Susumu Yoshida and Marco D’Errico highlight key barriers and solutions in impact evaluation for climate projects

TOKYO, Japan — At UNEG Evaluation Week 2025, the IEU’s Learning-Oriented Real-Time Impact Assessment (LORTA) team led a Professional Development Seminar focused on impact evaluation in climate projects. 

Susumu Yoshida and Marco D’Errico presented on the challenges of conducting impact evaluations, focusing on causal inference, data limitations, and ethical considerations in assessing climate interventions. Their session brought together evaluators from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and the Global Environment Facility (GEF), alongside researchers from Sophia University and the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI). 

Barriers to impact evaluation 

Participants identified high costs, data constraints, and timing challenges as persistent barriers to conducting effective impact evaluations. 

Data privacy was also raised as a significant concern, with agencies taking different approaches to ethical review and confidentiality protections. Some organizations have formal review boards and policies, while others rely on case-by-case guidelines or informal safeguards. 

Alternative approaches to impact evaluations  

Sophia University introduced regression discontinuity design (RDD) as an alternative to randomized controlled trials (RCTs), presenting it as another approach to causal inference in impact evaluations. While RDD offers a different way to measure impact, it does not address broader challenges related to cost, data availability, or timing constraints. 

What’s next 

As discussions on evaluation methodologies and data challenges continue, the IEU’s LORTA team remains committed to strengthening evidence-based approaches for GCF-funded climate projects.