustments to a decision-making context, designing interventions based on an understanding of social preferences, and exposing individuals to new experiences and ways of thinking may enable people to improve their lives.The Report opens exciting new avenues for development work. It shows that poverty is not simply a state of material deprivation, but also a “tax” on cognitive resources that affects the quality of decision making. It emphasizes that all humans, including experts and policy makers, are subject to psychological and social influences on thinking, and that development organizations could benefit from procedures to improve their own deliberations and decision making. It demonstrates the need for more discovery, learning, and adaptation in policy design and implementation. The new approach to development economics has immense promise. Its scope of application is vast. This Report introduces an important new agenda for the development community.

Working the System: What We’ve Learned About Strengthening Accountability - Nugent, Sarah (Chemonics International, 2018)
When designing a new project, how often do we set out to strengthen a particular actor’s or institution’s ability to “hold government to account?” What does that mean exactly? Maybe the better question to ask is: what is the most effective way to strengthen accountability in our development work? And then, what does it look …

Working Politically: A story of Change about the contribution of research evidence to the new Village Law in Indonesia - Pellini, Arnaldo; Angelina, Maesy; Purnawati, Endah (Austrialian Community Development and Civil Society Strenghtening Scheme (ACCESS), 2014)
On 18 December 2013, the Indonesian House of Representatives passed the new Village Law, a vote that was the culmination of a journey that had started in 2007. This Story of Change takes the passing of the Village Law as its starting point and describes the relative influence that research-based evidence, produced by the Institute for Research and Empowerment (IRE), has had at critical junctions of the legislative process. This Story of Change concludes that good quality, research-based evidence is necessary but not sufficient to influence policy-making processes. Researchers and research organisations need to think and work politically to achieve their influencing goals and to adapt to changes in local circumstances.

Women and power: overcoming barriers to leadership ODI women and power coverand influence (ODI, 2016)
ODI have just wrapped up an excellent two year project on ‘Women and power: overcoming barriers to leadership and influence’ with a final synthesis report that is well worth reading. It’s an intell...

Winners and Losers in the Global App Economy - Pon, Bryan (2016)

Wildlife laws monitoring as an adaptive management tool in protected area management in Ghana: a case of Kakum Conservation Area - Wiafe, Edward Debrah (SpringerPlus, 2016)
INTRODUCTION: The wildlife laws of Ghana alienated the rural communities from forests and material well-being depended upon for their livelihood and this manifests itself in the progressive conflict between the park patrol staff and poachers from the fringes of the protected areas. CASE DESCRIPTION: The main aim of this study was to determine the impact of quantification of patrol efforts on indicators of illegal hunting activities that occur in rainforest protected areas, as a result of monitoring patrol operations and modifying the original plan. The specific objectives were to determine the optimal patrol efforts necessary to reduce illegal wildlife use to minimal; and the influence of the rainfall and seasonal activities on illegal wildlife use. DISCUSSION AND EVALUATION: The results indicated that as the patrol efforts increased the encounter with illegal wildlife use also increased until a certain point that the encounter rates started decreasing. Neither rainfall nor seasonal activities influenced the illegal activities and the patrol efforts. The protection staff of rainforest protected areas would work effectively to bring down illegal wildlife off-take to the barest minimum if monitored, quantified and provide feed-back. CONCLUSIONS: Illegal wildlife off-take can also be reduced by the protection staff if the original plans are made flexible to be adjusted. Recommendations for further studies have been made.

Why your IT project may be riskier than you think - Flyvbjerg, Bent; Budzier, Alexander (Harvard Business Review, 2011)
New research shows surprisingly high numbers of out-of-control tech projects—ones that can sink entire companies and careers.

Why We Lie About Aid: Development and the Messy Politics of Change - Yanguas, Pablo (Zed Books, 2018)
Foreign aid is about charity. International development is about technical fixes. At least that is what we, as donor publics, are constantly told. The result is a highly dysfunctional aid system which mistakes short-term results for long-term transformation and gets attacked across the political spectrum, with the right claiming we spend too much, and the left that we don't spend enough. The reality, as Yanguas argues in this highly provocative book, is that aid isn't – or at least shouldn't be – about levels of spending, nor interventions shackled to vague notions of ‘accountability’ and ‘ownership’. Instead, a different approach is possible, one that acknowledges aid as being about struggle, about taking sides, about politics. It is an approach that has been quietly applied by innovative development practitioners around the world, providing political coverage for local reformers to open up spaces for change. Drawing on a variety of convention-defying stories from a variety of countries – from Britain to the US, Sierra Leone to Honduras – Yanguas provides an eye-opening account of what we really mean when we talk about aid.

Why the Problem with Learning Is Unlearning - Bonchek, Mark (Harvard Business Review, 2016)
Don’t get stuck in your current ways of thinking.

Why Learning & Adaptation are Central to Making All Voices Count - Halloran, Brendan (Making All Voices Count, 2014)

Why Lean Enterprise Transformation is Hard - McClure, Dan (ThoughtWorks, 2015)

Why isn’t Tech for Accountability Working in Africa? - de Lanerolle, Indra (SAIIA, 2017)
Expanding mobile networks and falling costs could transform communication between African citizens and governments. So far, however, attempts to harness new technologies to improve transparency and accountability in Africa and elsewhere have had disappointing results. What is going wrong? Research suggests that an important reason for this failure is a poor understanding of technologies and limited skills in developing and using them. It seems that civil society organisations (CSOs) and governments often ‘re-invent the flat tyre’: experimenting with new tools without finding out what has been tried (often unsuccessfully) before. They also do not follow best practices in how to source, develop and test technologies to ensure these are ‘fit for purpose’. Decision makers should focus on building an effective innovation ecosystem with better links between technologists and accountability actors in both government and civil society to enable learning from successes – and mistakes.
Keywords: IMPORTANT

Why is it so hard for non-state actors to be heard? Inside Tanzania's education policies - Katera, Lucas (MAVC, 2015)
Lessons from policy in Ghana, Kenya, South Africa and Tanzania

Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned: The Myth of the Objective - Stanley, Kenneth O.; Lehman, Joel (Springer, 2015)
Why does modern life revolve around objectives? From how science is funded, to improving how children are educated – and nearly everything in-between – our society has become obsessed with a seductive illusion: that greatness results from doggedly measuring improvement in the relentless pursuit of an ambitious goal. In Why Greatness Cannot Be Planned, Stanley and Lehman begin with a surprising scientific discovery in artificial intelligence that leads ultimately to the conclusion that the objective obsession has gone too far. They make the case that great achievement can't be bottled up into mechanical metrics; that innovation is not driven by narrowly focused heroic effort; and that we would be wiser (and the outcomes better) if instead we whole-heartedly embraced serendipitous discovery and playful creativity.Controversial at its heart, yet refreshingly provocative, this book challenges readers to consider life without a destination and discovery without a compass.

Why Diverse Teams Are Smarter - Rock, David; Halvorson, Heidi Grant (Harvard Business Review, 2016)
Research shows they’re more successful in three important ways.

Who Owns Poverty? - Burt, Martin (Red Press Ltd, 2019)
This is the story of the one question about global poverty we never thought to ask: who owns it? It's a question with an unexpected answer, one that challenges everything that we thought we knew about what poverty is, and what we can do about it. This is a story of a powerful data-driven methodology being used in a dozen countries across 5 continents. It's a new approach that puts poor families in charge of defining and diagnosing their own unique, multidimensional povertywho by owning the problem, own the solution. This book is for all the governments, development NGOs, charities, dreamers, thinkers, doers and leaders who are frustrated with limiting their aspirations to reducing poverty, or alleviating its effectsand the lack of progress we face in doing either. This is a book about unleashing trapped energy within poor families to do the unthinkable: eliminate global poverty once and for all.

Who is ICT innovation for? Challenges to existing theories of innovation, a Kenyan Case Study - Marchant, Eleanor (University of Pennsylvania, 2015)
Keywords: IMPORTANT

Which Voices Are Heard and By Whom? - Oswald, Katy (Making All Voices Count, 2014)

Where next for development effectiveness? Implementing development effectiveness: a reality check - Carter, Paddy (ODI, 2016)

Where next for development effectiveness? Building a renewed consensus - Blampied, Catherine (ODI, 2016)

Where have we got to on adaptive learning, thinking and working politically, doing development differently etc? Getting beyond the People’s Front of Judea - Algoso, Dave; Hudson, Alan (From Poverty to Power, 2016)
Dave Algoso and Alan Hudson at Global Integrity compare and contrast 9 different initiatives that are all heading in roughly the right direction in aid reform
Keywords: IMPORTANT

When theory meets reality: assumptions, feasibility and implications of a complexity-informed approach - Buffardi, Anne (Methods Lab, 2016)
Over the last half century, repeated calls for adaptive learning in development suggests two things: many practitioners are working in complex situations that may benefit from flexible approaches, and such approaches can be difficult to apply in practice. • Complexity thinking can offer useful recommendations on how to take advantage of distributed capacities, joint interpretation of problems and learning through experimentation in complex development programmes. • However, these recommendations rely on underlying assumptions about relationships, power and flexibility that may not hold true in practice, particularly for programmes operating in a risk averse, results-driven environment. • This paper poses guiding questions to assess the fit and feasibility of integrating complexity informed practices into development programmes.

When Reporting Undermines Performance: The Costs of Politically Constrained Organizational Autonomy in Foreign Aid Implementation - Honig, Daniel (International Organization, 2019)

When Does the State Listen? - Loureiro, Miguel; Cassim, Aalia; Darko, Terence; Katera, Lucas; Salome, Nyambura (IDS Bulletin, 2016)

When Does ICT-Enabled Citizen Voice Lead to Government Responsiveness? - Peixoto, Tiago; Fox, Jonathan (IDS Bulletin, 2016)

When and how to develop an impact-oriented monitoring and evaluation system - Peersman, Greet; Rogers, Patricia; Guijt, Irene; Hearn, Simon; Pasanen, Tiina; Buffardi, Anne (2016)
This guidance note focuses on: • what an impact-oriented monitoring and evaluation system entails • why an organisation may want to establish such a system • when integrating an impact-orientation into an monitoring and evaluation system is most useful • what should be considered in developing the monitoring and evaluation system, or in tweaking an existing system, to become more impact-focused. The primary audience for this guidance note is internal and external monitoring and evaluation advisors involved in designing and implementing, and/or assessing monitoring and evaluation systems to include a focus on impact. It will also be useful for senior management of organisations who need to know how best to plan for a sustainable monitoring and evaluation system that supports impact assessment or to adapt an existing system to incorporate an impact perspective.

Wheeling in the Trojan Mice - Mahendra, Jackie (Stanford Social Innovation Review, 2016)
One way to make risk-taking more palatable for social change organizations is to run small, light, nimble experiments––tests not built to win wars, but rather to quickly infiltrate new territory, attack new problems, and inform future tactics.

What works for Social Accountability? Findings from DFID’s Macro Evaluation - Hughes, Claire (Itad, 2017)

What we’re missing by not getting our TWP alphabet straight - Marquette, Heather (From Poverty to Power, 2019)
Heather Marquette grapples with aid's alphabet soup, and explains why DDD, TWP, PDIA etc are different and why that matters

What We Do: Getting Beyond Statistics - Sense Guide (Sensemaker narrative monitoring, 2018)
Our approach Understanding daily life reality with micro-narratives Narratives and more specifically micro-narratives are a fundamental and ancient way by which humans interpret their experience and make decisions. SenseMaker® provides the ability to capture and understand those narratives. Through the web or app environment the software allows the capture of pictures, recordings and writing in various combinations to reflect how the respondents are making sense of the world. Reducing cognitive bias with self signification In a patented method, the respondent then interprets their own story into a series of abstract constructs (‘signifiers’) that feel more like a game than a survey, but allow profound meaning to emerge. This interpretation adds layers of meaning rather than simply interpreting the story and provides quantitative data to detect visual patterns among stories. The patterns are linked back to the original material enabling a deeper dive into individual stories. If the researcher first look for patterns in the metadata using statistical or visual tools, he or she is less likely to be biased by content and prematurely converge on an interpretation. Evidence based insights that enables action The output of SenseMaker® is statistical data backed up by explanatory narrative. This means that advocacy is an integral part of the system. Numbers on their own appear objective but are not persuasive; anecdotes on their own may be persuasive but are not objective. SenseMaker® puts the two together and provides a powerful means of persuasion. It also enables action. Instead of saying “How do we create a culture of X?” we say “How do we create more stories like this and fewer stories like that?” Then, as actions are initiated, we see the impact in real time.

What Startups Can Learn from General McChrystal about Combining Strategy and Execution - Pisoni, Adam (First Round, 2015)
Yammer Co-founder Adam Pisoni speaks with General Stanley McChrystal about the lessons technology companies might take away from his new book Team of Teams.

What’s Next for Design Thinking - Cone, Taylor (Medium, 2019)
Thoughts on the future of creative problem-solving from across the industry

What's missing? Adding context to the urban response toolbox - Campbell, Leah (ALNAP/ODI, 2018)

What's in a name? Unpacking “participatory” environmental monitoring - Turreira-García, Nerea; Lund, Jens; Domínguez, Pablo; Carrillo-Anglés, Elena; Brummer, Mathias; Duenn, Priya; Reyes-García, Victoria (Ecology and Society, 2018)
Turreira-García, N., J. F. Lund, P. Domínguez, E. Carrillo-Anglés, M. C. Brummer, P. Duenn, and V. Reyes-García. 2018. What's in a name? Unpacking “participatory” environmental monitoring. Ecology and Society 23(2):24. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-10144-230224

What is Uncertainty and Why Does it Matter? - Scoones, Ian (STEPS centre, 2019)
Uncertainty defines our times. Whether it is in relation to climate change, disease outbreaks, financial volatility, natural disasters or political settlements, every media headline seems to assert that things are uncertain, and increasingly so. Uncertainty, where we do not know the probabilities of either likelihoods or outcomes, is different to risk, the implications of which are explored in this paper through five different ways of thinking about uncertainty, derived from highly diverse literatures encompassing societal, political, cultural, practice and individual perspectives. The paper continues by examining how these perspectives relate to four domains: finance and banking; critical infrastructures; disease outbreaks and climate change; natural hazards and disasters. Reflecting on these experiences, the paper argues that embracing uncertainty raises some fundamental challenges. It means questioning simple, linear perspectives on modernity and progress. It means rethinking expertise and including diverse knowledges in deliberations about the future. It means understanding how uncertainties emerge in social, political and economic contexts, and how uncertainties affect different people, depending on class, gender, race, age and other dimensions of social difference. And, if uncertainty is not reducible to probabilistic risk, it means a radically different approach to governance; one that rejects control-oriented, technocratic approaches in favour of more tentative, adaptive, hopeful and caring responses. The paper concludes by asking whether we can learn from those who live with and from uncertainty – including pastoralists in marginal settings – as part of a wider conversation about embracing uncertainties to meet the challenges of our turbulent world.

What is technopolitics? A conceptual schema for understanding politics in the digital age Doctoral Student on the Programme on Political Science New School for Social Research - Kurban, Can; Peña-Lopez, Ismael; Haberer, Maria (Revista de Internet, Derecho y Política, 2017)
In this article we seek to revisit what the term ‘technopolitical’ means for democratic politics in our age. We begin by tracing how the term was used and then transformed through various and conflicting adaptations of ICTs (Information and

What is Social Learning? - Reed, Mark; Evely, Anna; Cundill, Georgina; Fazey, Ioan; Glass, Jayne; Laing, Adele; Newig, Jens; Parrish, Brad; Prell, Christina; Raymond, Chris; Stringer, Lindsay (Ecology and Society, 2010)
Reed, M. S., A. C. Evely, G. Cundill, I. Fazey, J. Glass, A. Laing, J. Newig, B. Parrish, C. Prell, C. Raymond, and L. C. Stringer. 2010. What is social learning? Ecology and Society 15(4): r1. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-03564-1504r01

What is Outcome Harvesting? - Wilson-Grau, Ricardo (2014)
Ricardo Wilson-Grau, former Chair of the Board of Stewards of the Outcome Mapping Learning Community, introduces Outcome Harvesting, an approach for retrospective identification of outcomes based on the principles of Outcome Mapping. More details here: http://www.outcomemapping.ca/nuggets/outcome-harvesting

What is impact? - Hearn, Simon; Anne, Buffardi (2016)
• Impact is a multi-dimensional concept. Some definitions focus on very precise understandings of impact, while others cast a much broader net. • How impact is defined and used has a significant effect on the design, management and evaluation of development programmes. • Development programmes should hold explicit conversations with different stakeholders about how impact is used and understood, in order to come to a shared understanding. • There are six dimensions of impact that may help development programmes be clearer about what they mean.

What Is Disruptive Innovation? - Christensen, Clayton M.; Raynor, Michael E.; McDonald, Rory (Harvard Business Review, 2015)
For the past 20 years, the theory of disruptive innovation has been enormously influential in business circles and a powerful tool for predicting which industry entrants will succeed. Unfortunately, the theory has also been widely misunderstood, and the “disruptive” label has been applied too carelessly anytime a market newcomer shakes up well-established incumbents. In this article, the architect of disruption theory, Clayton M. Christensen, and his coauthors correct some of the misinformation, describe how the thinking on the subject has evolved, and discuss the utility of the theory. They start by clarifying what classic disruption entails—a small enterprise targeting overlooked customers with a novel but modest offering and gradually moving upmarket to challenge the industry leaders. They point out that Uber, commonly hailed as a disrupter, doesn’t actually fit the mold, and they explain that if managers don’t understand the nuances of disruption theory or apply its tenets correctly, they may not make the right strategic choices. Common mistakes, the authors say, include failing to view disruption as a gradual process (which may lead incumbents to ignore significant threats) and blindly accepting the “Disrupt or be disrupted” mantra (which may lead incumbents to jeopardize their core business as they try to defend against disruptive competitors). The authors acknowledge that disruption theory has certain limitations. But they are confident that as research continues, the theory’s explanatory and predictive powers will only improve.
Section: Disruptive innovation

What is different about how INGOs do Adaptive Management/Doing Development Differently? - Green, Duncan (From Poverty to Power, 2019)

What is democratic evaluation? - Picciotto, R. (2013)
This article from Robert Picciotto provides an overview of democratic evaluation, particularly with reference to its use in the European Union context. "Can evaluation strengthen the democratic process? Speciﬁcally can it help ﬁll the democratic deﬁcit (limited transparency; weak bureaucratic accountability, etc.) often ascribed to the European Union? First and foremost, evaluators operating in the European space should be committed to the ethical and democratic values of the European project and the promotion of its social inclusion and cohesion ideals. But two other sets of challenges must also be met: those that relate to evaluation in democracy and those that relate to democracy in evaluation. The former has to do with the macro positioning of evaluation processes in society. The latter has to do with the evaluation approaches and methods used in deliberative democratic decision making processes." (Picciotto, 2013)

What is adaptive management? - Wilson, Gregory (ΔNTYLLES, 2016)
Recently there has been growing recognition that most development challenges are in actual fact ‘wicked’ problem that requires development actors to recognize that the optimal management approaches…

What is a Theory of Change? Really. - Mack, Katelyn (FSG, 2015)
Recently thousands of evaluators came together in Chicago to celebrate the growing field, share exemplary practices, and to push our collective thinking on how evaluation responds to the complexity of social change efforts.

What Is a Case?: Exploring the Foundations of Social Inquiry - Ragin, Charles (Cambridge University Press, 2010)
The concept of the case is a basic feature of social science research and yet many questions about how a case should be defined, selected, and judged are far from settled. The contributors to this volume probe the nature of the case and the ways in which different understandings of the concept affect the conduct and the results of research. The contributions demonstrate that the work of any given researcher is often characterised by some hybrid of these basic approaches, and it is important to understand that most research involves multiple definitions and uses of cases, as both specific empirical phenomena and as general theoretical categories.

What exactly do we mean by systems? - Vexler, Dan (Stanford Social Innovation Review, 2017)
Everyone is talking about systems. Or at least, that's how it seems in my wonkish corner of the philanthropic world. You can't attend a conference or even have a meeting without hearing about systems, whether it's people trying to disrupt them, map them, learn from them, or catalyze them.

What Does the Evidence Tell Us about ‘Thinking and Working Politically’ in Development Assistance? - Dasandi, Niheer; Laws, Ed; Marquette, Heather; Robinson, Mark (Politics and Governance, 2019)
Abstract: This paper critically reviews evidence on ‘thinking and working politically’ in development. Scholars and practitioners have increasingly recognised that development is fundamentally political, and efforts are underway to develop more politically informed ways of thinking and working. The literature does not yet constitute a strong evidence base to link these efforts to more effective aid programming: much evidence is anecdotal, does not meet high standards of robustness, is not comparative, and draws on self-selected successes reported by programme insiders. We discuss factors commonly considered to explain the success of politically informed programmes in areas where conventional programming approaches fall short. We consider evidence in three areas—political context, sector and organization—and provide guidance on where to focus next. Finally, we outline ways of testing the core assumptions of the ‘thinking and working politically’ agenda more thoroughly, to provide a clearer sense of the contribution it can make to aid effectiveness.

What does ‘adaptive programming’ mean in the health sector? - Tulloch, Olivia (ODI, 2015)
• There is considerable interest in the concept of adaptive development and what it may look like in different sectors, including health. • Adaptive types of programming from the health sector are relatively advanced; as we work towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), experiences in health can provide useful lessons for other areas of development. • The international health community may not use the label ‘adaptive development’, but many are already conducting adaptive work. ‘Quality improvement’ is one such tried and tested approach. • Quality improvement is problem-driven, iterative and flexible. The methodology and principles can be used to identify, test and implement changes in any context or part of a health system. • Quality improvement is being used successfully, but there is still limited experience and evidence of how to apply its values and philosophy beyond the project level and embed it within national structures and systems. • Systems thinking and analysis of the political economy environment may help embed complex interventions like quality improvement and sustain their achievements

What can the Thinking and Working Politically community learn from peace and conflict mediation? - Douglas, Alex (From Poverty to Power, 2018)
Wily aid practitioners have long understood the importance of adapting their programs to the political environment, and even use their activities to push politics in a progressive direction. But this magic was spun secretly, hidden behind logframes and results frameworks. Only recently has a range of programs been permitted to escape the dead hand of technocracy. But there was one corner of the development and humanitarian world that never needed to shroud its political ambitions; those of us working on resolving violent conflicts. Donors have always understood our work could never be disembodied from politics. This field included elements of the UN, regional organisations, and NGOs, such as the one I work for: the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue. With a new focus on development being enabled by a series of ‘deals’ between different actors, it seems timely to examine the strategies used to reach peace agreements and whether they contain broader lessons for TWP/DDD/Adaptive Management.

What are you afraid of: Collective leadership and its learning implications - Raelin, Joseph A (Management Learning, 2018)
In this provocation, the author attempts to cite the advantages of collective leadership while acknowledging the objections and fears of challengers. Collective leadership is seen as remote because it defies the traditional view of leadership as an individualistic attractive quality that not only protects us but is efficient when applied. Nevertheless, the collective alternative may not only be advisable but required in a connected world featuring a networked economy. The contemporary socio-politico-economic environment requires the contribution of, creativity from, and collaboration among multiple agents providing a dynamic concentration of management and knowledge. If we are to accept and recognize the contribution of a collective leadership, its development would require an entirely different learning model. In particular, collective leadership development occurs as an acute immersion into the practices that are embedded within in situ material–discursive relations—in other words, among people, objects, and their institutions.

What are the Simple Rules that guide our Strategies? - Green, Duncan (From Poverty to Power, 2019)
A management treatise on 'simplre rules' for companies facing unpredictable situations could provide useful guidance to aid organizations

What Are the Next Steps in Innovation for Good Governance? - von Sturmer, Lucy (Making All Voices Count, 2015)
What are the next steps in innovation for good governance? Lucy von Sturmer reflects on lessons learned at Buntwani 2015.

What about the results? Lessons from long-term process support to strengthen results-based management (RBM) for Swedish framework NGOs operating in Western Balkans - Ørnemark, Charlotte (NCG, 2012)
The observations and lessons outlined in this report should be seen as a contribution to the on-going learning and reflections in a wider debate on how to assess and monitor results from support to CSOs involved in complex social change processes (as opposed to those involved in more ‘classical’ service delivery and more linear development assistance). These lessons, though directly emerging from the consultancy to provide long-term RBM support to the FOs and their local CSO partners in Western Balkans, also draws on previous experiences and similar lessons from on-going initiatives. In brief, these lessons call for a certain ‘paradigm shift’ in the way we (as development professionals) regard and support RBM for actors involved in less tangible social change processes in highly contested political spaces. Some of these shifts, outlined in more detail in different sections of this report, are summarised below:  From a linear, aggregated cause-and-effect thinking around RBM to one that is linked to human factors and is embedded in systems,  From pushing the burden of reporting down in the system to a clearer division of labour between donors, recipient governments, intermediary agents like framework NGOs (FOs) and implementing CSOs with each actor using its comparative advantage and appropriate role in the RBM process and for its own learning,  From operating in programming and results frameworks where outcomes and impact are largely assumed to be predictable to setting up systems that deal with uncertainty and that capture emerging result patterns through tracking of gradual changes,  From a project/programme perspective to a focus on institutions and systems as actors and arenas for change, where organisations are enabled to act as change agents towards clearly identified processes of social transformation,  From SMART to REAL results frameworks – although SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound) principles are always good to keep in mind for the formulation of goals and indicators, the danger of coming up with fictive measuring frameworks calls for a more systematic incorporation of ‘real’ concerns, including making RBM processes rights-based, embedded in local realities (and empowering for those involved), aligned to national reform efforts and national and international human rights commitments, and learning-oriented for all different levels of operations.

Werner Ulrich's Homepage - Ulrich, Werne (2018)
This website provides a variety of resources from Werner Ulrich's work in a range of philosophical and research areas with a particular focus on his own work in critical systems thinking and practice or, Critical Systems Heuristics (CSH).

Webinar: Operationalizing Adaptive Management: What it takes. Why it matters. - Mercy Corps (Mercy Corps, 2015)
Development actors increasingly agree that managing programs adaptively – especially complex interventions – can improve their effectiveness. A growing body of evidence supports this claim. But what does adaptive management look like in practice? What does it require of managers and donors to make happen? How can we reconfigure incentives and success metrics to support adaptation, while remaining compliant?

Webimar - Adaptive Management at the Strategy Level: Portfolio Reviews and Mid Course Stocktaking - USAID (USAID, 2017)
On Wednesday, November 15, 2017 at 8:00 a.m. EST, the Bureau for Policy, Planning and Learning (PPL) held a one-hour webinar exploring Strategy-level Portfolio Reviews and Mid Course Stocktaking.

We Rise - Movement Building Reimagined - JASS (Just Associates, 2017)
In our virtual toolkit, We Rise: Movement Building Reimagined, we describe in detail four interconnected cycles of movement building – Rising Up, Building Up, Standing Up, and Shaking Up. At the heart of these cycles lies an analysis of how to challenge and transform power. Each cycle features key ideas, relevant tools, and practical tips from our work and activists in our network that movement builders around the world can learn from and adapt in their own work.

‘We have the solutions to our own problems’: supporting civil society in Nigeria - Overseas Development Institute (ODI, 2014)
Development assistance programmes that start from careful analysis of what works and what does not in country contexts are still remarkably rare. One reason for this is the lack of well documented examples of ‘politically’ smart aid programming. To this end, this film outlines the experience of the State Accountability and Voice Initiative (SAVI), a DFID-funded programme in Nigeria providing support to civil society, media and governmental organisations.

Watering the Grassroots: A Strategy for Social Movement Support - Joyce, Mary (Transparency & Accountability Initiative, 2015)
In this third and final think piece exploring the role of grassroots organizations and movements for state accountability (find the previous pieces here and here), the author Mary Joyce, proposes new thinking about how funders and other external organizations can best support social movements. Funding and other support for popular organizations and movements is not straightforward, and there are potential risks and distortions involved. Interested supporters need to clearly identify and articulate these obstacles in their discussions with movement activists before pursuing and funding or other support activities. This think piece outlines several potential avenues of support: small, flexible grants; funding intermediary organizations; providing external consultants or researchers to work with movements; and other options as well. These suggestions provide ideas for funders and other organizations seeking to move beyond projects to supporting robust accountability ecosystems, in which grassroots organizations and movements play a critical role.

Was bedeutet “Staying Engaged” im Kontext der aktuellen Krise in Nicaragua? Überlegungen und Strategien der ALAK (Internal memo) - SDC (SDC, 2018)
«Mitigation» (im Sinne von Notlinderung) und «Transformation» sind die zwei Schlagworte, an welchen sich die Neuausrichtung des Portfolios in Nicaragua über die nächsten Monate orientieren wird. Ziel ist es, dass die Schweiz ihr über die letzten Jahrzehnte akquiriertes politisches Kapital und ihre Expertise nutzt, um zu einer Linderung der Auswirkung der Krise für die Bevölkerung beizutragen und mithilft die Grundlagen für eine Transformation der politischen Kultur und eine langfristig angelegte Demokratisierung zu schaffen.

Walking the Long Road Together - Stilger, Bob (Afternow: When We Cannot See the Future Where Do We Begin?, 2017)
On March 11, 2011, overwhelming and incomprehensible disaster struck the northeast coast of Japan. Life for those in the region would never be the same. This book is about the awakening that follows disaster. About the minutes and months and years that come after now. It is about what happens when we're smacked on the side of the head and open our eyes, startled out of the trance in which we have been living our days. It is about the opportunities always present, often invisible, to create the lives we want, now. AfterNow chronicles the author's journey with the Japanese people over 6 years – his own story of awakening after plunging into this disaster and the stories from people who found where to take their first step, and the next. It offers the tools and processes and worldview people discovered to create what comes after now. It is built around two big ideas. The first is that after disaster, we find our way forward, together. We come awake, together. Disaster obliterates the past, plunges the present into chaos and cocoons the future. We need each other to see and build the new. The second idea is that we don't have to wait for the tragedy of disaster to make the communities and lives we want. We can engage each other with respect, curiosity and generosity and begin to co-create what we want, now. We live in a period of precipitous, unpredictable change. The book is for those who want to make this time more livable and less insane. In Japan and all over the world, we are living in the messy middle where old forms are falling apart and new possibilities are in early stages. The ground is pulled out from under us on a regular basis. Our work right now is to learn to coexist with the messiness. We need to keep trying things, to keep learning. We need to remain focused on our purpose and follow the braided strand of intention and surrender as we find our way forward. embracing radical uncertainty, showing up as fully as we can each moment, each breath.

Walking the adaptive talk - Denney, Lisa (Devpolicy Blog from the Development Policy Centre, 2018)
The first in a three-part series on adaptive aid.Lisa Denney clarifies the confusion.

Volume 3: Participatory Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning in Complex Adaptive Environments - SACE (SACE Program, 2018)
This volume is the last in a series of papers about systems approaches in complex environments, which includes the use of the collective impact model to address large-scale social problems, and the application of participant-driven MEL techniques across 17 networks of civil society organizations. It is based on the experiences of Root Change and Chemonics, two development partners working on a USAID civic engagement project in Nigeria (2013-2018), as well as hundreds of civil society organization partners. This is the final paper in the series and aims to highlight how the adaptation of participatory monitoring, evaluation, and learning techniques (e.g., most significant change, outcome mapping, and outcome harvesting) evolved and ultimately empowered cluster members. The first paper in the series presented a brief introduction to systems approaches in advocacy settings, the SACE theory of change, and the scope of Root Change’s work as technical lead on capacity building and measurement. The second volume aims to address the innovative use of the advocacy strategy matrix, adapted from work by the Center for Evaluation Innovation, for collective impact and the Collective Impact Model, an approach that engages multiple players in working together to solve complex social problems.

VOICES - On speaking, mediation, representation and listening - Oswald, Katy (MAVC, 2014)

Voice or chatter? Making ICTs work for transformative engagement: research report summary - Gurumurthy, Anita; Bharthur, Deepti; Chami, Nandini (IDS, 2017)
What are the conditions in democratic governance that make information and communication technology (ICT)-mediated citizen engagement transformative? While substantial scholarship exists on the role of the Internet and digital technologies in triggering moments of political disruption and cascading upheavals, academic interest in the sort of deep change that transforms institutional cultures of democratic governance, occurring in ‘slow time’, has been relatively muted. This study attempts to fill this gap. It is inspired by the idea of participation in everyday democracy and seeks to explore how ICT-mediated citizen engagement can promote democratic governance and amplify citizen voice. The study involved empirical explorations of citizen engagement initiatives in eight sites – two in Asia (India and Philippines), one in Africa (South Africa), three in South America (Brazil, Colombia, Uruguay) and two in Europe (Netherlands and Spain).

Virtuous cycles of learning: Using formative, embedded, and diagnostic developmental assessments in a large-scale leadership program - Stein, Z.; Dawson, Theo; Van Rossum, Zachary; Rothaizer, Joel; Hill, S. (Journal of Integral Theory and Practice, 2014)
This article presents preliminary results from a series of ongoing action-research projects involving the use of embedded diagnostic developmental assessments (called LectaTests™) in leadership education contexts. These findings are presented to support a particular metatheoretical approach to learning and education in which embedded assessments form a crucial part of ongoing virtuous cycles of action, feedback, support, and learning. We present two types of evidence. First, we compare developmental growth across eight program evaluations in which LectaTests were and were not embedded. Second, we examine how embedding LectaTests in a large-scale leadership development program affected the growth of managers and their direct reports. We review these findings with an eye toward detecting the benefits of using developmental assessment as embedded diagnostics alongside their use as research instruments. We begin by using Integral Theory to structure a discussion about the ideal function of developmental assessments in educational contexts.

Virtuous cycles of learning: Redesigning testing during the digital revolution - Dawson, Theo; Stein, Zachary (2011)
This paper explores positive new directions for the future of educational testing by examining trends at the interface of the learning sciences and advances in educational technologies. A brief history of the relation between testing and technology sets the stage for a look at emerging “edu-tech” trends and what these might mean for the future of testing. This historical-critical look at past and present testing practices reveals that the learning sciences have been less influential in shaping the growth of testing infrastructures than cumulative advances in technology that have enabled large-scale standardization and automation. We argue that during the current “digital revolution” the learning sciences ought to assume more responsibility for shaping the adoption of new testing technologies. We propose a set of principles that, if followed, would move tomorrow’s testing infrastructures toward learning-centric design. Combining the affordances of new digital technologies with advances in our understanding of learning make it possible to build tests that promote multi-level learning in educational systems, catalyzing virtuous cycles of learning for everyone they affect—students, teachers, school leaders, policy makers, and researchers. The DiscoTest™ Initiative is presented as a reform effort that is guided by these design principles, serving as an example of positive new possibilities for testing at the interface of the learning sciences and new educational technologies.

VCoL in action: How to use micro-VCoLs to learn optimally on the fly - Dawson, Theo (Medium, 2019)
VCoL (the virtuous cycle of learning), is designed to optimize learning while leveraging human´s natural motivational system. It’s easiest to tap into this motivational system when VCoLs are small, focused, relevant, and habitual. We call VCoLs with these characteristics micro-VCoLs. What is a micro-VCoL? Micro-VCoLs are frequently iterated learning cycles that are embedded in everyday activities. Like any VCoL, they involve setting a learning goal, gathering information, applying information, and reflecting on outcomes (preferably with input from others). But in the case of the micro-VCoL, the focus is on the smaller skills (micro-skills) that make up complex sets of skills.

VANUATU GOVERNANCE FOR GROWTH PROGRAM – REVIEW - Warner, Robert; Gouy, Jonathan; Samson, Anthony (2017)

Valuing peace: delivering and demonstrating mediation results - Dilemmas & options for mediators - Wadley, Ian (Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue, 2017)
Essential points for practitioners and donors • Mediation offers a cost-effective and proven method for resolving armed conflict. Between 1985 and 2015, 75 per cent of armed conflicts in the world were resolved through agreement rather than by force. In most cases these processes will have involved third party facilitation or support. • Professional mediators understand the high stakes involved in their work to prevent, mitigate and resolve armed conflict. In addition, they and their financial supporters are increasingly required to demonstrate ‘value-for-money’ to ensure continued funding. • However, traditional monitoring and evaluation (M&E) methods are not well suited to this task, typically imposing artificially linear project models on a dynamic conflict situation, as well as compliance reporting that moves attention away from real value. • Traditional M&E methods tend to focus on documenting the past and generating vast amounts of data, rather than enabling timely adaptation of the project in the present. • Traditional M&E approaches rely heavily on external evaluation consultants. Even in the best of cases this may interfere with the mediation process and impose a heavy time burden on the project team, leading to low acceptance of traditional M&E approaches by mediation practitioners. • In contrast, an ideal M&E approach for mediation should deliver useful insights in even the most dynamic and sensitive mediation environments, impose a light reporting burden, and be readily accepted by mediation teams. It should protect discretion and trust, enable rapid adaptation, and also provide some assurance that donor funds are being well spent.

Value for Investment. A Practical Evaluation Theory - King, Julian (Kinnect Group, 2016)
I am a public policy consultant from Auckland, New Zealand. My practice specializes in evaluation and economic analysis. In this booklet I set out a model for evaluating value for investment (VFI) in social programs. The model defines VFI as an evaluative question about an economic problem. It uses explicit evaluative reasoning to provide a clear answer to the VFI question. Methods are matched to context, to provide the specific mix of evidence (economic and/or other) needed to support a wellreasoned, well-evidenced evaluative judgment.

Utilization-Focused Evaluation (U-FE) Checklist - Patton, Michael Quinn (The Evaluation Center, 2013)
Utilization-Focused Evaluation begins with the premise that evaluations should be judged by their utility and actual use; therefore, evaluators should facilitate the evaluation process and design any evaluation with careful consideration of how everything that is done, from beginning to end, will affect use. Use concerns how real people in the real world apply evaluation findings and experience and learn from the evaluation process. The checklist is based on Essentials of Utilization-Focused Evaluation (Patton, 2012, Sage Publications). All references in the checklist to exhibits and menus refer to this book. Step 1 Assess and build program and organizational readiness for utilization-focused evaluation. Step 2 Assess and enhance evaluator readiness and competence to undertake a utilizationfocused evaluation. Step 3 Identify, organize, and engage primary intended users. Step 4 Conduct situation analysis with primary intended users Step 5 Identify primary intended uses by establishing the evaluation’s priority purposes. Step 6 Consider and build in process uses if appropriate. Step 7 Focus priority evaluation questions. Step 8 Check that fundamental areas for evaluation inquiry are being adequately addressed. Step 9 Determine what intervention model or theory of change is being evaluated. Step 10 Negotiate appropriate methods to generate credible findings and support intended use by intended users. Step 11 Make sure intended users understand potential controversies about methods and their implications. Step 12 Simulate use of findings. Step 13 Gather data with ongoing attention to use. Step 14 Organize and present the data for use by primary intended users. Step 15 Prepare an evaluation report to facilitate use and disseminate significant findings to expand influence. Step 16 Follow up with primary intended users to facilitate and enhance use. Step 17 Metaevaluation of use: Be accountable, learn, and improve

Utilization focused evaluation: a primer for evaluators - Ramirez, Ricardo; Brodhead, Dal (Southbound, 2013)
Ramírez, R., & Brodhead, D. (2013). Utilization focused evaluation: A primer for evaluators. Penang, Malaysia: Southbound. Retrieved from http://evaluationinpractice.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/ufeenglishprimer... This book, authored by Ricardo Ramírez and Dal Brodhead, is designed to support evaluators and program managers implement Utilization-focused evaluation (UFE). It includes detailed discussion of the 12 steps for implementing UFE and also provides a number of case studies to guide the user. Excerpt "Throughout this Primer we refer to the value of having a mentor to assist an evaluator who is using UFE for the first time. Our collective experiences with UFE indicated having a mentor was, for many UFE participants, an essential support and it reflects how we learned and mentored UFE. Evaluators may use elements of a UFE in their work naturally, for example by engaging users in planning the process or in assisting them in the utilization of findings. This Primer, however, walks the reader through UFE by systematically covering all of the 12 steps. It reflects deeply on the UFE evaluation practice and builds from it." (Ramírez & Brodhead 2013) Contents What is Utilization Focused Evaluation? 1 The UFE Framework Summarized in Steps 3 The DECI Project 6 The UFE Steps Illustrated with Project Examples 9 Step 1 Assessing Program Readiness 10 Step 2 Assessing Evaluators’ Readiness 18 Step 3 Identifying Primary Intended Users 24 Step 4 Situational Analysis 31 Step 5 Identification of Primary Intended Users 38 Step 6 Focusing the Evaluation 44 Step 7 Evaluation Design 54 Step 8 Simulation of Use 58 Step 9 Data Collection 62 Step 10 Data Analysis 65 Step 11 Facilitation of Use 68 Step 12 Meta Evaluation 72 Summary About What Each Step Entails 76 What Benefit Does UFE Bring to Commissioners of Evaluation? 81 Take Away Lessons 83 Postscript 87 The UFE Checklist 89 Case Studies 103 Recommended Reading 110
OCLC: 856648540

Using what we know: How to ensure tech projects meet the brief - Walker, Tom (Making All Voices Count, 2017)
Making tech effective - building on what we already know

Using Systemigrams in Problem Definition: A Case Study in Maritime Resilience for Homeland Security - Sauser, Brian; Mansouri, Mo; Omer, Mayada (Journal of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, 2011)
The concept of resilience has been used among a diversity of fields with a myriad of definitions. A systems approach to discovering the essence of resilience could aid in understanding its concept and provide opportunities to distinguish its systemic characteristics that can be identified, planned, or analyzed regardless of the field in which it is considered. In order to begin executing such an approach, a comprehensive study of the literature on the topic and circumstances in which resilience has been used or referred to in several fields of studies is necessary. In this paper, the conceptual common denominator of resilience is identified based on the results of a literature survey and according to the way it has been used in different contexts. This basis leads to the objective of this effort, and that is to recognize the systemic characteristics of resilience and demonstrate the defining of a universally accepted definition. Using a soft systems methodology and a supporting systemic diagramming technique entitled Systemigrams, we present the formulation of defining resilience in maritime homeland security. In this effort, many stakeholders contributed their thoughts and concerns on the meaning and operational use of resilience through a repetitive process to formulate a definition of the term. The result of this methodic approach is a general definition of resilience that has been refined in a collaborative environment via the application the Boardman Soft Systems Methodology.

Using Systemic M&E Tools in Feed The Future Uganda: Sensemaker ® - Webinar - USAID Learning Lab (2015)
This webinar is part of a series organized by SEEP's Market Facilitation Initiative (MaFI), USAID's LEO project and the BEAM Exchange as a part of the "Learning with the Toolmakers" webinar series. As part of a new cycle of webinars focusing on inclusive market facilitation tools. In this series, Eric Derks and Leanne Rasmussen will share learning from this five-year, multi-million dollar USAID program, the objective of which is to increase Ugandan farmers’ use of good quality agro-inputs by fostering more inclusive systemic changes in the agro-inputs industry. Using Systemic M&E Tools in Feed The Future Uganda: Sensemaker ® This third webinar in the series, titled “,” will look at how the project team used this tool and method to monitor systemic change. Leanne and Eric will share their experiences with using the tool and give recommendations to other practitioners who are interested in applying it. What is Sensemaker ®? SenseMaker combines an innovative research methodology with patented software to collect and analyze large quantities of narratives in order to understand complex change. It brings together insights from complexity sciences, anthropology, and cognitive science. It uses participants’ narratives to uncover foundational attitudes and norms that inform and influence behavior. This webinar is organized by SEEP's Market Facilitation Initiative (MaFI), USAID's LEO project and the BEAM Exchange as a part of the "Learning with the Toolmakers" webinar series.

Using Research Evidence - A practice guide - Breckon, Jonathan (Alliance for Useful Evidence, 2016)

Using political economy analysis in conflict, security and justice programmes - Denney, Lisa (ODI, 2016)

Using PDIA to Put Data Into Action - Bhatia, Vinisha; Powell, Josh (Development Gateway, 2017)
We recently wrote about how the data for development community needs to take a more context aware, demand-driven approach to data. Applying theories of change...

Using Participatory Statistics to Examine the Impact of Interventions to Eradicate Slavery: Lessons from the Field - Oosterhoff, P.; Bharadwaj, S.; Burns, D.; Raj, A. M.; Nanda, R. B.; Narayanan, P. (2016)
This CDI Practice Paper by Pauline Oosterhoff, Sowmyaa Bharadwaj, Danny Burns, Aruna Mohan Raj, Rituu B. Nanda and Pradeep Narayanan reflects on the use of participatory statistics to assess the impact of interventions to eradicate slavery and bonded labour. It deals with: (1) the challenges of estimating changes in the magnitude of various forms of slavery; (2) the potential of combining participatory approaches with statistical principles to generate robust data for assessing impact of slavery eradication; and (3) the practical and ethical questions in relation to working with people living within a context of modern slavery. The paper draws lessons from the realities of using participatory statistics to support the evaluation of a slavery eradication programme in North India.

Using Participatory Process Evaluation to Understand the Dynamics of Change in a Nutrition Education Programme - Cornwall, Andrea (IDS Working Papers, 2014)
With roots in approaches to popular education and participatory action research that place the learner and the ‘beneficiary’ of development at the centre of enquiry and action, the participatory visualisation methods associated with Participatory Rural Appraisal have been widely used as tools for learning and accountability. In this article, I reflect on lessons learnt from using these methods in a participatory process evaluation of an educational programme aimed at addressing chronic malnutrition in an East African country. Building on this experience, I explore the educative and empowering dimensions of participatory visualisation methods, and consider the contribution that these methods can make to effective evaluation.
Keywords: Kenya; nutrition; participatory impact evaluation; process evaluation; randomised controlled trials

Using Information on Results in Program Management – The case of Samarth-NMDP in Nepal - Stewart, Tim; Joshi, Sanju; Miehlbradt, Alexandra (The Donor Committee for Enterprise Development, 2015)
Keywords: Case Report

Using Evidence - What works? - Breckon, Jonathan; Dodson, Jane (Alliance for Useful Evidence, 2016)

Using evidence to influence policy: Oxfam’s experience - Mayne, Ruth; Green, Duncan; Guijt, Irene; Walsh, Martin; English, Richard; Cairney, Paul (Palgrave Communications, 2018)
Policymaking is rarely ‘evidence-based’. Rather, policy can only be strongly evidence-informed if its advocates act effectively. Policy theories suggest that they can do so by learning the rules of political systems, and by forming relationships and networks with key actors to build up enough knowledge of their environment and trust from their audience. This knowledge allows them to craft effective inﬂuencing strategies, such as to tell a persuasive and timely story about an urgent policy problem and its most feasible solution. Empirical case studies help explain when, how, and why such strategies work in context. If analysed carefully, they can provide transferable lessons for researchers and advocates that are seeking to inform or inﬂuence policymaking. Oxfam Great Britain has become an experienced and effective advocate of evidence-informed policy change, offering lessons for building effective action. In this article, we combine insights from policy studies with speciﬁc case studies of Oxfam campaigns to describe four ways to promote the uptake of research evidence in policy: (1) learn how policymaking works, (2) design evidence to maximise its inﬂuence on speciﬁc audiences, (3) design and use additional inﬂuencing strategies such as insider persuasion or outsider pressure, and adapt the presentation of evidence and inﬂuencing strategies to the changing context, and (4) embrace trial and error. The supply of evidence is one important but insufﬁcient part of this story.

Using elements of DCED Standards for CLA - Mitra, Bilash; Jalil, Mohammad Muaz (2018)
Introduction used in the DCED-BEAM seminar in Nairobi

Using Data to Influence Government Decisions. Opportunities and Challenges for User-Centered Design to Improve Governance Data Impact - Reboot (Reboot & OSF, 2015)

Using beneficiary feedback to improve development programmes: findings from a multi-country pilot - World Vision (World Vision, 2016)
This briefing summarises the findings from Beneficiary Feedback Mechanisms pilots and is intended to inform organisations and their funders about the development and implementation of feedback mechanisms.

Using adaptive processes and adverse outcome pathways to develop meaningful, robust, and actionable environmental monitoring programs - Arciszewski, Tim J.; Munkittrick, Kelly R.; Scrimgeour, Garry J.; Dubé, Monique G.; Wrona, Fred J.; Hazewinkel, Rod R. (Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management, 2017)
The primary goals of environmental monitoring are to indicate whether unexpected changes related to development are occurring in the physical, chemical, and biological attributes of ecosystems and to inform meaningful management intervention. Although achieving these objectives is conceptually simple, varying scientific and social challenges often result in their breakdown. Conceptualizing, designing, and operating programs that better delineate monitoring, management, and risk assessment processes supported by hypothesis-driven approaches, strong inference, and adverse outcome pathways can overcome many of the challenges. Generally, a robust monitoring program is characterized by hypothesis-driven questions associated with potential adverse outcomes and feedback loops informed by data. Specifically, key and basic features are predictions of future observations (triggers) and mechanisms to respond to success or failure of those predictions (tiers). The adaptive processes accelerate or decelerate the effort to highlight and overcome ignorance while preventing the potentially unnecessary escalation of unguided monitoring and management. The deployment of the mutually reinforcing components can allow for more meaningful and actionable monitoring programs that better associate activities with consequences. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2017;13:877–891. © 2017 The Authors. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC)
Keywords: Adaptive monitoring; Environmental management; Environmental monitoring; Tier; Trigger

Using adaptive monitoring, evaluation and learning in programme design - Nzegwu, Femi (INASP, 2018)

Using adaptive development to support feminist action - O’Neil, Tam (ODI, 2016)
This paper looks at how adaptive development is being applied by gender programmes and argues that gender and adaptive development communities have much to offer each other.

Using Actor-Based Theories Of Change to Conduct Robust Contribution Analysis in Complex Settings - Koleros, Andrew; Mayne, John (Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation, 2019)
The use of theories of change (ToCs) is a hallmark of sound evaluation practice. As interventions have become more complex, the development of ToCs that adequately unpack this complexity has become more challenging. Equally important is the development of evaluable ToCs, necessary for conducting robust theory-based evaluation approaches such as contribution analysis (CA). This article explores one approach to tackling these challenges through the use of nested actor-based ToCs using the case of an impact evaluation of a complex police-reform program in the Democratic Republic of Congo, describing how evaluable nested actor-based ToCs were built to structure the evaluation.
Keywords: Behavioural strategy; COM-B

Using a social learning configuration to increase Vietnamese smallholder farmers’ adaptive capacity to respond to climate change - Phuong, Le Thi Hong; Wals, Arjen; Sen, Le Thi Hoa; Hoa, Nguyen Quoc; Lu, Phan Van; Biesbroek, Robbert (Local Environment, 2018)
Social learning is crucial for local smallholder farmers in developing countries to improve their adaptive capacity and to adapt to the current and projected impacts of climate change. While it is widely acknowledged that social learning is a necessary condition for adaptation, few studies have systematically investigated under which conditions particular forms of social learning are most successful in improving adaptive capacity of the most vulnerable groups. This study aims to design, implement and evaluate a social learning configuration in a coastal community in Vietnam. We make use of various methods during four workshop-based interventions with local smallholder farmers: interviews with key farmers and commune leaders, farmer-to-farmer learning, participatory observations and focus group discussions. The methods for evaluation of social learning configuration include in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and structured survey interviews. Our findings show that the social learning configuration used in this study leads to an increased problem ownership, an enhanced knowledge-base with regard to climate change impacts and production adaptation options, improved ability to see connections and interdependencies and finally, strengthened relationships and social cohesion. The results suggest that increased social learning in the community leads to increase in adaptive capacity of smallholder farmers and improves both their economic and environmental sustainability. We discuss the key lessons for designing learning configurations that can successfully enhance adaptive capacity and smallholder farmers’ agency and responsiveness to the challenges posed by climate change impacts.
Keywords: Adaptive capacity; Social learning; Vietnamese smallholder farmers

Useful Theory of Change Models - Mayne, John (Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation, 2015)
Although theories of change are frequently discussed in the evaluation literature and there is general agreement on what a theory of change is conceptually, there is actually little agreement beyond the big picture of just what a theory of change comprises, what it shows, how it can be represented, and how it can be used. This article outlines models for theories of change and their development that have proven quite useful for both straightforward and more complex interventions. The models are intuitive, flexible, and well-defined in terms of their components, and they link directly to rigorous models of causality. The models provide a structured framework for developing useful theories of change and analyzing the intervention they represent.

Use of environmental sensors and sensor networks to develop water and salinity budgets for seasonal wetland real-time water quality management - Quinn, Nigel W. T.; Ortega, Ricardo; Rahilly, Patrick J. A.; Royer, Caleb W. (Environmental Modelling & Software, 2010)
Management of river salt loads in a complex and highly regulated river basin such as the San Joaquin River Basin of California presents significant challenges for current Information Technology. Computer-based numerical models are used as a means of simulating hydrologic processes and water quality within the basin and can be useful tools for organizing Basin data in a structured and readily accessible manner. These models can also be used to extend information derived from environmental sensors within existing monitoring networks to areas outside these systems based on similarity factors – since it would be cost prohibitive to collect data for every channel or pollutant source within the Basin. A common feature of all hydrologic and water quality models is the ability to perform mass balances. This paper describes the use of a number of state-of-the-art sensor technologies that have been deployed to obtain water and salinity mass balances for a 60,000ha tract of seasonally managed wetlands in the San Joaquin River Basin of California. These sensor technologies are being combined with more traditional environmental monitoring techniques to support real-time salinity management (RTSM) in the River Basin. Two of these new technology applications: YSI-Econet (which supports continuous flow and salinity monitoring of surface water deliveries and seasonal wetland drainage); and electromagnetic salinity mapping (a remote sensing technology for mapping soil salinity in the surface soils) – have not previously been reported in the literature. Continuous sensor deployments that experience more widespread use include: weather station sensor arrays – used to estimate wetland pond evaporation and moist soil plant evapotranspiration; high resolution multi-spectral imagery – used to discriminate between and estimate the area of wetland moist soil plant vegetation; and groundwater level sensors – used primarily to estimate seepage losses beneath a wetland pond during flood-up. Important issues associated with quality assurance of continuous data are discussed and the application of a state-of-the-art software product AQUARIUS, which streamlines the process of data error correction and dissemination, is described as an essential element of ensuring successful RTSM implementation in the San Joaquin River Basin.
Keywords: Environmental decision support; Forecasting; Sensor networks; Sensors; Water quality

Use Case and Requirements Analysis in a Remote Rural Context in Mali - Bon, Anna; de Boer, Victor; Gyan, Nana Baah; van Aart, Chris; De Leenheer, Pieter; Tuyp, Wendelien; Boyera, Stephane; Froumentin, Max; Grewal, Aman; Allen, Mary; Tangara, Amadou; Akkermans, Hans (Requirements Engineering: Foundation for Software Quality, 2013)
[Context & motivation] Few studies have reported on a systematic use case and requirements analysis of low-tech, low-resource contexts such as rural Africa. This, despite the widespread agreement on the importance of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) for social and rural development, and despite the large number of ICT projects targeting underprivileged communities. [Question/problem] Unfamiliarity with the local context and differences in cultural and educational backgrounds between end-users and software engineers are the challenges for requirements engineering (RE) we encountered. [Principal ideas/results] We describe a systematic approach to RE in developing areas, based on the Living Lab methodology. Our approach is supported by extensive field research and based on co-creation within a multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural team of developers and users. This approach creates a shared understanding of the problem and its local context, and optimizes communication. [Contribution] We illustrate the approach using a case study of web- and voice-based communication services, that we developed for a rural context in Mali.

USAID’s Data Quality Standards & Conducting a DQA - USAID (2014)

USAID Risk Appetite Statement - USAID (USAID, 2018)

USAID/Colombia Introduces Political Economy Analysis to Better Adapt Programming to Local Contexts - Sharp, Preston (USAID, 2015)

USAID Applied Political Economy Analysis - Field Guide - Cammack, Diana (USAID, 2016)
Political Economy Analysis (PEA) is a field-research methodology used to explore not simply how things happen in an aid-recipient country, but why things happen. It results in a written assessment with recommendations for a mission's County Development Cooperation Strategy (CDCS), project or activity design, or course correction during implementation.USAID's Applied PEA is a problem-focused method specially intended to be used by Mission staff to inform the design of aid interventions at any phase of the USAID program cycle and at any level of effort.

USAID ADS 201 - Program Cycle Operational Policy (Update 10/29/2018) - USAID (USAID, 2018)

USAID ADS 201 - Program Cycle Operational Policy (Update 1/23/2017) - USAID (USAID, 2017)
The Program Cycle is USAID’s operational model for planning, delivering, assessing, and adapting development programming in a given region or country to advance U.S. foreign policy. It encompasses guidance and procedures for: 1) Making strategic decisions at the regional or country level about programmatic areas of focus and associated resources; 2) Designing projects and supportive activities to implement strategic plans; and 3) Learning from performance monitoring, evaluations, and other relevant sources of information to make course corrections as needed and inform future programming.

Urban climate change adaptation as social learning: Exploring the process and politics - Fisher, Susannah; Dodman, David (Environmental Policy and Governance, 2019)
Responses to climate change that build on adaptive natural resource management conceptualise social learning processes as having the potential to form a key component of climate adaptation. Social learning processes represent a way of managing the inherent uncertainties and interconnectedness of adaptation issues through ongoing learning, iterative reflection, and change of responses over time. Although the theoretical case is emerging for social learning as adaptation, there is limited empirical evidence of how these processes play out as local governments engage in urban adaptation planning. This paper starts to address this gap by examining social learning processes in two cities in India. We show how the social learning processes interact with complex governance contexts in the two cities and how evidence of outcomes is emerging across individuals, networks, and systems. We go on to argue that there are several areas of social learning that need further theorisation to support its application in the urban context. First, theories of social learning need to allow for unequal power relationships to continue to shape learning processes and take into account structural and historical dynamics as well as relational forms of power. Second, the way that scale is understood needs to be reopened as a point of analysis to understand how scalar concepts are used by actors to frame and locate problems and solutions rather than being understood as fixed and immutable.
Keywords: Climate change; India; Social learning; governance; urban planning

Urban climate adaptation and the reshaping of state–society relations: The politics of community knowledge and mobilisation in Indore, India - Chu, Eric K (Urban Studies, 2018)
Current research on climate change adaptation in cities highlights the role of local governments in facilitating adaptation actions, but rarely assesses whether (and if so, how) local communities organise around emerging climate priorities to affect political change. This paper explores changing state–society relationships through the reconstitution of community collectives and advocacy organisations for advancing climate change adaptation in the Indian city of Indore. The paper shows that communities are indeed recognising the need for adaptation but are, at the same time, integrating adaptation actions with existing strategies for advocating development rights. Communities are also rebuilding alliances between municipal and local institutions for public service and infrastructure provision, which point to the centrality of community politics in urban climate adaptation processes. However, such mobilisations are often dependent on existing political networks and a legacy of advocacy around poverty alleviation needs, which sideline more transformative agendas around inclusiveness, equity, and resilient urban futures.

Unpacking the concept of political will to confront corruption - Brinkerhoff, Derek W. (U4 Anti-Corruption Resource Centre, 2010)
Quite often, "lack of political will" is identified as the culprit for poorly performing anti-corruption programmes. Yet despite the frequency with which it is used to explain unsatisfactory reform outcomes, political will remains under-defined and poorly understood. Further, assessments are often conducted retrospectively, looking back at failed programmes. By applying a model of political will that specifies a set of action-based components that are observable and measurable, and amenable to external reinforcement and support, more clarity regarding the degree of political will can be achieved.

Understanding ‘theory of change’ in international development: A review of existing knowledge - Stein, Danielle; Valters, Craig (LSE, 2012)
This is a review by Danielle Stein and Craig Valters of the concepts and debates within ‘Theory of Change’ (ToC) material, resulting from a search and detailed analysis of available donor, agency and expert guidance documents. The review was undertaken as part of a Justice and Security Research Program (JSRP) and The Asia Foundation (TAF) collaborative project, and focuses on the field of international development.

Understanding ‘the users’ in Technology for Transparency and Accountability Initiatives - Wanjiku Kelbert, Alexandra; McGee, Rosemary; Carlitz, Ruth (2013)

Understanding the Conditions for fostering the right kind of innovation - Edwards, Duncan (Making All Voices Count, 2014)
MAVC's Duncan Edwards reflects on the first in a series of thematic discussions led by the Institute of Development Studies. The second of two posts.

Understanding Social Accountability: Politics, Power and Building New Social Contracts - Hickey, Sam; King, Sophie (The Journal of Development Studies, 2016)
Calls to deepen levels of social accountability within social protection interventions need to be informed by the now extensive experience of promoting social accountability in developing countries. Drawing on a systematic review of over 90 social accountability interventions, including some involving social protection, this paper shows that politics and context are critical to shaping their success. We argue that the politics of social protection and of social accountability resonate strongly with the broader project of transforming state-society relations in developing countries. This requires a reconceptualisation of social accountability and social protection in terms of the broader development of ‘social contracts’, and that the current emphasis on promoting bottom-up forms of accountability needs to be balanced by efforts to strengthen and legitimise public authority in developing countries.

Understanding Indicators And Monitoring For Sustainability In The Context Of Complex Social-Ecological Systems - Haider, L. Jamila; Iribarrem, Alvaro; Gardner, Toby; Latawiec, Agnieszka E; Alves-Pinto, Helena; Strassburg, Bernardo (De Gruyter Open, 2015)

Understanding and governing learning in sustainability transitions: A review - van Mierlo, Barbara; Beers, Pieter J. (Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, 2018)
Many transitions scholars underscore the importance of learning in sustainability transitions, but the associated learning processes have hardly been conceptualised. The diverse, well-established research fields related to learning are broadly ignored or loosely applied. In this paper, we systematically explore four interesting learning traditions in terms of their value for gaining an in-depth understanding of learning in sustainability transitions and their relevance for fostering learning, by connecting them to key features of transitions. The selected learning traditions from different disciplinary backgrounds provide valuable insights. None of them sufficiently addresses the complexity of transitions. They include, however, a diversity of relevant learning contexts. We conclude that they have value for investigating new areas such as learning in socio-technological regimes and in later phases of a transition, while enlightening forms of learning that have not yet been fully recognised in transition studies, such as superficial learning, unlearning, and learning to resist change.
Keywords: Collaborative learning; Interactive learning; Organizational learning; Social learning; Sustainability transition

Uncertainty, Precaution, and Adaptive Management in Wildlife Trade - Wiersema, Annecoos (Michigan Journal of International Law, 2015)

TWP CoP (Thinking and Working Politically - Community of Practice, 2016)

Two Tunes, One Dance: Keeping Programming Agile - Learning Lab (USAID Learning Lab, 2017)

Two Paths to Supporting Grassroots Innovation - Cooper, Nathan; Hazeldine, Shaun; Quaggiotto, Giulio (Stanford Social Innovation Review, 2017)
An innovation experiment in Indonesia yields insights on how international development organizations can effectively foster innovation within the communities they aim to help.

Twinning “Practices of Change” With “Theory of Change”: Room for Emergence in Advocacy Evaluation - Arensman, Bodille; van Waegeningh, Cornelie; van Wessel, Margit (American Journal of Evaluation, 2018)
Theory of change (ToC) is currently the approach for the evaluation and planning of international development programs. This approach is considered especially suitable for complex interventions. We question this assumption and argue that ToC’s focus on cause–effect logic and intended outcomes does not do justice to the recursive nature of complex interventions such as advocacy. Supported by our work as evaluators, and specifically our case study of an advocacy program on child rights, we illustrate how advocacy evolves through recursive interactions, with outcomes that are emergent rather than predictable. We propose putting “practices of change” at the center by emphasizing human interactions, using the analytical lenses of strategies as practice and recursiveness. This provides room for emergent outcomes and implies a different use of ToC. In this article, we make a clear distinction between theoretical reality models and the real world of practices.

Try, learn, adapt, repeat: T/A Learn reflections - Alan (www.globalintegrity.org, 2015)
By Alan Hudson — November 16, 2015. I spent last week in Rio de Janeiro (tough assignment, I know), participating in the Transparency and Accountability Initiative’s third T/A Learn Annual Workshop. As the report of the second Annual Workshop, held...

Triangulation, Respondent Validation, and Democratic Participation in Mixed Methods Research - Torrance, Harry (Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 2012)
Over the past 10 years or so the “Field” of “Mixed Methods Research” (MMR) has increasingly been exerting itself as something separate, novel, and significant, with some advocates claiming paradigmatic status. Triangulation is an important component of mixed methods designs. Triangulation has its origins in attempts to validate research findings by generating and comparing different sorts of data, and different respondents’ perspectives, on the topic under investigation. Respondent validation has sometimes been included in such processes, but it is an element that has not attracted significant attention from the MMR community. The article argues that attention to respondent validation is a significant issue for methodological debate and that it should be an important aspect of the development of democratic participation in MMR.

Transparency, Participation, & Accountability Grantmaking Strategy (THE WILLIAM AND FLORA HEWLETT FOUNDATION, 2015)

Transforming governance: what role for technologies? - Edwards, Duncan; Brock, Karen; McGee, Rosie (MAVC, 2016)
The technological innovations of the last two decades – cell phones, tablets, open data and social media – mean that governments and citizens can interact like never before. Around the world, in different contexts, citizens have fast-increasing access to information and communications technologies (ICTs) that enable them to monitor government performance and express their views on it in real time. In February 2016, a learning event in Manila, convened by Making All Voices Count, brought together 55 researchers and practitioners from 15 countries. They all work on using new technologies for accountable governance. They shared their diverse experiences, reflected on how they approach transformative governance, and visited Filipino accountable governance initiatives. This report shares some of what they learned.
Keywords: IMPORTANT

Transforming governance: how can technology help reshape democracy? - Leighninger, Matt (Institute of Development Studies, 2016)
Around the world, people are asking how we can make democracy work in new and better ways. We are frustrated by political systems in which voting is the only legitimate political act, concerned that many republics don’t have the strength or appeal to withstand authoritarian figures, and disillusioned by the inability of many countries to address the fundamental challenges of health, education and economic development. If we want to create democracies in which citizens have meaningful roles in shaping public decisions and solving public problems, we should be asking a number of questions about civic tech, including: • How can online tools best support new forms of democracy? • What are the examples of how this has happened? • What are some variables to consider in comparing these examples? • How can we learn from each other as we move forward? This background note has been developed to help democratic innovators explore these questions and examine how their work can provide answers.

Transformative Networks Are Multiscalar - Holley, June (NetworkWeaver, 2018)
This is an excerpt from the Network Weaver Handbook. I’ll be writing an update with my latest research and thinking on the topic in the coming weeks so stay tuned! June Holley How does tr…

Transformation, politics and implementation: smart implementation in governance programs - Kirsch, Renate; Siehl, Elke; Stockmayer, Albrecht (Nomos, 2017)
Working in environments characterised by a high degree of uncertainty, uncontrollability and unpredictability, development agents try to organise complex realities into manageable units. What principles influence the decision on adequate approaches and necessary steps? Through theoretical considerations and nine case studies, the GIZ traces implementation processes and identifies underlying guiding principles which provide the flexibility and adaptability that is necessary for acting in complex contexts. Main findings show that an adaptive and reflexive management structure is crucial for successful implementation. Quick iteration and tight feedback loops facilitate adaptation and reorientation. Contextsensitive knowledge and constant monitoring create a space for learning and innovation. A joint vision for the future which is used for orientation purposes and can be modified according to new findings and developments fosters fruitful cooperation.
OCLC: 1000398466

Towards transformative social learning on the path to 1.5 degrees - Macintyre, Thomas; Lotz-Sisitka, Heila; Wals, Arjen; Vogel, Coleen; Tassone, Valentina (Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 2018)

Towards ‘Targeted Systems Change’ - Rye, Sam (Fieldnotes by Sam Rye, 2019)
Modelling and communicating how to shift systems

Towards informed and multi-faceted wildlife trade interventions - Challender, Daniel W.S.; Harrop, Stuart R.; MacMillan, Douglas C. (Global Ecology and Conservation, 2015)
International trade in wildlife is a key threat to biodiversity conservation. CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, seeks to ensure international wildlife trade is sustainable, relying on trade bans and controls. However, there has been little comprehensive review of its effectiveness and here we review approaches taken to regulate wildlife trade in CITES. Although assessing its effectiveness is problematic, we assert that CITES boasts few measurable conservation successes. We attribute this to: non-compliance, an over reliance on regulation, lack of knowledge and monitoring of listed species, ignorance of market forces, and influence among CITES actors. To more effectively manage trade we argue that interventions should go beyond regulation and should be multi-faceted, reflecting the complexity of wildlife trade. To inform these interventions we assert an intensive research effort is needed around six key areas: (1) factors undermining wildlife trade governance at the national level, (2) determining sustainable harvest rates for, and adaptive management of CITES species, (3) gaining the buy-in of local communities in implementing CITES, (4) supply and demand based market interventions, (5) means of quantifying illicit trade, and (6) political processes and influence within CITES.
Keywords: CITES; Community conservation; Compliance; Economics; Regulation; Wildlife trade

Towards excellence: Policy and action research for sustainable development - iied (The International Institute for Environment and Development, 2012)

Towards evidence-informed adaptive management - Hernandez, Kevin; Ramalingam, Ben; Wild, Leni (ODI/GLAM, 2019)
Development and humanitarian organisations seeking to be adaptive have emphasised the need to be transparent about complexity and uncertainty; to be honest about their inability to control what happens; and to design programmes that change over time to become more appropriate and relevant. At their heart, adaptive management approaches emphasise the ability to lean, 'unlearn' and adapt programming accordingly. The cornerstone of effective learning is the creation, gathering, accumulation, interpretation and use of data and evidence. This working paper provides development professionals with tools, strategies and ideas to help them use evidence for adaptive management in practical and evidence-informed ways. Key messages - Evidence is central to effective and rigorous adaptive management. However, despite this central importance, exactly how evidence has been used to inform decisions for adapting development and humanitarian programmes in the past remains unobservable to many. - There is a need to strengthen and document evidence-informed adaptive management. This working paper proposes a roadmap to do this. - Those seeking to use evidence for adaptive management will need to manage trade-offs between ensuring a rigorous, documented (and auditable) trail of evidence-informed actions, being pragmatic about the time and resources allocated to documentation and recognising that it may be necessary to proceed without rigorous evidence when it is unavailable.

Towards characterizing the adaptive capacity of farmer-managed irrigation systems: learnings from Nepal - Thapa, Bhuwan; Scott, Christopher; Wester, Philippus; Varady, Robert (Environmental change assessments, 2016)
Small-scale irrigation systems managed by farmers are facing multiple challenges including competing water demand, climatic variability and change, and socioeconomic transformation. Though the relevant institutions for irrigation management have developed coping and adaptation mechanisms, the intensity and frequency of the changes have weakened their institutional adaptive capacity. Using case examples mostly from Nepal, this paper studies the interconnections between seven key dimensions of adaptive capacity: the five capitals (human, financial, natural, social, and physical), governance, and learning. Long-term adaptation requires harnessing the synergies and tradeoffs between generic adaptive capacity that fosters broader development goals and specific adaptive capacity that strengthens climate-risk management. Measuring and addressing the interrelations among the seven adaptive-capacity dimensions aids in strengthening the long term sustainability of farmer-managed irrigation systems.

Towards an evidence base on the value of social learning-oriented approaches in the context of climate change and food security - Epp, Marissa Van; Garside, Ben (Environmental Policy and Governance, 2019)
Attention to social learning's potential to improve development outcomes in the context of climate change and food security challenges is growing. Yet evidence supporting the wide range of assertions about the outcomes of social learning processes is insufficient. More work is needed to understand when and how a social learning-oriented approach is effective. We respond to the gap in evidence by piloting the Climate Change and Social Learning initiative's monitoring and evaluation framework for social learning. Our objectives are to begin building an evidence base and to test the theory of change behind the framework. Using a peer-assist approach, we apply the framework to eight case studies in partnership with five initiatives. We analyse trends in evidence gathered across the case studies in four dimensions of social learning (engagement, iterative learning, capacity development, and challenging institutions) along three dimensions of change (process, learning outcomes, and changes in values and practice).
Keywords: Climate change adaptation; Monitoring and Evaluation; Social learning; food security

Towards an Alternative Development Management Paradigm? - Shutt, Cathy (Expertgruppen för biståndsanalys (EBA), 2016)
Demonstrating results has been a concern in international development cooperation ever since it was started and in recent years there has been an increased focus on achieving and reporting on “results”. Despite the fact that everyone involved in development cooperation wants to make a difference there has been a growing criticism from practitioners about the “results agenda” based on a concern that the approaches used are not fit for purpose. In the EBA-report, Cathy Shutt, at the University of Sussex, scrutinizes the recent critical debate about results based management, and the main arguments and motives behind the criticism. She shows that the debate is not only a matter of obsessive measurement and reporting of meaningless numbers for political accountability, but also a matter of problematic assumptions and how we think about development, evidence and learning. In the report, Shutt also explores what could be learned from those who are not just critiquing results based management approaches but also proposing alternatives. Are these new alternatives an answer to the criticism?
Keywords: IMPORTANT

Top Tips: How to design and manage adaptive programmes - Valters, Craig; Wild, Leni (Overseas Development Institute, 2019)
Within DFID, there is now a commitment to more flexible and adaptive programming. This recognises that: • DFID works in contexts that continuously evolve and change, sometimes in unpredictable ways. To respond to this, the agency needs to remain flexible – to expect change and have a good understanding of context, with resources that can be adjusted and scope to change direction if needed. All DFID programmes should be able to do this. • Some DFID programmes aim to support change in complex systems, behaviours and incentives. Efforts to address women’s empowerment, improve sanitation or build more sustainable health systems, for instance, all require engagement with the way in which complex systems operate and the people and behaviours within them. Trying to deliver reforms in these circumstances is challenging because the pathway to reform itself will be unclear: as a reform is rolled out, the system itself will react and respond. These types of programmes therefore need to build in from the start deliberate processes of learning and testing, to allow for adaptations as more information is gathered for what works over time. These top tips are concerned with programmes that aim to be flexible and adaptive – which work in dynamic contexts and are trying to address complex problems. While there is growing commitment to these approaches, feedback suggests staff still have questions about how to do this well. This document highlights some of the commonly reported issues related to adaptive programming and a set of tips, strategies and examples to help in addressing them. It is aimed at programme managers and advisors who may be Senior Responsible Owners (SROs) or those managing and supporting adaptive programming in a range of ways. We have collated these lessons from discussions with country offices and SROs, feedback from surveys and the wider evidence. We have looked specifically at the adaptive programmes we can find in the DFID portfolio, but this is not an exhaustive list. It should be noted that there is as yet no wide variety of case law to review, but there is a growing set of examples within DFID that can provide continuous learning for the organisation.

Top-down vs. Bottom-up Hierarchy: Or, How to Design a Self-Managed Organization - Sisney, Lex (Organizational Physics - Systems thinking for breakthrough business performance, 2016)
Top-down vs. Bottom-up Hierarchy: Or, How to Design a Self-Managed Organization

Tools for supporting sustainable natural resource management and livelihoods - Ashley, Holly; Kenton, Nicole; Milligan, Angela (2013)
OCLC: 951490115

Toolkit Digitalisation: Tools to Support Strategic Planning and Implementation - GIZ (2017)

Tips on Learning from Context: Formal and Informal Approaches to Understanding the Local Political Economy - Swift, Sarah (USAID, 2018)
Successfully adapting your programmatic efforts and policy engagement to the context depends on maintaining your understanding of that context. Given this, continuous learning and feedback loops–not only about your programming, but also about the environment you are working within–are important components of USAID’s work. Since our environments are always changing, in ways big and small, this can be intimidating. One can imagine a scenario where learning consumes the limited time and budgets available, especially for small programs. The question becomes: How can we learn enough, at the right times, to limit missed opportunities and warning signs, while avoiding being consumed by data collection and analysis that never influences our work? This document capitalizes on the experiences of USAID staff as well as emerging learning from other donors and researchers to highlight a range of approaches–formal and informal, time-bound and continuous–that can support ongoing learning within the operational tempo of a busy Mission team or Operating Unit.

Tips for Finding Unusual Allies and Building Innovative Alliances - Jacobstein, David (USAID Learning Lab, 2018)
One of the truisms of thinking and working politically (TWP) is that it requires looking differently at how stakeholders relate to a given development challenge or process, and building coalitions of the “right actors at the right time” who can drive forward progress while working with the grain of the context. While it’s easy to call for coalitions for change and diverse stakeholder engagement, identifying allies beyond those already seized with an issue, and finding ways to collaborate with stakeholders who may have different reasons for joining a coalition, is a challenging task. These are some suggested tips to improve working in that fashion.

Tips for Conducting a Gender Analysis at the Activity or Project Level - Cozzarelli, Cathy (USAID, 2010)
I. What is gender analysis? II. Relevant sections of the ADS III. Process – What should you do to collect the information you need to conduct a gender analysis at the activity or project level? IV. What questions should you ask in the context of doing your gender analysis? - Access - Knowledge, Beliefs, and Perceptions - Practices and Participation - Time and Space - Legal Rights and Status - Power and Decision-making IV. What should you do after you ask these questions?

Tiny Tools - Measuring Change in Communities and Groups - Causemann, Bernward; Gohl, Eberhard; Brenner, Verena (Impact+, 2012)
Introduction to the Overview: Tiny Tools Why “Tiny Tools” for assessing change? Currently, change is mostly assessed by NGO staff or external experts. The vision of this paper is that communities assess and reflect change themselves and make use of that reflection with appropriate tools. All the tools presented here are relatively quick and easy to learn (therefore “tiny”). With Tiny Tools we can assess change in one session. They can therefore be used where there are not baselines. They are structured and systematic, and they are all widely tested: Experience shows that these tools lead to new insights, mobilise enthusiasm and increase the capacity of communities to bring about further change. The Tiny Tools are in line with what Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) wanted to achieve. Many are slight variations of PRA tools. For a detailed description of concepts, see the NGO-IDEAs Impact Toolbox (www.ngo-ideas.net/impact_toolbox) and the NGO-IDEAs Manual Self-Effectiveness (www.ngo-ideas.net/monitoring_self_effectiveness). The tools are designed to visualise change, but also enable communities to reflect on the reasons of change or verify assessments. They may be implemented once or continuously over time. We know that the time of community members is precious, and limited. Therefore all Tiny Tools can be performed in a relatively short session, provided facilitators (it could be field staff or project officers) are experienced – and the community knows and trusts them. The amount of time spent on the application of the tools may however be prolonged according to the needs of a community or NGO. All of these tools are easy to learn for a facilitator experienced in participatory processes. Which tool should be introduced to which community? It is typically the decision of a development organisation (or external experts) which tools they want to introduce into a community. The staff need to assess which tool will lead to learning and action. It could also be that the staff realise aspects of change that they do not understand well enough. These tools are good for exploring change that we have not planned for and not anticipated. They are also good for exploring change in a context where we have no prior information. Communities are the best experts for their situation, but we emphasise that the tools should be used in ways that benefit and empower the communities or individuals participating. The tool implementations should lead to consequences on the grassroots as well as the NGO level. All Tiny Tools can be integrated into PIAR, the Analysis tool in the NGO-IDEAs Impact Toolbox. Also, the Tiny Tools can help to prepare for the application of the Toolbox tools. They help to make people aware of changes that can be observed. The following box gives some hints how Tiny Tools relate to the Impact Toolbox tools, and to what extent they help to attribute change to development interventions.

Timely evaluation in international development - Webster, Jayne; Exley, Josephine; Copestake, James; Davies, Rick; Hargreaves, James (Journal of Development Effectiveness, 2018)
Impact and process evaluations are increasingly used in international development; however they are generally retrospective in outlook. A more timely approach to evaluation aims to identify necessary, feasible and effective changes during a programme or intervention’s lifetime. This paper aims to identify, categorise, describe and critically appraise methods to support more timely evaluation in international development. Potential methods were identified through scoping seminar, public symposium, targeted review of the literature, and the authors’ own experiences and opinions. Findings from the different data sources were reviewed collectively by the author group and triangulated to develop an analytical framework. We identified four purposes of timely evaluation for international development, and critiqued the use of approaches against four dimensions of timeliness and flexibility. Whilst we found significant interest in more timely approaches to evaluation in international development, there was a dearth of published empirical evidence upon which to base strong recommendations. There is significant potential for timely evaluation to improve international development outcomes. New approaches to mixing and adapting existing methods, together with new technologies offer increased potential. Research is needed to provide an empirical evidence base upon which to further develop the application, across sectors and contexts, of timely evaluation in international development.
Keywords: Adaptive learning; Outcome evaluation; Programme improvement; impact evaluation

Time to Listen: Hearing People on the Receiving End of International Aid - Anderson, Mary B.; Brown, Dayna; Jean, Isabella (CDA Collaborative Learning Projects, 2012)
Does the way international assistance is organized make sense? Is it working as we mean it to? This book approaches these questions through the experiences of people living on the receiving side of international assistance. It reports on the ideas, insights, and analyses of almost 6,000 people across 20 countries where international aid has been provided. From such a range of locations and people, one might expect vastly different ideas and opinions. However, remarkably consistent patterns and common judgments emerged. In the midst of difference, there was striking unanimity and consistency about the processes and the effects of the international aid system. Using their words, their experiences, and their ideas, this book describes why the cumulative impacts of international aid efforts have not met expectations. It describes a way forward to make changes that, according to those on the receiving end, will lead to more effective and lasting results.

Time to let go: remaking humanitarian action for the modern era - Bennett, Christina (ODI, 2016)
As the international humanitarian system faces a crisis of legitimacy, the Humanitarian Policy Group’s landmark report proposes a new model of humanitarian action.

Time for a Donor Funding Charter? - kiwanja.net (Donor's Chapter, 2014)

TICTeC 2018 - The Making All Voices Count programme: new lessons about donor-funded civic tech - mySociety (2018)
Keywords: Accountability; Civic Tech; IDS; TICTeC; transparency

Three Approaches to Monitoring: Feedback Systems, Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation and Logical Frameworks - Jacobs, Alex; Barnett, Chris; Ponsford, Richard (IDS Bulletin, 2010)
This article compares key attributes, strengths and weaknesses of three different approaches to monitoring development interventions: the logical framework approach, participatory monitoring and evaluation (PM&E) and feedback systems. Academic and practitioner literature describes how logframes meet the needs of senior decision-makers to summarise, organise and compare projects. PM&E meets the needs of field staff to work sensitively with intended beneficiaries and support their learning and empowerment. Feedback systems appear to link the two, providing performance data for managers and creating incentives for implementing staff to focus on their intended beneficiaries. Feedback systems build on the rich heritage of PM&E and are compatible with logframes. They may help provide a manageable and effective approach to accountability that links the means and the ends of development interventions. Feedback systems are at an early stage of development. There is a lot to learn about how and where they work best.

Thoughts on the use of hypotheses in adaptive management - Sparkman, Timothy (BEAM Exchange, 2015)
New insights, opinions and perspectives on market systems development, from experts and practitioners.

This startup uses machine learning and satellite imagery to predict crop yields - Brokaw, Alex (The Verge, 2016)
Mark Johnson wants to beat the United States Department of Agriculture at its own game: predicting yields of America's crops. The USDA puts boots on the ground, deploying hundreds of workers to...

Thinking big: How to use theory of change for systems change - Abercrombie, Rob; Boswell, Katie; Thomasoo, Rosanna (NPC, 2018)
We think that, applied well, theory of change can support charities and funders to take a systemic approach to their work. This report identifies five common pitfalls that organisations fall into when using theory of change, and walks through five rules of thumb that will help organisations to use the approach to tackle complex problems. We think that, applied well, theory of change can support charities and funders to take a systemic approach to their work. This report identifies five common pitfalls that organisations fall into when using theory of change, and walks through five rules of thumb that will help organisations to use the approach to tackle complex problems.

Thinking and working with political settlements - Kelsall, Tim (ODI, 2016)
• In recent years, Political Settlements Analysis (PSA) has become increasingly influential in academic and policy circles • Despite its intuitive appeal, it seems difficult to use in practice • PSA has a natural affinity with Adaptive Development, Thinking and Working Politically, and Doing Development Differently approaches • By answering the simple diagnostic questions supplied here, development partners can identify the types of political settlements in which they work, and draw some broad operational implications

Thinking and Working Politically (Yangon, October 2016) - British Council (British Council Myanmar, 2017)
On 3-4 October 2016, British Council, Pyoe Pin, The Asia Foundation and UK DFID co-hosted a two day conference on ‘Thinking and Working Politically’ (TWP) for more effective and sustainable development assistance. The success or failure of development programmes is, in many – if not most – cases, determined by domestic politics within countries, rather than by the technical elegance of programme design by external donors. The event brought together international donors, implementing agencies and local partners. Participants compared experiences on what has worked, where and why – both in Myanmar, and across the world including case studies from Sudan, Zambia and the Philippines. Throughout the conference, participants familiarised themselves with politically smart development approaches and what it means to think and work politically in Myanmar. This has laid foundations for greater collaboration on TWP to help meet Myanmar’s critical development challenges.

Thinking and Working Politically: What does it mean, Why is it important and How do you do it? - Leftwich, Adrian (Politics, Leadership and Coalitions in Development: Policy Implications of the DLP Research Evidence, Research and Policy Workshop, 2011)
This paper suggests that working politically in a developmental context means directing attention and support to the agents of reform and development (leaders and organisations). This allows investment in the local processes that will resolve problems – such as problems of collective action – through the work of alliances and coalitions. Hence, it will drive the formation and consolidation of the locally appropriate, feasible and legitimate institutions that are most likely to advance development outcomes. The Developmental Leadership Program defines politics as the pervasive, unavoidable and necessary activities of conflict, negotiation and compromise involved in group decision-making about how resources are to be used, produced and distributed. Thinking politically means understanding that both political and technical dimensions are central to developmental outcomes. It also means: Understanding that ‘agency’ matters. That is, that people have the potential to change things, but always withhin the context of given institutional arrangements, which contain both constraints and opportunities. Leaders, organisations and followers think, strategise and attempt to resolve problems in different ways in the same contexts. Understanding leadership as a political process that mobilises people and resources in support of a goal: leaders seldom work on their own. Realising that overcoming collective action problems is a major challenge of development. Collective action problems occur when people with diverse (often competing) interests struggle to agree on an organisational arrangement from which they would all benefit. Understanding that coalitions (formal or informal) are a crucial political mechanism for the resolution of collective action problems. Paying attention to the detailed inner politics of regimes, sectors or issues (‘micro-politics’). This includes understanding who the players are, where they come from, their organisational affiliations, ideologies and interests and the political dynamics involved. (Many political analysis tools are inadequate for this level of detail.) Recognising that processes are as important as projects in development, and vary from context to context. Working politically in development means supporting, brokering, facilitating and aiding the emergence and practices of (public or private) developmental or reform leaderships, organisations, networks and coalitions at any level, and across all sectors. It means helping them to respond to, and work with, initiatives and requests from local individuals and groups. Working politically can also involve: Investing in the effectiveness of developmental coalitions by enhancing the political capacity of organisations in negotiation, advocacy, communication and the generation of constructive policy options. Rethinking higher educational support programmes so that they supplement a skills focus with strategies that help to build networks, and encourage the understanding of collective action problems and of the importance of providing public goods. Acquiring a deep and detailed knowledge of, and long-term exposure to, the country or issue concerned. Respectful and sensitive understanding of local political dynamics and cultural norms. Employing more social scientists and a well-trained, politically savvy workforce, both local and international, with the capacity to ‘read’ the politics. In particular, coalitions can help drive the endogenous politics of developmental reforms by: 1) achieving a specific policy goal; 2) opening up debate on a previously taboo issue; 3) deepening and strengthening the coalition’s internal organisation and relationships for future purposes; and 4) increasing the capacity of constituent organisations. It is also important to understand that: Developmental leaderships and coalitions often emerge in response to a critical juncture – a threat, challenge or danger – or a new opportunity. What matters is whether leaders have the knowledge, education, vision, prior experience and networks to seize such opportunities. The character and conditionality of funding by donors or supporters can make or break a coalition. Are tight conditions applied? Are funding arrangements transparent?

Thinking and Working politically to support developmental leadership and coalitions: The Pacific Leadership Program - Denney, Lisa; McLaren, Rebecca (DLP Program, 2016)

Thinking and Working Politically through Applied Political Economy Analysis. A guide for practitioners - Rocha Menocal, Alina; Cassidy, Marc; Swift, Sarah; Jacobstein, David; Rothblum, Corinne; Tservil, Ilona (USAID, 2018)
Thinking and Working Politically (TWP) through Applied Political Economy Analysis (PEA). A guide for practitioners Have you ever done everything right in a development program — followed every technical best practice — but still missed the mark? When this happens, it often relates to factors in the context beyond any external development actor’s ability to control.

Thinking and working politically: Reviewing the evidence on the integration of politics into development practice over the past decade - Laws, Ed; Marquette, Heather (TWP Community of Practice, 2018)

Thinking and Working Politically: Professional Development Reading Pack - Booth, David (GSDRC Applied Knowledge services, 2015)

Thinking and Working Politically: Lessons from FOSTER in Nigeria - Lopez Lucia, Elisa; Buckley, Joanna; Marquette, Heather; McCulloch, Neil (DLP Program, 2017)
The Facility for Oil Sector Transparency and Reform (FOSTER) was a £14 million programme that has helped Nigeria to transform its governance of the oil and gas industry. FOSTER ran from 2011 to mid-2016, and used an explicit ‘thinking and working politically’ (TWP) approach. It was funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) and managed by Oxford Policy Management (OPM). This paper seeks to identify the factors that drove – or constrained – FOSTER’s achievements, and asks what this can tell us about TWP, particularly in challenging political and sectoral contexts. FOSTER sought to help strengthen oversight and accountability in Nigeria’s oil sector. It aimed to support reformers within government institutions that ‘supply’ accountability (those governing how oil and gas revenues are collected and managed), and to support civil society organisations, parliament, the media and the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative to ‘demand’ reform. In addition, FOSTER commissioned a series of studies and provided media training to help broaden understanding of the sector and highlight the need for reform. This paper examines the outcomes from five ‘clusters’ of FOSTER interventions. The FOSTER team viewed the first three of these in the list below as successful, whereas the latter two did not deliver on expectations but offer important opportunities for learning: • Support to the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative • Support to demand-side actors to promote transparency and accountability in the oil sector • Support for the passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill • An oil spill-mapping social media project • Support to the Department of Petroleum Resources The analysis drew on 44 semi-structured interviews conducted during a month of fieldwork in Abuja and Lagos; on reviews of the programme’s monitoring, evaluation and learning frameworks; and on newspaper articles and grey literature on Nigeria’s oil sector.2

Thinking and Working Politically: Learning from practice. Overview to Special Issue - McCulloch, Neil; Piron, Laure-Hélène (Development Policy Review, 2019)
Over the last 15 years, a set of ideas now referred to as “thinking and working politically” (TWP) has coalesced into a “second orthodoxy” about how to take context into account when implementing development interventions. This approach stresses the importance of obtaining a better understanding of the local context (“thinking politically”) in order to support local actors to bring about sustainable developmental change (“working politically”). However, the evidence base to justify this new approach remains thin, despite a growing number of programmes which purport to be implementing it. Officials in development agencies struggle with putting it into practice and it is unclear how TWP differs—or not—from similar approaches, such as Problem Driven Iterative Adaptation (PDIA) and Doing Development Differently (DDD). This Special Issue sheds light on what TWP means in practice by examining a set of initiatives undertaken by both development partners and government departments in Nigeria, the Occupied Palestinian Territories, China and India. This overview article outlines, in brief, each of the Special Issue's four papers and then draws out five lessons—for funders and for practitioners—from across all the papers. Our five lessons are: (1) the fundamental importance of undertaking political economy analysis (PEA) to adapt programmes to their contexts; (2) the importance of having a realistic level of ambition for interventions; (3) the need to support local ownership—not just “agreement ownership” (between a donor agency and government) or local “management ownership” of the programme, but critically “driver ownership” by generating trust with the key local actors driving change; (4) the need for a more effective set of tools for measuring results in complex programmes that attempt to achieve improvements in long-run governance; and, (5) that although the political economy of donors is often seen as a barrier to applying TWP, the articles show how much can be done with a TWP approach if the analysis takes into account the political economy of donors as well as that of the local context. We conclude with a set of operational recommendations for donors and implementors, as well as suggestions of avenues for further research.
Keywords: Adaptation; Development programmes; Political economy analysis; Reform space; thinking and working politically

Thinking and working politically in the transparency and accountability field - Halloran, Brendan (Transparency & Accountability Initiative, 2014)

Thinking and working politically in Somalia: A case study on the Somalia Stability Fund - Laws, Ed (TWP Coommunity of Practice and ODI, 2018)

Thinking and working politically in large, multi-sector Facilities: lessons to date - Teskey, Graham; Tyrrel, Lavinia (Abt Associates, 2017)

Thinking and Working Politically in Economic Development Programmes – Some Sprints and Stumbles from a DFID Programme in Kyrgyzstan - Koleros, Andrew; Rinnert, David (From Poverty to Power, 2019)
A DFID programme in Kyrgyzstan offers useful insights into how the Thinking and Working Politically approach can escape from its governance ghetto
Keywords: Case Study

Thinking and Working Politically: from theory building to building an evidence base - Dasandi, Niheer; Marquette, Heather; Robinson, Mark (DLP, 2016)
This paper discusses the steps required to build a robust evidence base for 'thinking and working politically' (TWP) in development. It argues that better understanding what works, when and why is an important step in moving TWP into mainstream development programming. The paper reviews the existing evidence base on TWP, building on this and on other literature on public sector reform and 'pockets of effectiveness' to suggest research questions, case study selection criteria, and a four-level analytical framework: 1) political context; 2) sector; 3) organisation; and 4) individual. The framework aims to help build a 'rigorous enough' evidence base to show whether and how TWP happens and whether or not it influences the effectiveness of programme implementation and outcomes. The paper also calls for more focus on gender issues, and on different – and often more fragile – political contexts.
Keywords: IMPORTANT

Thinking and Working Politically – Are We Seeing the Emergence of a Second Orthodoxy? - Teskey, Graham (Abt Associates, 2017)
There now is a persuasive volume of evidence that demonstrates that capacity and technical knowledge alone are insufficient to change deeply entrenched political interests and bureaucratic norms. These critiques demonstrate that an understanding of power asymmetries is frequently the critical missing ingredient in project design and implementation. Many eminent thinkers have looked at the difference between success and failure in development, and all point to the primacy of domestic politics. This point has not been lost on development agencies and some have tried to provoke greater attention to the role that politics plays. However, this recognition is yet to pass into the mainstream of development practice. Despite the slow but sure accretion of this knowledge the international community seems to be wedded to doing development traditionally. The purpose of this paper is to consider the extent to which a ‘second orthodoxy’ is slowly emerging which can stand alongside, and in some cases may supplant, the ‘first orthodoxy’ of the traditional project framework. Care has to be taken in making this argument, as there is certainly no consensus within the development community on its importance, and even among advocates, there are slightly differing interpretations of what this second orthodoxy looks like. Further, it is not absolutely clear that the two orthodoxies can co-exist. The paper does not call for any ‘paradigm shift’ in how development practitioners conceptualise programs and projects, nor does it demand that the project framework be scrapped; the former would be impossible and the latter undesirable. Equally readers will find no claims that Doing Development Differently or ‘Thinking and Working Politically’ will always and everywhere guarantee better development outcomes. Rather, the paper seeks to summarise how the two orthodoxies differ, where the second orthodoxy now stands, and propose how it can be taken forward in practical terms.

Thinking and working politically: An introduction to key ideas, examples and further reading - Laws, Ed; Marquette, Heather (2018)

“There’s no money for that.” Three Ways to Resource Collaborating, Learning, and Adapting - Salib, Monalisa (USAID Learning Lab, 2016)
This blog is the third in an ongoing series exploring the components of USAID's CLA Framework. Here is the first blog on organizational culture and the second on effective learning.

Theory of Change Thinking in Practice - van Es, Marjan; Guijt, Irene; Vogel, Isabel (2015)
Want to know better how your interventions can contribute to change? A Theory of Change (ToC) approach helps in deepening your understanding - and that of your partners - of how you collectively think change happens and what the effect will be of your intervention. Not only does it show what political, social, economic, and/or cultural factors are in play, it also clarifies your assumptions. Once a ToC has been developed, it can be used to continually reflect on it in ways that allow for adaptation and checking of assumptions of your intervention. This user friendly guideline helps you to use a Theory of Change approach. Theories of change are the ideas and beliefs people have – consciously or not – about why and how the world and people change. How people perceive and understand change and the world around them is infused by their underlying beliefs about life, human nature and society. They are deep drivers of people’s behaviour and of the choices they make. Social change processes are complex and characterised by non-linear feedback loops: our own actions interact with those of others and a myriad of influencing factors. This triggers reactions that cannot be foreseen and makes outcomes of change interventions unpredictable. Given these uncertainties, how can we plan strategically and sensibly? How can social change initiatives move forward in emerging change processes in a flexible way, while remaining focused on the goal? In this context of complexity, Hivos has found a theory of change (ToC) approach useful in guiding its strategic thinking and action, as well as its collaborative efforts with others. As it fosters critical questioning of all aspects of change interventions and supports adaptive planning and management in response to diverse and quickly changing contexts. It contributes to the quality and transparency of strategic thinking, and therefore to personal, organisational and social learning. This guide builds on the experiences of Hivos working with a ToC approach. It is a practical guide for Hivos staff in applying a Theory of Change approach, but is also very useful for others working on social change such as social entrepreneurs and innovators. This guide builds on the work of a ToC Learning Group initiated by Hivos and comprising of staff of the Centre for Development Innovation (CDI) of Wageningen University and Research Centre and of experts Iñigo Retolaza Eguren, Isabel Vogel and Irene Guijt. For current thinking and work on the use of Theory of Change thinking in complex change processes, see http://www.theoryofchange.nl

Theory of change in ten steps - Noble, James (NPC, 2019)

Theory of Change Analysis: Building Robust Theories of Change - Mayne, John (Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation, 2017)
Models for theories of change vary widely as do how they are used. What constitutes a good or robust theory of change has not been discussed much. This article sets out and discusses criteria for robust theories of change. As well, it discusses how these criteria can be used to undertake a vigorous assessment of a theory of change. A solid analysis of a theory of change can be extremely useful, both for designing or assessing the designs of an intervention as well as for the design of monitoring regimes and evaluations. The article concludes with a discussion about carrying out a theory of change analysis and an example.

Theory of Change - Rogers, Patricia (UNICEF, 2014)

Theory of Action: Creating Craddle to Career Proof Points - Strive Together (Strive Together, 2014)
StriveTogether’s Theory of Action provides a framework for improving educational outcomes and ensuring a community transforms how it serves children.

Theories of Change: time for a radical approach to learning in development - Valters, Craig (ODI, 2015)
The Theory of Change approach demands a radical shift towards more and better learning in development thinking and practice, creating a productive and much-needed space for critical reflection.

Theories of change in international development: Communication, learning, or accountability? - Valters, Craig (JSRP, 2014)

Theories of Change for Promoting Empowerment and Accountability in Fragile and Conflict-Affected Settings - Green, Duncan (IDS, 2017)
This paper explores the current state of thinking among a range of aid actors (multilaterals, bilateral, applied scholars and international non-governmental organisations) on how to promote empowerment and accountability in fragile, conflict and violence affected settings. It seeks to identify trends, gaps and weaknesses in that thinking, and propose research questions and hypotheses to test. Three underlying sources of confusion are identified that are hindering progress on both understanding empowerment and accountability in fragile, conflict and violence affected settings, and taking helpful action to promote it. They are: Theory of endogenous change (e.g. on how empowerment and accountability arise in situ) versus the theory of action of an external intervention; Fragility versus conflict: there is no clear justification for combining these different aspects into a single category; and Empowerment versus accountability: donor analysis and practice has been overwhelmingly weighted towards accountability, exhibiting limited understanding or interest in the nature of power.
Keywords: A4EA; External actors; Participation

The Whistler principles to accelerate innovation for development impact - G7 (G7, 2018)
The Whistler principles to accelerate innovation for development impact : 2018 G7 Summit – Canada 2018 G7 Presidency – Charlevoix, Quebec

The water of Systems Change: Action learning exercise - Kania, John; Kramer, Mark; Senge, Peter (FSG, 2018)
Based on the “inverted triangle” framework presented in The Water of Systems Change, this activity is designed to help individuals think systemically about social change, explore what is happening below the surface on issues they care about, and determine how they and their organizations can pursue large-scale change in a disciplined and holistic manner. The exercise is divided into 3 parts: Part I uses the “inverted pyramid” introduced in The Water of Systems Change to perform an external assessment of opportunities to make progress on the social or environmental issue you are focused on. Part II uses the same framework to consider internal conditions within yourself and your organization that should change in order for you to better support progress on your issue. Part III takes what was developed in Parts I and II and asks “What to do next?”

The water of Systems Change - Kania, John; Kramer, Mark; Senge, Peter (FSG, 2018)
Foundations involved in systems change can increase their odds for success by focusing on the least explicit but most powerful conditions for change, while also turning the lens on themselves. The Water of Systems Change aims to clarify what it means to shift these conditions. We offer the “inverted triangle” framework as an actionable model for funders and others interested in creating systems change, particularly those who are working to advance equity. Top Takeaways Systems change is about advancing equity by shifting the conditions that hold a problem in place. To fully embrace systems change, funders should be prepared to see how their own ways of thinking and acting must change as well. Shifts in system conditions are more likely to be sustained when working at three different levels of change: explicit, semi-explicit, and implicit.

The usability of climate information in sub-national planning in India, Kenya and Uganda: the role of social learning and intermediary organisations - Fisher, Susannah; Dodman, David; Epp, Marissa Van; Garside, Ben (Climatic Change, 2018)
Abstract Research on using climate information has often focused on the interaction between users and producers and the technical fit of information for real decision-making. However, due to resource and capacity constraints within both user and producer communities, this approach will not always be feasible or indeed necessary depending on the decisions at hand. These contexts have been relatively under-explored by scholars, and this paper provides an original empirical contribution using three case studies of sub-national governments in India, Kenya and Uganda. In the paper, we analyse how social learning supports changing the usability of climate information and the role of intermediary organisations in these processes. Firstly, the paper shows that intermediaries often choose to build the commitment to project aims rather than using climate information as an entry point to working on climate change, and this allows them to instigate challenging learning processes. Secondly, there are barriers to iterative processes and critical reflection with government stakeholders but these processes can gain traction when built into institutional practices such as formal M&E processes. Lastly, social learning can broaden the framing of climate change from a single sector issue to a multi-sectoral one. We conclude by arguing that bringing together scholarship on social learning with that on the usability of climate information can deepen understanding of the dynamic context in which the information becomes usable. The evidence from the case studies shows that learning processes can alter this context across scales.

The unofficial SCRUM checklist - Kniberg, Henrik (CRISP, 2010)

The Truth of the Work: Theories of Change in a changing world - Reeler, Doug; van Blerk, Rubert (The Community Development Resource Association, 2017)

The Social Realities of Knowledge for Development - Georgalakis, James; Jessani, Nasreen; Oronje, Rose; Ramalingam, Ben (IDS, 2017)
This edited collection of peer-reviewed papers explores critical challenges faced by organisations and individuals involved in evidence-informed development through a diverse set of case studies and t...

The Scrum Guide - Schwaber, Ken; Sutherland, Jeff (scrum.org, 2016)

The Science of Using Science: Researching the Use of Research Evidence in Decision-Making - Langer, Laurenz; Tripney, Janice; Gough, David (EPPI-Centre, Social Science Research Unit, UCL Institute of Education, University College London, 2016)

The Science in Adaptive Management - Ripley, Matt; Jaccard, Sabine (ILO, 2016)
‘Adaptive management’ is all the rage in international development circles. But to avoid yet another buzzword – we need to learn from the experience of natural resource science.
Keywords: IMPORTANT

The SAVI programme in Nigeria: Towards politically smart, locally led devlopment - Booth, David; Chambers, Victoria (ODI, 2014)
 More examples are needed of aid programming that works by being responsive to country realities: politically smart, problem-driven and locally led  DFID’s SAVI programme has revealed a hitherto untapped potential for change leading to better development results at state level in Nigeria  SAVI provides low-profile support to state-level organisations and partnerships, building their capacity to engage constructively with government  It avoid the pitfalls of a donor-driven approach by ‘taking the money off the table’  This illustrates the power of facilitated multi-stakeholder engagement and the disadvantages of seeing this in terms of ‘supply side’ and ‘demand side’ governance  The set-up of the DFID suite of state-level programmes, with separately managed sector support and ‘governance’ initiatives, has limited realisation of the potential  Key enabling conditions were that DFID provided space for an experience-based design process and permitted tangible results to be judged retrospectively, not pre-programmed

The role of social learning in adaptiveness: insights from water management - Lebel, Louis; Grothmann, Torsten; Siebenhüner, Bernd (International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, 2010)
The article introduces the notion of adaptiveness and discusses the role of social learning in it. Adaptiveness refers to the capacity of a social actor or social–ecological system to adapt in response to, or in anticipation of, changes in the environment. We explore arguments both from a theoretical perspective and through illustrations from case studies of water management in the Alps of Europe and Mekong in southeast Asia. We propose and illustrate that social learning processes are important for building adaptiveness in several ways and at different scales. Social learning can help cope with informational uncertainty; reduce normative uncertainty; build consensus on criteria for monitoring and evaluation; empower stakeholders to take adaptive actions; reduce conflicts and identify synergies between adaptations; and improve fairness of decisions and actions. Findings in the case studies provide some support for these generalizations but often with caveats related to diversity of stakeholder interests, levels of shared understanding versus contested knowledge and scale of coordination. For this reason, we suggest that future work pays greater attention to issues of agency, knowledge and scale: What strategies have individuals and organizations pursued in successful examples of social learning? How are the boundaries and interactions between science, policy and practice managed? How does social learning occur across spatial and temporal scales?
Keywords: Adaptation; European Alps; Fairness; Mekong River; Social learning; Uncertainty; Water management

The role of research and learning in adaptive programming - Babon, Andrea; Denney, Lisa (Devpolicy Blog from the Development Policy Centre, 2018)
Andrea Babon and Lisa Denney explore how learning partners - a common feature of aid programs - can operate and feed into programs.

The Role of External Actors in Supporting Social and Political Action towards Empowerment and Accountability with a Focus on Fragile, Conflict- and Violence-Affected Settings - Christie, Angela; Burge, Richard (IDS and ITAD, 2017)
This paper explores the role and experience of external actors, particularly donors, in supporting social and political action in fragile, conflict and violence affected settings. Evidence is distilled from a wide range of synthesised sources to generate relevant findings and questions in relation to what we know and what we don’t. Included among the source material is a 2016 macro-evaluation of DFID’s empowerment and accountability (E&A) programmes which examined over 50 DFID funded projects. Themes which emerge relate to: how external actors need to think about the context and work politically; who are the most appropriate social and political actors to support in E&A; whether a direct or indirect approach to support for E&A achieves more tangible outcomes; whether external actors should move beyond short-term tools and tactics focused on one-sided engagement; and whether programmes should be designed around more strategic, multi-faceted interventions. The paper concludes with identifying a number of gaps in the evidence which are translated into a range of questions which could potentially inform the Action for Empowerment and Accountability (A4EA) research programme.

The road to adaptive management: knowledge, leadership, culture and rules - Byrne, Karri Goeldner; Sparkman, Timothy; Fowler, Ben (The BEAM Exchange, 2016)
Keywords: IMPORTANT; Practice

The rise of the randomistas: on the experimental turn in international aid - Donovan, Kevin P. (Economy and Society, 2018)
In recent years, the use of experimental methodologies has emerged as a central means of evaluating international aid interventions. Today, proponents of randomized control trials (so-called randomistas) are among the most influential of development experts. This paper examines the growth of this thought collective, analysing how uncertainty has become a central concern of development institutions. It demonstrates that transformations within the aid industry – including the influence of evidence-based policy, the economization of development and the retreat from macro-planning – created the conditions of possibility for experimentation. Within this field, the randomistas adeptly pursued a variety of rhetorical, affective, methodological and organizational strategies that emphasized the lack of credible knowledge within aid and the ability of experiments to rectify the situation. Importantly, they have insisted on the moral worth of experimentation; indeed, the experimental ethic has been proposed as the way to change the spirit of development. Through causal certitude, they propose to reduce human suffering. The rise of experimentation has not, however, eliminated accusations of uncertainty; rather, it has redistributed the means through which knowledge about development is considered credible.
Keywords: Development; Evidence; Experimentation; aid; uncertainty

The relationship between adaptive management of social-ecological systems and law: a systematic review - Frohlich, Miguel F.; Jacobson, Chris; Fidelman, Pedro; Smith, Timothy F. (Ecology and Society, 2018)
Adaptive management has been considered a valuable approach for managing social-ecological systems involving high levels of complexity and uncertainty. However, many obstacles still hamper its implementation. Law is often seen as a barrier for moving adaptive management beyond theory, although there has been no synthesis on the challenges of legal constraints or how to overcome them. We contribute to filling this knowledge gap by providing a systematic review of the peer-reviewed literature on the relationship between adaptive management and law in relation to social-ecological systems. We analyze how the scholarship defines the concept of adaptive management, identifies the legal barriers to adaptive management, and the legal strategies suggested for enabling this approach. Research efforts in this domain are still highly geographically concentrated in the United States of America, unveiling gaps concerning the analysis of other legal jurisdictions. Overall, our results show that more flexible legal frameworks can allow for adaptive management without undermining the role of law in providing stability to social interactions. Achieving this balance will likely require the reform of existing laws, regulations, and other legal instruments. Legal reforms can facilitate the emergence of adaptive governance, with the potential to support not only adaptive management implementation but also to make law itself more adaptive.

The Rapid Evaluation, Action, and Learning (REAL) Approach: A toolkit to measure and refine changes and interventions in health campaigns - PATH (PATH, 2019)
Evaluative Tools for Improving Campaign Effectiveness Public health campaigns aim to control disease or deliver essential health services and products through time-limited and periodic channels. Many countries use campaigns to augment or replace routine service delivery, to target certain populations, or to accelerate progress towards coverage targets. The Root Cause Analysis and Rapid Evaluation, Action, and Learning toolkits present a systematic but flexible approach to identifying the root causes of campaign bottlenecks and then designing, testing, and refining solutions to optimize potential impact. These toolkits respond to a growing need for “fit-for-purpose” rapid-testing, adaptive learning approaches to evaluation and the need for a culture shift toward iterative adaptation and improvement that integrates measurement and evidence-informed decision-making into daily practice. The comprehensive package of toolkits, in addition to the individual Root Cause Analysis toolkit and Rapid Evaluation, Action, and Learning toolkit are available below.

The Qualitative Impact Assessment Protocol (QUIP) - Copestake, James; Remnant, Fiona (2015)
This brief presents an overview of the QUIP in three steps: the background to the QUIP and its main aims; the data collection and analysis methodology; and QUIP in the context of other approaches to evaluation. Each section can be read independently, depending on time available.

The Promise of Lean Experimentation - Murray, Peter; Ma, Steve (Stanford Social Innovation Review, 2015)
By adopting a model from business, nonprofit organizations can launch, test, and implement new programs and services more efficiently. Includes magazine extras.
Keywords: IMPORTANT

The Principle of the Malevolent Hiding Hand; or, the Planning Fallacy Writ Large - Flyvbjerg, Bent; Sunstein, Cass R. (Soocial Research, 2016)
We identify and document a new principle of economic behavior: the principle of the Malevolent Hiding Hand. In a famous discussion, Albert Hirschman celebrated the Hiding Hand, which he saw as a benevolent mechanism by which unrealistically optimistic planners embark on unexpectedly challenging plans, only to be rescued by human ingenuity, which they could not anticipate, but which ultimately led to success, principally in the form of unexpectedly high net benefits. Studying eleven projects, Hirschman suggested that the Hiding Hand is a general phenomenon. But the Benevolent Hiding Hand has an evil twin, the Malevolent Hiding Hand, which blinds excessively optimistic planners not only to unexpectedly high costs but also to unexpectedly low net benefits. Studying a much larger sample than Hirschman did, we find that the Malevolent Hiding Hand is common and that the phenomenon that Hirschman identified is rare. This sobering finding suggests that Hirschman’s phenomenon is a special case; it attests to the pervasiveness of the planning fallacy, writ very large. One implication involves the continuing need to de-bias decisions and decision support tools like cost-benefit analysis; another is that accountability for decision makers, planners, and forecasters is required for such de-biasing to be effective and lasting.
Keywords: Behavioral economics; Cost-benefit analysis; Hiding hand; Planning fallacy

The Power of Positive Deviance - Pascale, Richard; Sternin, Jerry; Sternin, Monique (Harvard Business Press, 2010)

The politics of public sector performance: pockets of effectiveness in developing countries - Roll, Michael (Routledge, 2014)
OCLC: 869850351