This session focus was on how best to approach the socio-economic and environment nexus from an evaluation point of view in today’s SDGs’ context. Dr. Rowe made a provocative call for attention to the fact that while the SDGs have brought the social, the economic and the environmental closer to each other, they still threat them as separable. Prof. Miyaguchi suggested two theoretical frameworks to be used in evaluating at the nexus between the human and natural systems. Dr. Murdoch presented a case study on using realist synthesis to overcome evaluation challenges in the uncertain landscape of carbon finance. Dr. Puri investigated the question of complexity in climate change interventions and its influence on evaluation in climate change and finance.

Chair: Carlo Carugi

• Andy Rowe, ARCeconomics Evaluating sustainability and the SDGs: Moving Past Dominion and Institutional Capture
• Takaaki Miyaguchi, Kyoto University of Foreign Studies Importance and Utilization of Theory-Based Evaluations in the Context of Sustainable Development
• Lisa Keppler, Arepo Consult & Callum Murdoch, LTS International Using realist synthesis to overcome evaluation challenges in the uncertain landscape of carbon finance
• Jo Puri, Independent Evaluation Unit of the Green Climate Fund (GCF)  Complexity, Climate and Evaluation