An evaluation is a particular multi-stakeholder event during which different actors share and analyse results after several years. If the evaluation has a strong formative purpose, the evaluation team is requested to facilitate a learning process involving all key actors. Evaluations that emphasise deeper learning have to be designed in such a way that different perspectives emerge and are appreciated in an interactive way. The present article reviews the results and methodological design of an evaluation at higher education centres in Bolivia, Ghana and India. The ambition of these programmes was to integrate endogenous knowledge and values into education and research programmes. The evaluation provides an example of a mixed methods design that allowed for inclusion and appreciation of perspectives of different stakeholders. An evaluation team has to consider which set of methods is responding to the project context and how the methods complement each other and can be adapted to the case. The design should deliver both quantitative as well as qualitative data that provide evidence about results as well as the stories and background what these results mean for different stakeholders.
This study examines the influence of an extra-curricular educational program on children's knowledge and cultural valuation of wild food plants, which are an important component of their diets. This program aims to reinforce children's traditional knowledge and values around biological...
This paper compares lessons learned from nine studies that explored institutional determinants of innovation towards sustainable intensification of West African agriculture. The studies investigated issues relating to crop, animal, and resources management in Benin, Ghana, and Mali
The role of civil society in influencing public opinion towards more democratic and developmental approaches is now well-recognised in diverse fields such as health, education, livelihoods, issues relating to disadvantaged social groups and the environment. Yet, science and technology in...
This issue of the quarterly journal "Capacity.org" focuses on methods that can help to understand the societal context in which capacity development takes place. One of these methods is systems thinking, in which organisations, sectors and societies are seen as systems composed...
This review seeks to assess the usefulness of innovation systems approaches in the context of IAR4D in guiding research agendas, generating knowledge and use in improving food security and nutrition, reducing poverty and generating cash incomes for resource-poor farmers. The...