Editorial Note: This blog post is the fourth in a series delving into iACT’s community-led approach and exploring the how, why, and broader impact of shifting power in humanitarian action. You can read part one here, part two here, and part three here.
Most often, within the humanitarian space, the path from program implementation to evaluation is a straight line — a program is designed and implemented, and after a predetermined amount of time the outcomes and impact of that program are measured. Impact is typically measured by numbers and statistics and judged by outside “experts.” Whether a program has value is determined by and based on the general goals of its implementing organization.
We at iACT think about impact differently. We see measurement as ensuring our programs are serving the community in the best ways possible; and in that approach, program measurement is continual. It’s iterative and ongoing and in partnership with members of the program and community.
When we talk about the impact of our community-led approach, we are first and foremost accountable to the community, ensuring the program design, intended outcomes, and long-term impact are aligned with the community’s needs, expectations, and vision for their children. This is achieved, as noted in earlier blogs, through our co-creation process, but also in discussion around what outcomes and impact the community — caregivers in particular — aspires to for the children. Our approach to being accountable to communities and their goals challenges traditional models of measuring impact, and rightfully so: why should people from outside a community determine what that community should see as the most valuable outcomes of a program?
We’ve said it in earlier blogs and we’ll say it again: we’re not perfect. We’ve tried traditional measurement tools in the past and we’ve approached program outcomes and impact with our own assumptions and expectations only to quickly learn they just don’t reflect cultural and contextual nuances, ever-changing environments, and what matters most to a community. What we share in this blog post is where we are in our community-led process and how we see and measure impact at iACT.
Determining Success
Central to our approach to supporting refugee and conflict-affected communities is listening, which enables us to understand the impact that community members are hoping for. In our first conversations with families, we ask questions and listen deeply, to understand what is desired for their children.
In creating the Little Ripples early childhood education program and Refugees United Soccer Academy alongside the Darfuri refugee community, caregivers expressed their aspirations for their children while they are participating in either program:
Their children are safe
Their children are learning and being prepared for primary school
Their children are happy and smiling
Their children get excited to attend the program
Their children are growing/developing well, physically
Their children are getting along with others
Their children are talkative when they get home
It is from these initial learnings that coaches, teachers, and education directors co-design and co-create the program and curriculum, and which form the basis of outcomes and expected impact. What we measure — through child observation, teacher surveys, and caregiver interviews, among other methods — helps our community-based team understand if the initial expectations of caregivers are being met.
For iACT’s part, we look for markers of success and sustainability that show not only the the outcomes of the program on children, but also how well we are doing as partners of the community. In short, does our community-led approach shift power, elevate local leadership, and enable program longevity?
Shifting Power
People who are experiencing conflict and displacement typically experience a loss of choice or voice. In displacement, decisions are made for people by humanitarian organizations and governing actors rather than with them. It’s often a “we know more than you about what you need” way of working, and this approach risks re-traumatizing and diminishing people.
When measuring if we’re shifting power through our approach, we connect with our program team members across the refugee camps and communities where we work to understand from their perspective and experience if we’ve created the space and opportunity for them to stand in their own power.
“We are leaders and we want to work hard.” — Refugee in eastern Chad camp
We recently learned that a former education director of Little Ripples, who had relocated to another country, started a Little Ripples-like preschool in her new home. Having and feeling true ownership of the program enabled her to bring her version of the program to a different context, without feeling as though “approval” from the iACT staff was needed to do so. This was a marker of success in that the impact of our approach was shown to be sustainable beyond our initial support, and that this teacher felt such strong ownership of the program.
"If Little Ripples stopped, we would find a solution ourselves to keep Little Ripples. This is just as iACT has taught us. To find solutions and have ideas." — Magboula, teacher
Often, the Little Ripples team makes its own programmatic decisions, which include, among many other things: the kinds of learning activities done with students, outreach and community meetings, budgeting determinations, daily processes, and/or graduation protocols. For example, our team and members of the community in refugee camp Touloum recently took it upon themselves to organize a ceremony for the graduating Little Ripples students. It was a celebration with hundreds in attendance, music, dance performances, and speakers; and ideated, funded, and organized by the Little Ripples team itself.
Little Ripples Graduation in refugee camp Touloum (July 2024)
Elevating Local Leadership
Women and men involved with leading iACT programs gain respect and notoriety, and experience an elevated status as leaders, both within and outside of their community.
“Yes, my life has become organized and now I am a role model for generations. It has helped me in my economic life and I became well known among the [community].” - Hawa Mohamed Omer, RUSA Coach
Veteran Little Ripples team members have become so respected for their skills that they are periodically asked by other organizations and communities to train NGO staff as well as other refugees. We are not aware of any other instance of refugees in a refugee camp leading and conducting trainings — on trauma-informed care, play-based teaching, or mindfulness practice — for humanitarian workers, at the request of their organization.
“I have increased my knowledge of how to manage an education program. I lead our weekly teacher meetings, and it gives me more confidence in being a leader.” — Little Ripples education director
In Bangui, our Refugees United Soccer Academy coaches were recently recognized for their efforts in increasing the number of girls participating in soccer programs. The coaches were invited by a prominent local radio station to share their stories and effort. They also successfully secured the support and partnership of the Ministry of Sport and Football Association. Our Refugees United Soccer Academy in Reynosa, Mexico, was featured on a local Univision television show for its work in support of asylum seekers living in shelter Senda de Vida 1, where it has come to be considered one of the most consistent and loved programs offered to children.
In 2022, iACT resourced the refugee-led scaling of our early childhood education and soccer programs in eastern Chad. We define “refugee-led scaling” as a process whereby members of a refugee community manage the resources, timelines, travel, training, and implementation of a program within their community or to a different community.
Led by Program Coordinator Al-Fateh Younous Haroun, a Little Ripples refugee-led expansion team launched 15 preschools across five refugee camps in eastern Chad, hiring and training 30 teachers, 30 cooks, three camp coordinators, and three education directors in the process. From 2021 to 2022, an experienced Refugees United Soccer Academy team of coaches implemented the RUSA program in four eastern Chad camps, adding 16 coaches. To our knowledge, it’s the first time in the region that refugees have had the opportunity to take on the responsibility of scaling a humanitarian program to another camp. This is, for iACT, a key marker of success in our partnership with and support of local leadership.
Program Longevity
In a humanitarian system where program life cycles are designed around funding cycles, sector trends, and frequent staff turnover, it is common to see programs abruptly ending — especially once a grant period comes to a close — resulting in whole communities being left in the lurch. Because of this, we see program longevity as a key marker of success of our partnership approach to supporting community-led programs.
As a result of this approach, Little Ripples and the Refugees United Soccer Academy are the longest-standing programs across the camps in eastern Chad, their existence now surpassing a decade. In Cameroon, the same four coaches initially recruited and trained have been leading the program since 2016. This is both a testament to the teams leading these programs in their community and to iACT’s commitment to resource programs in contexts where most families are struggling to provide even two meals a day for their children.
The ways in which communities choose to contribute to and sustain a program over time vary. For Little Ripples, it was encouraging to learn that, a few years ago, community members around the Little Ripples school took it upon themselves to rebuild the wall surrounding the buildings and courtyard of our first school. With a collection of personal funds, the wall was not only rebuilt, but redesigned and strengthened as well, so that it would last longer this time around. While we have shifted from a school-based model to a home-hosted one, the community-led Little Ripples school continues to be a pillar in the community 14 years later, demonstrating that the community is committed to ensuring that the program is maintained and lives on, and with quality.
"I see big changes in the students. I am really proud of our preschool." — Mother of former Little Ripples school student
In Conclusion
Looking at impact in this way is not always simple, and it is also not always easy to translate our outcomes to donors and the broader humanitarian community. But here’s what we know to be true: looking at impact in this way has given us a much deeper and clearer understanding of how communities experience our programs and whether or not the programs are truly achieving success.
In focusing our measurements on the outcomes the community wants, we have seen iACT programs thrive in regions such as Chad, Central African Republic, Mexico, and beyond. The community-led approach encourages innovative solutions that are adapted to the local context and challenges faced by refugees, leading to more effective and responsive programming.
Our plan is to continue working with our community partners and strategizing together on the best mechanisms to utilize local resources within the regions where we work, aiming for sustainability. Our commitment will always be to work alongside communities supporting them with respect and dignity.