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Learning and Evaluation

We learn alongside our grantee partners.

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How we evaluate

In conventional philanthropy, foundations define success metrics and expect grantees to meet them. Headwaters takes a different approach. Our evaluation process focuses on shared learning, positioning grantees and the foundation as true partners.

We evaluate for three key purposes: accountability to the communities we serve, learning about progress toward the outcomes defined by our partners, and tracking long-term health metrics to assess the impact of our investments.

Through grantee reporting, we monitor indicators linked to these outcomes:

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Increased capacity and leadership within the organizations and collaboratives we support.
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Cultural and narrative shifts that frame health as a community responsibility rather than an individual one.
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Underrepresented families engaging in policy advocacy.
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A stronger environment for advocating for policies that reduce barriers to health.
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Greater public and private funding to reduce barriers to health and wellbeing.
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More services available to address social and economic barriers to health.
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Stronger relationships and collaboration between organizations across sectors.

Each year, we publish our insights in our Evaluation & Learning Data Book. We invite you to explore what we have learned in the latest edition.