Evaluation’s Identity: Who Are We, Why Are We Here, and What Does Our Future Look Like?

This article is based on a 2018 keynote speech to the Aotearoa New Zealand Evaluation Association (ANZEA). The topic is the changing nature of the field of evaluation from intervention- and technical-focused evaluation to people- and community-centered evaluation. The author grounds her perspective in her personal background, then reviews the history of evaluation. The article articulates considerations that evaluators need to be aware of as they move forward in a people-centered approach, including the importance of community engagement, getting to root causes, design thinking and innovation, and data visualization and presentation. The article concludes by encouraging evaluators to adopt this approach and embrace their role as social change agents in evaluation.

 Evaluation Matters—He Take Tō Te Aromatawai - 2021, 7, 6-29