The Wageningen Centre for Development Innovation (WCDI), part of Wageningen University & Research, is seeking applications for the "Evaluating and Managing for Sustainable Development Impact 2021" Course under Orange Knowledge Programme. The programme starts from 15 March 2021 until 29 May 2021.

The Managing for Sustainable Development Impact (M4SDI) approach, which is central to this short course, supports leaders and development practitioners in navigating this complexity and manage initiatives/organizations successfully towards sustainable development impact.

In this course, that focuses on the M4SDI approach, you learn:

• To use an integrated, results-oriented management approach that can be used across a range of sectors and domains, in a variety of contexts;
• How to engage primary stakeholders;
• Designing effective strategies and relate monitoring and evaluation (M&E), focusing on capacity development and responding to change in a complex context.

During this course you first of all strengthen your competency to manage for impact in your own individual sphere of work. Secondly, it helps you play a more effective role in helping your organisation manage for sustainable development impact.

Course Details

• What this course is about? The development landscape has changed significantly over the last few decades, becoming increasingly complex. Many of the issues we face today, such as climate change, poverty and conflict, call for a new way of doing business, so as to collaboratively contribute towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• Being responsive and proactive: Whether you work in agriculture, health, social change processes, natural resource management, value chain development or sectors, initiatives need to connect appropriately to context specifics. This relates to variables such as stakeholder interests and relationships, relevant policies and legislation, socio-economic and socio-political conditions, environmental conditions such as climate change, and more.
• What is the M4SDI approach? The M4SDI approach consists of core processes, underpinned by key orientations that determine the nature and scope of these processes,  and supported by communication and capacities and conditions to implement these core processes.
• Connecting learning to home realities: Being highly interactive, the course links the theory and concepts to the experience and expertise of participants. A selection of case studies from participants will be used as material for practice.
• Four interlinked fields of study
  • First things first
  • Knowing what you need to know
  • Understanding what it takes to make a difference
  • Are we doing the right things and are we doing things right?
• Online course: This course will be organised online. This includes off-line and online activities, including: regular online face-to-face interactions (for input and facilitated discussions), individual assignments (such as tests, reading assignments et cetera), group work (particularly on participants’ cases), games, etc.

Course Date

• Date: Mon 15 March 2021 until Sat 29 May 2021
• Duration: Part-time, 10 hrs per week (11 weeks)
• Venue: Facilitated online sessions

Eligibility Criteria

• You will focus on M&E in the context of and at the service of core management processes. We welcome participants who are interested in making that connection work for sustainable development impact, whether they are from government offices, (I) NGOs, knowledge institutes, private sector, or consultancy firms.
• Managers, M&E officers, planning officers, evaluators etc are all welcome to this course.

For more information, visit WCDI Course 2021.