3rd Biennial South African Monitoring and Evaluation Association Conference. Dr. David Fetterman, Fetterman & Associates and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff (formerly from Stanford University), was one of the keynote speakers at the conference.
Dr. Florence Etta, President of the African Evaluation Association, concluded the conference with this picture of David presenting his keynote on empowerment evaluation. She added the heading: Our Empowerment Hero!
It was a powerful conference. It was clear that the time was right for this idea. The combination of a dissatisfaction with policy positions that were not sufficiently in touch with local concerns and the desire to find a way to give voice to local community members made this the opportune moment to share empowerment evaluation. It was a window of opportunity and they took it.
The room was packed, people were lined up outside the doors and into the halls. The audience was engaged. I could see their faces and it was like we were sitting in a small conference room talking, even though it was a keynote in an auditorium. There was a sense of closeness, almost family-like. I recognized so many folks. I had many of them in my workshop at the beginning of the conference. It just made it a warm, inviting, welcoming place to be. But more to the point, many people responded after the keynote that it was a like a light went on. They were sympathetic to the concept but hearing it in practice made it real, understandable, and usable.
Members of the Audience - Up Close and Personal
David, Anne Letsebe, and Ros Hirshowitz
Workshops
The group was great. They were completely engaged in the workshop. We highlighted the three steps in the approach: 1) mission; 2) taking stock; and 3) planning for the future. The questions were great, the participation was almost electric. Once again, the act of engaging in the process (like process use itself) brought people into the empowerment evaluation approach in ways they had not anticipated before. The overwhelming majority left with an idea about how they would apply the approach as soon as they returned home. They could see the relevance, the immediacy, and the usefulness of the approach. It was a very rewarding time working with everyone in the workshop.
Taking Stock Part I (prioritization)
Taking Stock Part II (ratings)
Dr. Fetterman highlighting ratings, using bar graphs.
Conference Concludes
Time to Say Good-bye
Time to Say Good-bye
Professor Sibongile Muthwa, DVC (administration), and
Professor Fanie Cloete, University of Johannesburg
Candice Morket, SAMEA Chairperson, David Fetterman, Fetterman and Associates Associates,
Florence Etta (AfrEA), and Nan Wehipeihana, Kinnect Group New Zealand
But Work Remains
Dr. Fetterman signing the certificates for the
empowerment evaluation workshops at the end of the conference.
Comments
Candice Morkel
M&E specialist (Public Sector)
South Africa