Knowledge by, for and about newcomers
Knowledge by, for and about newcomers
Impact evaluation resident initiatives
September 1, 2021 - November 1, 2021
DOEN Foundation
Impact evaluation using community knowledge sessions,data mining and design sessions
Within the program Innovative Community Initiatives, the DOEN Foundation supports initiatives that creatively combine goals around social connectedness and sustainability in their local context. Open Embassy conducted research on the impact of the program.
At that time, the DOEN Foundation was on the eve of writing a new multi-year plan. The results of the impact research formed the input for the new strategic goals for this program. In doing so, DOEN Foundation was particularly interested in how the supported initiatives make systemic impact in addition to direct impact.
To gain as many insights as possible in a short period of time, we combined data mining of reports and application forms of initiatives with 4 community sessions. In these, we talked with initiators about the intended and realized impact. The project concluded with a design session, in which a first step was taken in translating the findings into a practical elaboration in the multi-year plan.
The initiatives supported are themselves a model for a kind of civic spirit that is good for society: initiating, not giving up, curious, connecting and vulnerable. The impact of the program is diverse and rich. A next step would be to communicate this impact more emphatically and to support the movement that the initiatives form in a more focused way.
