Search

This article surveyed different emerging technologies (ET), in particular artificial intelligence, and their burgeoning application in the evaluation industry. Evidence suggests that evaluators have been relatively slow in adopting ET in their practice. However, more recent data suggest that ET adoption is increasing. This article then analyzed if, and how, ET affect the evaluation industry and evaluation practice. The article finds that program evaluation is one of several competing forms of knowledge production informing decision‐making, particularly in the government and not‐for‐profit sectors. Therefore, evaluation faces a number of challenges stemming from ET. In this article, it is argued that evaluators must, albeit critically, embrace ET. Most likely, ET will complement evaluation practice and, in some instances, displace human tasks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On August 14 th 2015 a large debris flow initiated by the occurrence of two slope failures at the front of the Lou rock glacier flooded part of the town of Lanslevillard, France. The present study aims to understand the meteorological and geomorphological context that led to these failures. Investigations were conducted by combining meteorological data, surface movements, and geophysical transects. The analysis indicates that the Lou rock glacier is directly connected to an active torrential channel and has a natural predisposition to frontal failure due to the steepness of its front. The slope failures were triggered after a heat wave followed by a three‐week period of almost continuous rainfall. Water flowing on top of the permafrost table was observed in the two head scarps, suggesting that regressive erosion consecutive to this concentrated subsurface water flow triggered the failures. For one of the slides, traces of previous failures were observable on historical aerial imagery dating back to the 1950's, while the second slide corresponded to a novel event and developed on the frontal slope of a fast‐moving and destabilized rock glacier lobe. We also discuss the increase in local predisposition to failure related to the remarkable morphological modifications such as frontal advance and development of surface cracks associated with the lobe destabilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This chapter reflects on the findings from a comparative analysis of the cases comprising this issue, summarizing and expanding on key findings from these in relation to the evaluation market framework. Major implications of the findings for evaluation practice are considered. The chapter concludes with an outline of a future research agenda for the evaluation marketplace. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction to articles in this issue is presented including the demand side of the U.S. evaluation market, philanthropic foundations and small enterprises offering evaluation services.

Abstract: The present chapter provides the conceptual foundation on which the remainder of this special issue is grounded. First, the chapter considers the idea of an evaluation marketplace and reflects on the limited attention awarded to the commercial aspects of evaluation. Second, the scarce—yet significant—literature on the evaluation market and industry is considered, identifying three distinct strands of contributions: the evaluation market composition, market dynamics, and strategies for navigating these. In the third section, the chapter offers working definitions of the evaluation market and evaluation services as well as presents the evaluation market framework, an emerging framework for better understanding the central components of the evaluation marketplace, including its context, composition, and dynamics. A brief set of concluding notes brings the chapter to a close. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dense nonaqueous phase liquid (DNAPL) source areas containing chlorinated volatile organic compounds (cVOCs) such as trichloroethene (TCE) and perchloroethene (PCE) often give rise to significant dissolved plumes in groundwater, leading to the closure of downgradient water supply wells and creating vapor intrusion issues in buildings located above the plume. Hydraulic containment via pump-and-treat has often been implemented to limit migration but must continue indefinitely. Removal of the DNAPL source area by means such as in situ thermal remediation (ISTR) offers the potential to diminish or end the need for hydraulic containment if the associated dissolved plume attenuates sufficiently following source removal. A question often raised is whether this occurs or whether the back diffusion of contaminants from secondary sources such as low-permeability lenses in the dissolved plume precludes it. The authors conducted DNAPL source removal using ISTR at dozens of sites. This paper presents a compilation of cases-10 separate DNAPL source areas at five project sites-where data indicate that the implementation of a thorough ISTR in a DNAPL source area can result in the attenuation of the associated dissolved plume, such that in several cases, long-standing pump-and-treat systems could be turned off. Our findings contrast with recent assertions that aggressive source remediation may not be justifiable because dissolved plume concentrations will not decline sufficiently. We show that the application of ISTR can result in the thorough removal of the DNAPL source, effective diminution of dissolved plume groundwater concentrations, and achievement of drinking water standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In situ thermal remediation technologies provide efficient and reliable cleanup of contaminated soil and groundwater, but at a high cost of environmental impacts and resource depletion due to the large amounts of energy and materials consumed. This study provides a detailed investigation of four in situ thermal remediation technologies (steam enhanced extraction, thermal conduction heating, electrical resistance heating, and radio frequency heating) in order to (1) compare the life-cycle environmental impacts and resource consumption associated with each thermal technology, and (2) identify options to reduce these adverse effects. The study identifies a number of options for environmental optimization of in situ thermal remediation. In general, environmental optimization can be achieved by increasing the percentage of heating supplied in off peak electricity demand periods as this reduces the pressure on coal-based electricity and thereby reduces the environmental impacts due to electricity production by up to 10%. Furthermore, reducing the amount of concrete in the vapor cap by using a concrete sandwich construction can potentially reduce the environmental impacts due to the vapor cap by up to 75%. Moreover, a number of technology-specific improvements were identified, for instance by the substitution of stainless steel types in wells, heaters, and liners used in thermal conduction heating, thus reducing the nickel consumption by 45%. The combined effect of introducing all the suggested improvements is a 10 to 21% decrease in environmental impacts and an 8 to 20% decrease in resource depletion depending on the thermal remediation technology considered. The energy consumption was found to be the main contributor to most types of environmental impacts; this will, however, depend on the electricity production mix in the studied region. The combined improvement potential is therefore to a large extent controlled by the reduction/improvement of energy consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This chapter outlines the development of performance monitoring and program evaluation at the federal level of the government of Canada. This approach stands out, as it has had a dual emphasis on both monitoring and evaluation as complementary forms of knowledge production. However, throughout its history emphases on management and accountability have shifted. The authors argue that to fulfill its potential to support results-based management the Canadian government must adopt a more stable, balanced, and strategic approach to both performance monitoring and program evaluation. © Wiley Periodicals, Inc., and the American Evaluation Association. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This chapter situates findings and insights from the case studies in this issue of New Directions for Evaluation in relation to ongoing debates among evaluators pertaining to performance management. It highlights ways in which the complementarity between evaluation and performance management has been described in the case studies and identifies five types of complementarity between performance measurement and evaluation: sequential, informational, organizational, methodical, and hierarchical. It concludes with a survey of the literature on the challenges in implementing performance management and argues that evaluators need to take a more active role in performance-management efforts. © Wiley Periodicals, Inc., and the American Evaluation Association. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This chapter investigates the case of the Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO), a not-for-profit organization dedicated to providing immediate and comprehensive employment services to persons with criminal convictions. CEO prepares returning prisoners for the workforce with strong employment-retention outcomes and proven impacts (in a randomized control trial by MDRC) showing significant reduction in recidivism. In this chapter the authors survey how CEO manages its performance through the use of both performance measurement and monitoring and evaluation. Also, the authors argue that performance measurement and evaluation must be seen as complementary forms of knowledge production and that both need to be integral to performance management. © Wiley Periodicals, Inc., and the American Evaluation Association. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For some time now, evaluators have been trying to locate their work in relation to the emergence of performance management. Although some have rejected performance management outright as conceptually weak and simplistic, others have looked for complementarities between the two approaches to generating knowledge. The authors address these concerns and identify the emergence of complementarity below the broad constructs of evaluation and performance management writ large, instead seeing it as inhering in the approaches to measurement and monitoring employed by practitioners of these disciplines, respectively. This chapter elucidates performance management and the six key elements it requires: leaders, managers, accountability systems, performance budgeting, measuring and monitoring, and evaluation. It also indicates some of the major concerns evaluators have raised regarding the validity of knowledge produced within performance-management approaches that do not rely on evaluations. © Wiley Periodicals, Inc., and the American Evaluation Association. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2003, the United States Department of Energy completed a full-scale non–aqueous phase liquid (NAPL) remediation of Area A of the Northeast Site at the Young-Rainey STAR Center, Largo, Florida. Area A covered an area of 930 m2 (10,000 square feet) and extended to a depth of 10.7 m (35 feet), representing a total cleanup volume of 9930 m3 (12,960 cubic yards). The site was contaminated with ∼2500 kg (5500 lb) of NAPL constituents such as trichloroethylene, cis-1,2-dichloroethylene, methylene chloride, toluene, and petroleum hydrocarbons. The site consists of a fine-grained sand aquifer underlain by a Hawthorn clay at 9 m (30 feet) depth. The upper 1.5 m (5 feet) of this clay formed part of the remediation volume, as dense non–aqueous phase liquid was present in this layer. The site was remediated using a combination of steam-enhanced extraction and electrical resistance heating. Operations lasted 4.5 months. The site was heated to the target temperatures within 6 weeks, at which time the mass removal rate increased more than 1000-fold. After the target volume had been heated to or near boiling temperatures, pressure cycles were used to increase the mass removal rates, until a final phase of diminishing returns was reached. Postoperational sampling of soil and ground water at randomly selected locations showed the concentrations of all contaminants of concern (COC) to be well below the remedial goals. The majority of the ground water samples were below maximum contaminant level (MCL) for all the COC. The estimate of volatile organic contaminant (VOC) mass removed from the site (1130 kg = 2500 lb) agreed well with the estimate of VOC present before operation (1170 kg = 2580 lb). The postoperational sampling showed that ∼0.5 kg (1 pound) of VOCs remained in the remedial volume, and showed remedial efficiencies of between 99.85% and 99.99% for the four chemicals of concern. Since the postoperational sampling shows all concentrations to be below or close to ground water MCLs, the thermal remedy may be satisfactory for site closure without a polishing phase. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims Materials and Methods Results Conclusions Trial registration The objective of this study was to examine the effects of empagliflozin on endothelium‐dependent and endothelium‐independent vasodilatation and systemic hemodynamic parameters and to assess the role of the nitric oxide (NO) system in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM).In this double‐blind, placebo‐controlled cross over trial, patients with T2DM were treated with either empagliflozin 10 mg or matching placebo for 4 weeks. Following a 2‐week washout, participants were crossed over to 4 weeks of the opposite treatment. Forearm blood flow (FBF) was measured after each treatment period using venous occlusion plethysmography. Acetylcholine and sodium nitroprusside (SNP) were infused into the brachial artery to assess endothelium‐dependent and endothelium‐independent vasodilatory function, respectively. Total peripheral resistance, 24‐h blood pressure (BP) and biochemical markers of NO activity were measured as well.Sixteen participants completed the trial. The mean age was 68 ± 8 years, and 69% were male. The SNP response increased by 21% (geometric mean ratio 1.21, 95% CI: 1.09; 1.33) during treatment with empagliflozin compared to placebo (p ≤ 0.001), but not during acetylcholine infusion (p = 0.290). Empagliflozin decreased 24‐h systolic BP by 5 mmHg (95% CI: −9; −1 mmHg) (p = 0.015), diastolic BP by 2 mmHg (95% CI: −5; 0 mmHg) (p = 0.029) and systemic vascular resistance by 48 dyn×s/m5 (95% CI: −94; −1 dyn×s/m5) (p = 0.044). Furthermore, empagliflozin reduced plasma levels of nitrite and urinary levels of NOx.Empagliflozin improves endothelium‐independent vasodilation, reduces vascular resistance and lowers 24‐h BP in patients with T2DM, whereas no change in endothelial‐dependent vasodilation was observed.EU Clinical Trials Register number: 2019‐004303‐12 (https://www.clinicaltrialsregister.eu/ctr-search/trial/2019-004303-12/DK). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including constituent components of performance management, performance measurement and program evaluation in the U.S., management in the Finnish public sector.