Principle 4: Integration

Blue Marble refers to the iconic image of the Earth from space without borders or boundaries, a whole Earth perspective. We humans are using our planet’s resources, and polluting and warming it, in ways that are unsustainable. Many people, organizations, and networks are working to ensure the future is more sustainable and equitable. Blue Marble evaluators enter the fray by helping design such efforts, provide ongoing feedback for adaptation and enhanced impact, and examine the long-term effectiveness of such interventions and initiatives.

Summary: Michael Quinn Patton’s Blue Marble Evaluation is a forward-looking, path-breaking, and timely contribution to evaluation theory and practice. The title of the book evokes the Blue Marble shot—a photograph of the whole earth taken by the Apollo 17 astronauts in 1972. The preface of the book displays the first image of our lonely planet captured from space in 1968 (Earthrise).

If you missed the conversation with Michael and other BME members about chapter 4, never fear! We have recorded it here, with some highlights below! What questions do you have? Feel free to post as a comment and keep the conversation going! 

This members-only event is a chance to connect with other members and discuss the 4th Chapter in Blue Marble Evaluation: Premises and Principles - Integration Principle. 

To view the event details, visit the Blue Marble Book Club Discussion Forum. 

This report presents the key highlights and contributions from the conference ‘Monitoring and Evaluation for Inclusive and Sustainable Food Systems’. This conference was held on 3-4 April 2019 in Wageningen, the Netherlands and was the twelfth annual ‘M&E on the Cutting Edge’ conference. This event was organised by Wageningen Centre for Development Innovation (WCDI) in collaboration with Wageningen Economic Research and the Food & Business Knowledge Platform.