Values

Evaluation in a changing world

June 19 to 21, 2023; workshops on June 17 and 18; international sharing on June 22

The conference values include bilingualism, equity, diversity, and inclusion, active reconciliation, environmental sustainability, and accessibility.

To assist us in living these values, the C2023 Sustainability, Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Accessibility (SIDEA) committee’s volunteers work with the conference Co-Chairs and other conference committees. 

The Canadian Evaluation Society (CES) SIDEA rubric and accompanying accessibility guidance are evergreen documents that guide the integration of our values into conference planning, implementation, and evaluation. Results on the integration of our values will be reported against the rubric in the conference report. In addition, SIDEA reflections and learnings will feed into a revision of the rubric aimed at enhancing future conferences. 

Bilingualism

Canada is a country with two official languages, English and French, and the CES itself is an officially bilingual organization. In keeping with the CES commitment with bilingualism, we will ensure that English and French are promoted and valued in all possible aspects of our Conference planning, delivery and reporting.

We will live this value by:

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

Diversity is the presence of difference within a given setting, such as a diversity of identities including gender identity, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, religion, disability and other identities that are marginalized or at risk of marginalization. Inclusion is about people with different identities feeling and/or being valued and welcomed within all aspects of our conference. We will achieve our diversity and inclusion outcomes through our equity approach; we recognize that not everyone starts from the same place and that advantages and barriers exist. Our aim is to correct and address these imbalances wherever we can so that all identities have the opportunity to grow, contribute and develop through their participation in any aspect of our conference. 

We will live this value by:

Active Reconciliation

Our commitment to this value will allow us to actively acknowledge and support the self-determination of Indigenous people and take further steps to explore what meaningful reconciliation will look like and how C2023 can contribute to this.

We will live this value by: 

Environmental Sustainability

In its 2019-2024 Strategic Plan, CES made environmental sustainability a guiding principle. Because the annual conference is CES’s largest and most resource-consumptive event, greening the conference has been a priority. The 2023 conference organizing committee has also selected environmental sustainability as one of its foundational values. Following the lead of prior conference organizing committees and of the CES Sustainability Working Group, C2023 commits to practices that will minimize and offset our environmental footprint. Our objective is to run a carbon-neutral conference and to support the sustainability of the community in which the conference is taking place.

The main areas of action are:

Key aspects that will affect delegates directly for 2023 include:

Accessibility

CES is committed to holding accessible conferences that are inclusive for all attendees. Whether in-person or virtual, we aim to have functional and reliable services that encourage all persons, regardless of strengths and abilities, to participate in its programs, workshops and activities.

We will live this value by:

encouraging attendees to contact us with other ways we can reduce barriers at  c2023@evaluationcanada.ca by May 19, 2023.