CDA Newsletter - Winter 2012

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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New Executive Director in 2013

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Two New Books from CDA!

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New Publications

Upcoming Trainings

DNH Training in Spain DNH is partnering with Barcelona International Peace Resource Center to run a 5-day DNH training in Barcelona (May 2013). Please contact us if you'd like to receive updates on this event.

RPP Global Training RPP plans to conduct a training for Consultant/Advisors in early 2013 (date and location TBD). Please contact us for more information.

Upcoming Events and Activities

International Council of Swedish Industry (NIR) CDA has been invited to join five other expert groups in producing a practical resource manual on responsible business practice in complex markets. CEP will take a lead role in this endeavor. This project will include case studies of Swedish companies, but is intended for the widest possible audience of corporate managers. The volume will be published in 2013.

Updating the Trainer's Manual The DNH team has started updating the DNH Trainer's Manual. We aim to have it completed and ready for feedback in late winter/early spring.

DNH Work in Myanmar/Burma A variety of actors working in Myanmar/Burma have expressed interest in DNH training, support and coaching for 2013. We plan to hold a series of events and trainings in Myanmar/Burma in the coming year.

ALNAP-CDA Action-research on Beneficiary Feedback Mechanisms in Humanitarian Settings
CDA and the Active Learning Network for Accountability Practice in Humanitarian Action (ALNAP) have partnered to develop practical guidance for humanitarian agencies seeking to improve the way that they integrate recipient feedback into their decision-making processes.

Having just completed a field visit to Sudan, the next phase of this study will include a second field visit to Pakistan in early 2013. The project aims to produce evidence-based guidance to improve the design, use, management and evaluation of beneficiary feedback mechanisms in humanitarian settings.

New Executive Director in 2013

Dear friends,

2013 will be a year of big changes at CDA. We would like to announce that Peter Woodrow will become CDA’s Executive Director starting January 1. He will succeed our current Executive Director, Steve Darvill. We invite you to join us in welcoming him into this new role!

Peter will be a very familiar face to many of you. He has co-directed CDA’s Reflecting on Peace Practice (RPP) Program since 2003. Peter has been instrumental in positioning the RPP program at the cutting edge of systems-thinking on conflict analysis, and of monitoring and evaluation of conflict prevention and peacebuilding activities. As Executive Director, Peter will use his extensive experience to amplify cross-program learning within CDA and to continue to promote CDA’s programs.

Steve has led CDA for the past three years, sharing his years of experience to strengthen CDA’s learning and reputation. After nearly six years away from home – first in Europe and then here in Cambridge – Steve and his wife will return to Australia in mid-2013. However, we're sure to find ways to continue working with them in the future!

Two New Books from CDA!

Opting Out of War: Strategies to Prevent Violent Conflict examines thirteen communities which, in the midst of a context of war, extracted themselves from the violence. Opting Out of War looks at the commonalities of these diverse nonwar communities to trace the steps that these communities took, the strategies that evolved in each setting in response to local circumstances. The authors find lessons, as well, with broader relevance for international efforts to prevent violent conflict.

Opting Out of War is now available for purchase through Lynne Rienner Publishers and Amazon.

Time to Listen: Hearing People on the Receiving End of International Aid reports the ideas, insights, and analyses of almost 6,000 people across twenty countries where aid has been provided.This book describes why the cumulative impacts of aid have not met expectations. It describes a way forward to make changes that, according to those on the receiving end, will lead to more effective results.

Time to Listen is now available for download and for purchase online. Continue the coversation and post your feedback on the book on the LP Blog!

New Publications

Working Papers on Program Review and Evauation

CDA, through its Reflecting on Peace Practice Program, has started a series of Working Papers on program review and evaluation. The first two papers expand on the OECD criteria of Relevance and Impact. The third and forth address forms of program review that are well-known in the evaluation world but have been neglected in the peacebuilding field. Additional papers are planned for 2013.

Evaluating Relevance in Peacebuilding Programs (Nov 2012)
Evaluating Impact in Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding Programs (November 2012)
An Alternative to Formal Evaluation of Peacebuilding: Program Quality Assessment (December 2012)
Evaluability Assessments in Peacebuilding Programming (coming late December 2012)

Listening Exercise in Tamil Nadu, India

In January 2012, LP joined colleagues from Oxfam International, Oxfam India and several local partner organizations to conduct a listening exercise in the coastal communities of Tamil Nadu, India affected by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. All of these communities received humanitarian assistance. This report details how tsunami assistance continues to affect these communities eight years later.
Listening Exercise Report from Southern India, Tamil Nadu