APF FORESIGHT EVALUATION
TASK FORCE
APF's Task Force on Foresight Evaluation
Purpose:
This Charter describes the structure, objectives, scope of activities, and participants of the Association of Professional Futurists (APF) Task Force on Foresight Evaluation. Reporting to APF, this Task Force will support increased member evaluation capacity through sharing of evaluation resources, strategies, designs, and methods, and provide suggestions for appropriate foresight outcomes and indicators to guide evaluation design. The Task Force will operate until July 2022.
Workgroup Responsibilities
The Task Force aims to generate constructive discussion about evaluation strategies, designs, and methods that are appropriate for foresight broadly defined, e.g., alternative scenarios, foresight education, strategic foresight. The overarching aim is to standardize quality of foresight practice, and support achievement of foresight aims. Task Force activities include:
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Determine the challenges to evaluating foresight or ‘evaluability’, such as resource constraints, a long time horizon, etc;
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Clarify the state of evaluation practice by futurists, e.g., survey APF members to assess their work, challenges encountered, methods used, etc.;
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Identify evaluation designs, outcomes, methods, and tools that have the potential to further inform practitioner excellence in foresight; and
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Develop an ‘evaluation capacity building’ (ECB) model for expanding APF member evaluation expertise.
The following criteria will be used to select members:
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Members should have expertise in evaluation of foresight, including evaluation design and metrics;
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They should be interested in identifying foresight outcomes or desired changes brought about by a particular foresight activity;
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Finally, they should be familiar with APF foresight competencies and linking evaluation practice to increased APF member excellence.
The Workgroup will have standing monthly calls that will be comprised of two activities: a 30-minute discussion of an issue or topic selected by the call Chair, such as the state of foresight evaluation practice, and a 30-minute technical discussion, such as relevant resources, appropriate evaluation design, etc. Outside of the monthly conference call, the Task Force can organize ad hoc committees in order to accomplish specific objectives. The Task Force Chair will also facilitate regular communication by email, such as sharing of resources to Task Force members, trouble-shooting in between conference calls, and providing updates on Task Force activities.
Workgroup
Approach
The Workgroup will be composed of a six-members from APF. Upwards of 4 ex-officio members who are not members of APF, but have expertise in foresight evaluation will also be invited to participate. This may include a representative from the World Futures Studies Federation, the American Evaluation Association, the UNESCO Foresight Department, as well as others.
Leadership & Reporting
The responsibility for chairing the calls will fall to the director of the Task Force Annette Gardner, PhD, MPH, as APF's Senior Associate for Foresight Evaluation. She will work with the Task Force members to develop the Call Agenda, and send out resources before and after the Call. She will provide a quarterly summary of its activities to APF. The Workgroup will seek approvals of policies or resources as needed. She will also provide evaluation capacity building resources to the Task Force and APF membership via the APF website.