The Colorado Lab is working with Philanthropy Colorado and state philanthropic leaders to determine how funders can best support their nonprofit grantee partners in collecting and learning from data. Foundation leaders have been invited to participate in monthly Community of Practice learning sessions through early 2025.
Natalie Portman-Marsh of NPM Consulting, LLC will facilitate the Community of Practice from an emergent learning perspective. She will help the cohort to identify conditions that support grantees in learning from and acting on their data. Throughout the year, the Colorado Lab will document results and share promising practices to advance understanding in the broader field.
Evidence-Based Decision Making
(EBDM) is the intersection of the best available research evidence, decision-makers’ expertise, and community needs and context. EBDM recognizes that research evidence is not the only contributing factor to policy and budget decisions. Other equally important contextual factors include resourcing, cultural values, community voice, and feasibility of implementation.
“We are excited to broaden the engagement of leaders learning about evidence-based decision making,” said Dr. Kristin Klopfenstein, director of the Colorado Lab. “Government and non-governmental partners alike have a unique role to play in creating—and sustaining—a culture where data is used to facilitate improvement rather than just to monitor compliance. When using data, including in its narrative forms, becomes central to the work rather than a periodic event, we get closer to a sustainable system of evidence-based decision making.”
To learn more, please contact Dr. Kristin Klopfenstein.