1. The Big Picture Archives - Page 2 of 3 - Evaluation and Transformation

1. The Big Picture

Lost in the loss of travelling the world

By Zenda Ofir - July 14, 2020 - 1. The Big Picture

My life is a tapestry of memories. Woven together to make up the fabric of my life. Like African fabrics, my memories ...

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COVID-19, Part 2. Repositioning

By Zenda Ofir - April 9, 2020 - 1. The Big Picture, 2. Change, transformation and evaluation

In my view elevator speeches that present evaluation as something done for "learning", "improving", "generating knowledge" or "being accountable" belong to the ...

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COVID-19, Part 1. Earth has gone quiet

By Zenda Ofir - April 6, 2020 - 1. The Big Picture, 2. Change, transformation and evaluation

**6 min read** We are at a transformative moment in the history of humankind and of our planet. During this extraordinary time ...

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Hello, I am COVID-19 …

By Zenda Ofir - April 4, 2020 - 1. The Big Picture

**5 min read** A letter to humanity …. I received on my phone a beautiful video in Italian. It is unique - a letter ...

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China’s Transformation, Part 4. Dominant narratives, alternative perspectives

By Zenda Ofir - April 23, 2019 - 1. The Big Picture, 2. Change, transformation and evaluation

**10 min read** We need fresh narratives about how the world works, and why, and what to do to solve its complex ...

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China’s Transformation, Part 3. Seeing through others’ eyes

By Zenda Ofir - April 18, 2019 - 1. The Big Picture, 2. Change, transformation and evaluation

**5 min read** Some years ago I was on an evaluation assignment in the Mekong region, dealing with labour issues. In an ...

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China’s Transformation, Part 2. Towards an ecological civilisation

By Zenda Ofir - April 16, 2019 - 1. The Big Picture, 2. Change, transformation and evaluation

**10 min read** As evaluators we cannot afford to get caught up in narratives - usually devoid of nuance - that aim ...

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China’s transformation, Part 1. Why learn from China?

By Zenda Ofir - April 14, 2019 - 1. The Big Picture, 2. Change, transformation and evaluation

Evaluators have an imperative to learn from success. Today we are fortunate: Those of us working in development or evaluation can learn ...

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We Have to Rethink Human Rights, Part 2

By Zenda Ofir - October 9, 2025 - 1. The Big Picture

Beyond One Universal Model In Part 1 of this two-post series I argued that the current dominant narratives about human rights, ...

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We Have to Rethink Human Rights, Part 1

By Zenda Ofir - October 3, 2025 - 1. The Big Picture

How would you react if I told you that 'universal human rights' are not actually universal at all, but rather a ...

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Evaluation’s Journey towards the Future, Part 6. Evaluating yesterday’s world for tomorrow’s challenges?

By Zenda Ofir - May 29, 2025 - 1. The Big Picture, 5. Evaluation as Practice

* Why are we still evaluating yesterday's world to plan for tomorrow's challenges? Evaluation after evaluation that land on my desk ...

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“What went wrong with woke?” The problem of measurement and influence.

By Zenda Ofir - April 3, 2025 - 1. The Big Picture

How twisted narratives and simplistic measures can destroy a major effort to do good. What does this mean for evaluation / MEL? ...

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Eight Reasons for Hope and Optimism. And why we need to seize this moment.

By Zenda Ofir - March 19, 2025 - 1. The Big Picture

Despite Trump's bulldozing of the world, and the vulnerabilities, uncertainties and trauma affecting many societies, this time of polycrisis is also a ...

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