About the Book
In a world where social, ecological, health, and other problems are influenced by multiple, intersecting systems, why do most interventions target single-factor solutions? Why does so much evaluation settle for incremental change, and how could it contribute instead to deeper, lasting, transformative change? Authors Emily F. Gates and Pablo Vidueira make two interconnected arguments in this book: they critique the "fixed" approach of traditional program evaluation and policy analysis, and they advance an alternative approach centered on changing systems and developing the value of efforts toward change. They demonstrate that systemic change that embeds evaluative inquiry is a theoretically supported, practical way to work toward fundamental social change with lasting impact.
Table of Contents:
Preface
About The Authors
Chapter 1: Shift From Fixing to Systemic Change
Shift from Fixing to Systemic Change
Rationales for Systemic Change: Scientific, Critical, and Practical
Five Myths About Systemic Change
Distinguishing Systemic Change from Related Approaches and Examples
Chapter 2: Develop Value Together
What ‘Good’ Means: An Open Question
Shift from Determining to Developing Value
A Critical Deliberative Stance to Develop Value
Evaluation Approaches Aligned with a Critical Deliberative Stance
Five Myths about Evaluating Systemic Change
Chapter 3: Join Together
From Fixed Silos to System Stewardship
Pause Topics: Invitations to Reflect, Discuss, and Co-Create
Practical Tips
Chapter 4: Engage In Systemic Change
Framework and Process of Systemic Change
Focal Processes and Resources for 5 Phases of Systemic Change
Chapter 5: Evaluate To Develop Value
Five Evaluative Elements We Center and Why
Putting it Altogether: Evaluative Inquiry to Develop Value
Chapter 6: Shape Capabilties and Conditions
Why Shape Capabilities and Conditions?
Micro, Meso, and Macro Capabilities and Conditions
Using the Model
Chapter 7: Share And Learn from Examples
Context for our Conversation
Part I. About the Global Alliance for the Future of Food
Part II. How the Global Alliance Engages in Systemic Change
Part III. What Evaluating Looks Like with a Focus on the Five Evaluative Elements
Closing Reflections on this Example
Conclusion
Acknowledgments
Glossary
References
About the Author :
Emily F. Gates is an evaluator, educator, and systems thinker who explores how evaluation can support meaningful, values-driven change in complex systems. An associate professor at Boston College, she teaches graduate courses in evaluation and mixed methods and regularly leads talks and workshops. Her work bridges theory and practice, with over 30 publications and two co-authored books—Evaluative Inquiry for Systemic Change and Evaluating and Valuing in Social Research. A recipient of the American Evaluation Association’s Early Career Award, she brings over a decade of experience in mixed-method evaluations across education, public health, and STEM. She lives in Boston with her partner, their curious baby, loyal dog, and seasonal garden. Pablo Vidueira brings a global perspective to evaluation and systems change, with a focus on food systems transformation. He is Assistant Professor of Evaluation and Food Systems at Universidad Pontificia Comillas and Director of Evaluation for the Global Alliance for the Future of Food, a philanthropic network advancing just and sustainable food systems. Pablo has consulted with organizations including the World Food Program, UNFPA, and the European Commission, and collaborates widely across universities, foundations, and research institutes in Europe, Africa, and the Americas. He has served as president of APROEVAL, the regional association for evaluators in Spain and Portugal, and contributes to field-building through editorial work with New Directions for Evaluation. Trained as an Agricultural and Biosystems Engineer, he holds an MSc in Rural Development and a PhD in Program Evaluation. Outside of work, he enjoys hiking, drumming, and time with family and friends.
Review :
This book is a timely and significant achievement. It deserves to be read, and its ideas applied by anyone who wishes to contribute to the changes this world urgently needs. Don’t misread the title. This is not a book about evaluation; it is a book about evaluative inquiry. It is about the art and science of judgement; the importance of revealing what we and others value, and how to respond in ways that reflect truth, justice and beauty. As such, it is crammed full of ideas and approaches from a range of fields, including evaluation, organizational development, systems practice, and community development. If it has a fault, there is too much information, too many ideas to absorb in a single reading. So, it is a book to explore when you have a particular question or make sense of something. Fortunately, the book′s structure is clear and helps you find what you are looking for when you need it. Once in a while, and to my great pleasure, I come across a book I wish I’d been able to write. This is one such book.
Evaluation Inquiry for Systematic Inquiry reframes evaluation as a catalyst for systems learning rather than a measure of control—an essential shift for foundations confronting complexity. Providing both structure and insight, its five-phase systemic change framework and five-element evaluation model offer practical tools for integrating evaluation into strategy and strengthening learning and decision-making. The authors’ careful attention to context, inclusion, and shared purpose makes it especially relevant for foundations pursuing meaningful, lasting systems change.
The book is unique in that it combines several perspectives, practices, and theoretical standpoints together into a sophisticated and valuable focus. The framing of evaluative inquiry in concert with understanding and promoting systemic change efforts is useful in bridging the worlds of evaluation, systems theory, and systemic change practice, which inform each other in the real world, but are not often discussed together in the literature. To my knowledge, this is a novel approach that will serve to bridge several disciplines in service of improving practice.
The book’s central contribution is its articulation of critical and deliberative evaluative inquiry as a foundation for all phases of a systems change evaluation. This focus is of paramount importance to evaluators navigating complexity, inviting a shift from seeing themselves as technical experts to facilitators of collective learning. Through a good balance of theory, concrete examples, and resources, readers will gain actionable insights around how evaluators can develop value around both the process and outcomes of systems change.
This book fills a critical gap by offering a dual perspective often missing from other evaluative texts. It stands as an essential resource for shaping the future of evaluation and driving meaningful change.
The five evaluative elements outlined in this book offer a clear and practical foundation, especially valuable for commissioners and consultants designing and evaluating portfolios in international development. It’s a useful guide for those seeking to embed evaluative thinking across initiatives while staying responsive to the maturity and dynamics of the systems they aim to influence.
Evaluative Inquiry for Systematic Change is unique in that it combines evaluation and systems change in a comprehensive text. The book takes a practical approach, which students will find helpful as they learn how to implement systems aware evaluations.
I appreciate the book and the authors′ approach to systemic change. Evaluative Inquiry for Systemic Change effectively fills a gap in the existing literature and offers a solid conceptual and theoretical foundation to evaluation. Overall, a thank you to the authors!
