How We Measure Our Impacts
Guided by our theory of change, Global Grassroots aims to have a transformative impact on an individual level, including both our graduates and the community members they serve, and on a collective level, including our network of conscious social change teams and the broader societies in which they operate.
From its inception, Global Grassroots embraced a balanced approach to measuring its impacts using both qualitative and quantitative methods. This includes both formative (often participatory action research) assessments alongside summative, externally-led evaluations.
At the individual level, Global Grassroots’ Team Member Survey (TMS) tracks five areas of personal development that are central to our unique approach. At the community level, change agents and Global Grassroots’ staff collaboratively administer a Community Impact Survey (CIS) at baseline and endline (about 18-24 months after training is completed). The Academy of Conscious Change is designed to engage team members in monitoring, evaluating and learning from the beginning, therefore participants develop a theory of change and identify desired outcomes for their own ventures. These indicators are then merged standard Global Grassroots’ metrics to allow for comparisons across ventures over time.
Change agents are also supported by Global Grassroots staff to collect and reflect on routine data, testimonials, and impact stories. These are then summarized on a quarterly basis to help document and learn from successes and challenges.
Wisdom Lab
In 2021, Global Grassroots launched its most recent initiative called the Wisdom Lab which aimed to elevate the voices and stories of our grassroots change agents and their communities. Building on the participatory MEL approach, the Wisdom Lab provided Global Grassroots staff with training in digital storytelling and supported the creation of case studies, transformational stories, and participatory action research projects.
In 2020, IPSOS conducted a thorough analysis of Global Grassroots’ participant survey data and found strong evidence that the unique combination of mindful leadership, social entrepreneurship training, and hands-on experience in venture development was having impacts on our teams (women and men) and young women graduates of the Academy of Conscious Change.
In 2022, we followed up the IPSOS inquiry by conducted a participatory research project using Ripple Effects Mapping to find out how Global Grassroots’ Women & Water teams were faring — and what impacts may be persisting or not — after 6 of more years of operations.
While there is still much to understand about the relationship between the inner work (mindfulness, self-awareness building, trauma-healing, etc) that Global Grassroots incorporates into its model, and the “outer work” of achieving sustainable improvements in society, the many stories of transformation that we are collecting help connect those dots and give inspiration for future efforts.
As we transition into a new role, we hope you will join us in continuing to generate wisdom together about the intersectional benefits of conscious social change on ourselves as change leaders, and our communities. Visit www.consciouschangewisdom.org and www.conscioussocialchange.org to stay in touch and share!