Conference theme Experience in all parts of the world has revealed that the emergence of evaluation as a separate practice, science and profession has been closely interconnected with the spread of reform movements. Program evaluation was initially conceived as an integral part of the widespread social reform in America that took place during the 1960s. Similar processes were taking place in the other countries as well, where political and social changes and the corresponding reforms in state governance created a demand for new means of conducting program and policy evaluations. In recent years, increased attention has been given to evaluating the regulatory impact of actual and proposed laws and regulations.
In 1969, social scientist Donald T. Campbell wrote an article proclaiming that the United States and other modern nations “should be ready for an experimental approach to social reform.” Today the concept of an “experimenting society” might be applied to almost all countries in the world. Active research to find the ways to improve state governance and promote business development and public participation has become the norm for CIS countries. In fact, governmental, nongovernmental and private organizations naturally focus on the developing capacity for evaluation as a tool for efficient management, a mechanism for organizational learning and an instrument for assessing and managing risks associated with reforms.
In light of these developments, the International Program Evaluation Network (IPEN) has selected “Evaluation of programs and policies and the regulatory impact of laws and regulations in the context of social and state modernization” as a topic for its 2007 conference.
The conference will be conducted at the State University – Higher School of Economics, Moscow, a prestigious institution that is both an educational center and one of the largest think tanks in the CIS. Over the past decade, it has contributed to reforms ranging from education to public administration. The use of this conference venue alone may be remembered as a milestone in integrating program evaluation in both state and corporate management in Russia and the CIS.
We invite managers and staff members of governmental, commercial and nongovernmental organizations, as well as researchers, consultants and educators—all practitioners involved in the development of the evaluation field and the use of evaluation results—to participate in the uniquely important September 2007 IPEN conference. |
