Understanding Community-Owned Evaluation in Practice

Community-owned evaluation requires clear structures for decision-making, accountability, and safety. Below are some of the tools and practices we use to support this approach.

frequently asked questions

understanding the approach

What is community-owned evaluation?

An approach to where the people affected by a project make key decisions about the evaluation.

How is community-owned evaluation different from participatory evaluation?

Participatory approaches are concerned with community involvement during the evaluation. A community-owned approach is concerned with community decision-making power during and after the evaluation.

What does “ownership” mean in practice?

Ownership shows up as the option to: make decisions about the evaluation (e.g., what questions it will answer), lead evaluation tasks (e.g., interpreting data or developing recommendations), and claim what the evaluation produces (e.g., new knowledge or a responsibility to act on evaluation findings).

Who counts as “the community”?

We’re referring to the Affected Community: the individuals directly impacted by a program, whether they actively participate or not (e.g., service providers, advocates, etc.). We work with collaborators to define the Affected Community early in the evaluation.

Decision Rights

how are decisions made?

Decisions are made across distinct stages of deliberation, readiness checks (feasibility, ethics, safety), and closure. The Affected Community receives technical assistance from EDS, the project team, and EDS’s community touchpoints, as well as guidance from trusted parties (traditional leaders, ancestors, etc.). This ensures decisions are both community-led and sound.

How do you avoid tokenism?

We avoid singleton identity seats where possible (and use supplemental engagement where it is not possible), ask people to speak only from what they know, and balance project experience perspectives. Meanwhile, a clear governance model established early in the evaluation facilitates real decision making.

who has access to data?

Data governance is established before data are ever collected, including who can access raw data, cleaned data, and findings. In most cases, raw data are held and managed by EDS to ensure confidentiality and safety, while cleaned or anonymized data may be shared more broadly based on what has been agreed. We also engage in ongoing consent and reciprocity discussions to ensure data use continuously aligns with community expectations, ethical standards, and local customs.

what to expect

Is the process longer than other evaluation approaches?

Sometimes. Community-owned evaluation invests more time upfront to align on questions, decision-making, and safeguards. This can make the early stages feel slower, but often reduces delays, rework, or misalignment later. In practice, we encourage collaborators to engage an evaluator earlier (a minimum of 6-9 months before a final report deadline). This allows enough time to mobilize people, support deliberation, and make safe and informed decisions that pay off throughout and beyond the evaluation.

What does it cost / how is compensation handled?

Generally, the cost of an evaluation is determined by its location and scope, and designed within an established budget. Our approach shifts how money is spent rather than adding to budgets, so the cost is on par with traditional evaluations. Regarding compensation for Affected Community participation, a just and culturally appropriate compensation model is established before their work begins.

What does this approach require from staff or partners?

Project teams support mobilizing 7–13 individuals from the Affected Community (with significant support from EDS), and review or approve key outputs as they would in any evaluation. After the evaluation, collaborators are expected to track and communicate progress against recommendations. For most teams, this is either an extension of work they already do, or a welcomed addition because it promotes transparency and accountability.

How do you handle harmful or uncomfortable findings?

We develop a plan to handle such findings when determining decision rights. Generally, if a harmful finding emerges (e.g., related to misconduct), the project team is notified immediately so they can take appropriate action. If an uncomfortable finding emerges (e.g., the project had a manageable but unintended consequence), all parties will determine whether and how the finding should be published, balancing safety, transparency, and accountability. 

Are the outputs different from other evaluations?

Collaborators familiar with evaluation should expect to receive every output they would otherwise receive. However, some documents or resources may come in phases, on different timelines, and/or look substantially different (i.e., better) than what is customary. 

commitments and considerations

Commitments

Community-owned evaluation relies on a set of commitments, without which, the process can reproduce traditional, non-community-owned approaches. These commitments include:

  • Communities hold decision rights over key moments
  • Participation is compensated and voluntary
  • Data is handled with explicit consent and boundaries
  • Findings are interpreted with, not for, communities
  • Outputs are usable, including by the people the project affected

Considerations

Careful attention must be paid to avoiding:

  • Participation without decision-making power
  • Overburdening community members
  • Findings shaped for funders instead of use
  • Lack of clarity on ownership of data
  • Evaluation becoming extraction

what supports the work

Community ownership is supported by a coordinated system that shares knowledge, tracks influence, and safeguards ethics, including:

  • Constraints and Opportunities Memos: clear articulations of known boundaries within and beyond the control of anyone involved in the evaluation. This sets community ownership up for success.


  • Ownership Charters: frameworks for governing deliberation practices, how decisions will be reviewed and finalized, who will have access to data, and who is responsible for evaluation tasks.

  • Readiness Reviews: expert reviews to ensure that pending Affected Community decisions feasible, ethical, and useful.

  • Decision Logs: living records of all decisions that are made throughout the evaluation, including the ethical and practical basis for decisions, and their associated consequences, trade-offs, and benefits.


  • Ownership Reflections: dedicated moments for Affected Community members to pause and reflection on whether and how they are experiencing evaluation ownership, with opportunities to continuously improve.

interested?

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