Blue Marble II

Lead Organization:

Capital Institute

Partner Organizations:

SustainaMetrix

Duration:

5/2020—5/2021

Overview:

Over the past year, with support from the McKnight Foundation, Capital Institute developed the field of Blue Marble Evaluation through the early stage development of a community of practice, published the first book on the topic “Blue Marble Evaluation: Premises and Principles”, developed a BETA-website, hosted a series of monthly webinars and presented the scope and potential of Blue Marble evaluation widely at global conferences and workshops to a wide range of audiences.

This second phase of this project is essential for moving from the early stage of core infrastructure development towards a more stable infrastructure essential to support the field of Blue Marble Evaluation. In Phase 2, the intended focus is on five specific areas that are interrelated: move from a beta- to a fully operation website; develop and test Communications Plan a range of training modules and learning; grow the number of interested people around the world to a more robust community of practice, one that has a business model to generate revenue to maintain the infrastructure long term; and, features a highly functional and useful website that is a platform for further collaboration.

The project will continue to use CCRP as a core case study for Blue Marble Evaluation by drawing on CCRP’s history, theory of change, principles, case studies, and synthesis lessons. CCRP’s influence will be expanded through the Blue Marble network created while also generating feedback to CCRP from relevant experts and practitioners worldwide.

The Blue Marble perspective will facilitate CCRP to more fully incorporate global thinking into leadership team deliberations, regional communities of practice, and specific funded projects, especially by helping to operationalize and deepen the CCRP local-global interconnection and interaction conceptualization. In addition, this project will greatly expand the network for CCRP collaboration and dissemination of the CCRP approach and lessons to a broader international community of funders, practitioners, implementers, and evaluators.

Grant Aims:

Build the capacity of evaluators and non-evaluators to engage in and with Blue Marble Evaluation.

  • Enhance the Blue Marble Evaluation web-based infrastructure.
  • Develop deeper learning opportunities: both multi-media and in-person training programs to build the field of Blue Marble Evaluation.
  • Build out the BME network and begin to form a Community of Practice (CoP).

Generate demand for Blue Marble Evaluation across a range of sectors worldwide.

  • Implement a robust communications plan to engage existing users and generate new interest in Blue Marble Evaluation.
  • Create a model that will sustain Blue Marble Evaluation for the next ten years.
  • Develop and Pilot Test a business plan of a “subscription model” for specific sectors such as philanthropy and finance.

Outputs and Outcomes:

Outputs:

  • Enhanced Website with capacity to host password protected discussion forums and communities of practice.
  • Robust community or practice and expanded network, with at least 500 active users (defined as logging in at least once/month, accessing resources, contributing blogs posts, attending webinars) from every region of the world.
  • Monthly webinars and deeper learning opportunities, including podcast series, case studies and training modules.
  • Communications plan with monthly newsletter, social media, blog posts, etc.
    A global working group on Transformations Systems Mapping and Analysis.
    Business Plan for Blue Marble Evaluation.
  • Blue Marble Reference Sites Field Guide and Book Prospectus.

Outcomes:

  • Enhanced understanding of Blue Marble Evaluation among BME network members.
  • Enhanced capacity to engage in Blue Marble Evaluation among BME network members.
  • Increased interest in commissioning Blue Marble Evaluation across sectors.
  • Ability to trace expansion of Blue Marble Evaluation community of practice through advanced systems mapping techniques.
  • Business model that will sustain BME for at least ten years.
  • Ability to measure progress towards large scale systems change.