63
D.
MONITORING AND EVALUATION
Note to community facilitators:
This sub-section introduces a number of key tools
related to monitoring and evaluation, including. The
tools include:
Activity monitoring table
Basic forms of measurement and illustration
Most Significant Change stories
The process of reflecting on change over time
is also referred to as ‘monitoring and
evaluation’ (see Box 32). This process can help
the community understand the impacts and
effectiveness of what has occurred in the past
in order to plan and respond accordingly in the
future. It is an important part of adapting the
protocol and strategy as priorities change.
Monitoring involves collecting information about different aspects of the process of developing and
using your community protocol. It is a continuous process of self-assessment that focuses on inputs
and outputs and can alert community facilitators, catalysts, and leaders of important gaps or
opportunities. Evaluation assesses what that information means in relation to your community’s goals
and plans, or when compared to information collected previously. It occurs periodically or at important
milestones and involves in-depth analysis of activities and progress up until that point. It focuses on
outcomes and impacts and can provide community facilitators, catalysts, and leaders with options for
revised strategies.
Box 32: Distinguishing between monitoring and evaluation
Overall, monitoring and evaluation tools can help address the following general questions:
What progress have we made? What have we achieved so far?
What lessons have we learned (both positive and negative)?
What has worked well? What has not worked well? Why?
What impacts have we had within the community, on the environment, and with external actors?
What is our overall level of satisfaction or wellbeing?
How could we adapt our activities and decision-making processes in order to further improve?
"Has the population
of our totem species
increased or
decreased?"
"How many of our
youth participate in
community decisionmaking processes?"
"How can we
improve the
transmission of
traditional
knowledge to future
generations?"
Assessment of
effectiveness
to date in
order to plan
next steps
"How are
government officials
responding to our
community
protocol?"
Figure 10: Sample questions that could be monitored and evaluated throughout the
protocol process
Monitoring and evaluation is about individual and collective self-reflection on relationships and roles, and
assessment of trends in social, cultural, environmental, political, and economic indicators over time. It
helps communities and organizations focus on useful information and specific issues of importance such