My life is a tapestry of memories. Woven together to make up the fabric of my life. Like African fabrics, my memories come in a riot of colours - never boring, always calling. Many threads are soft and perfect. Like the finest Japanese kimono silk. Others rougher, challenging the senses, like
How can we evaluate well if we are not aware of the often 'single stories' that shape how we view the world and do our work? This aspect of evaluation has been an important focus for me over the years. I am therefore very pleased that the fascinating
A dispassionate observer of Planet Earth from far away could well be pleased with this global crisis faced by all of humanity. The suffering of those hardest hit, in particular those individuals and societies already vulnerable or fragile, makes it hard for us who are part of it to think
We are at a transformative moment in the history of humankind and of our planet. During this extraordinary time and beyond, the global evaluation community will have to hone and reposition evaluation, in close alignment with research, as a GPS that can help humanity navigate the complex, uncharted terrain that
Co-evolution – the mutual shaping of institutions, markets, society and governance over time – emerges as a first principle in understanding China’s transformation. This concluding post draws together the series’ lessons for evaluation and development practice
China’s development story is an extraordinary example of complex adaptive systems thinking applied to political-economic transformation. ‘Directed improvisation’ – combining top-down strategic vision with bottom-up experimentation – holds vital lessons for us.
Democracy, human rights, Africa engagement, the Belt and Road ‘debt trap’ – four dominant narratives about China examined alongside alternative perspectives. Why we must demonstrate nuance and pluralism.
Our assumptions about China are shaped by narratives we rarely question. This post challenges us to see through others’ eyes – understanding how worldviews, cultural patterning and historical memory shape radically different perspectives on the same reality.
China’s ambitious vision for an ‘ecological civilisation’ offers a striking counterpoint to Western development models. This post examines how Confucian philosophy, environmental policy and systems thinking converge in China’s approach to sustainable development.
We can learn from one of the greatest transformative development success stories of all time. For the first time in history a country has lifted 850 million people out of poverty at a pace never seen before. Why evaluators have an imperative to learn from this achievement.
