A Guide for Monitoring and Evaluating Population-Health-Environment Programs: Second Edition


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Author(s): Scott Moreland, Jen Curran

Year: 2018


Moreland, S. & Curran, J. (2018). A Guide for Monitoring and Evaluating Population- Health-Environment Programs, Second Edition. Chapel Hill, NC: MEASURE Evaluation, University of North Carolina
A Guide for Monitoring and Evaluating Population-Health-Environment Programs: Second Edition Abstract:

Conservation projects to protect the environment came to realize that improvements in the health and nutrition of people were also necessary to advance conservation agendas. These programs evolved into what are now called population, health, and environment (PHE) projects that deliver family planning, basic health services, environmental management or conservation information, and service interventions to rural communities in a coordinated or integrated fashion.

PHE projects vary, based on local dynamics, human health problems, and pertinent threats to local environmental conditions. But what all PHE projects have in common is the hypothesis that human populations can be a major threat to the environment, that human health is inextricably linked to the environment, and that working across the human health and environment sectors is more effective than pursuing interventions in isolation. Many projects have also experienced the added benefits of integrating across the PHE sectors—including more women in natural resources management activities; engaging men on reproductive health and family planning decisions; and reaching underserved communities in remote, but often biologically diverse, areas.

The effective management and execution of these or any projects depend on the ability to define and measure success at several levels. A well-thought-out and implemented monitoring and evaluation (M&E) system provides the information for measuring success. It is with that in mind that MEASURE Evaluation has published A Guide for Monitoring and Evaluating Population-Health-Environment Programs, 2nd Edition (2018). It is a comprehensive reference for practitioners and provides not only a list of potential indicators but also advice on setting up M&E systems; the addition of livelihoods indicators; and a new section on evaluating complex programs. The guide further includes several new indicators cross-referenced to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Filed under: Population , Environment , Sustainability , Health , PHE , Monitoring, Evaluation