RE: The pervasive power of western evaluation culture: how and in what ways do you wrestle with ensuring evaluation is culturally appropriate and beneficial to those who legitimise development aid? | Eval Forward
If we accept that evaluation means "results, indicators" we might have killed the possibility of cultural appropriation from the start.
"Evaluation" means different things for different people. Making it equate to "documenting results and indicators" undermines many other alternatives.
As in feminist evaluation (which is not only about "gender" but about rethinking approaches to make them intersectionally inclusive), we should question what an evaluation is for, what ways of seeing change it embraces. Beyond results there are processes, principles, worldviews. The moment you are discussing with local actors: "what matters for you in looking at change?" you are already working to make it culturally appropriate. If it is just about "defining indicators", sorry but this is a non-starter.
RE: The pervasive power of western evaluation culture: how and in what ways do you wrestle with ensuring evaluation is culturally appropriate and beneficial to those who legitimise development aid?
If we accept that evaluation means "results, indicators" we might have killed the possibility of cultural appropriation from the start.
"Evaluation" means different things for different people. Making it equate to "documenting results and indicators" undermines many other alternatives.
As in feminist evaluation (which is not only about "gender" but about rethinking approaches to make them intersectionally inclusive), we should question what an evaluation is for, what ways of seeing change it embraces. Beyond results there are processes, principles, worldviews. The moment you are discussing with local actors: "what matters for you in looking at change?" you are already working to make it culturally appropriate. If it is just about "defining indicators", sorry but this is a non-starter.