PDRI Executive Director Heather Huntington Presents at 2024 USAID Agency Learning and Evidence Month Program

PDRI-DevLab’s executive director Heather Huntington presented at the Agency Learning and Evidence Month Program, hosted by the USAID Bureau for Resilience, Environment and Food Security Center for Climate Positive Development and Center for Natural Environment. The Agency Learning and Evidence Month program aims to celebrate research, evaluation, and learning while bringing together diverse development researchers and practitioners. This month’s theme of ‘What Works and Where to Find It’ included 30 sessions that highlighted evidence-driven approaches and resources to further global priorities, including climate change, migration, locally led development, resilience, affirmative development, anti-corruption, and inclusive development.

Dr. Huntington’s presentation entitled “Designing Programs for People and Planet: Lessons Learned from Cross-Sectoral Impact Evaluations,” looked at what conditions are necessary for cross-sectoral development programs to result in better outcomes for people and the planet. USAID’s Health, Ecosystems and Agriculture for Resilient, Thriving Societies (HEARTH) program is addressing this key question through two ambitious impact evaluations in Zambia and West Africa. During this session, Dr. Huntington discussed initial results and lessons learned designing impact evaluations that examine the linkages among climate, food security, health, governance, and biodiversity conservation.