Register for upcoming seminars

 

Date and time: Thursday 26 February, 1.00pm-2.00pm AEDT
Topic: AES Ethics in Evaluation SIG Launch
Presenter(s): Colin Sharp, David Turner, Emma Williams & Su-Ann Drew | AES Ethics SIG
Venue: Via Zoom. Details will be emailed to registrants just prior to the start time.
Register online by: 25 February 2026

Event description:

Ethical questions sit at the heart of evaluation from how we design and conduct our work, to how findings are interpreted and used. Yet recent research has shown that many evaluators feel unsure where to go for support, or how best to navigate the grey areas that arise in real world practice.

To help build confidence, capability and community across the sector, the AES has launched the AES Ethics in Evaluation SIG. The SIG offers a collegial space for evaluators to connect, reflect and learn together about the ethical dimensions of our practice. The SIG is not intended to provide case by case advice or resolve individual ethical dilemmas, but to rather function as a community for shared learning, broader ethical inquiry, and strengthening our collective understanding of what ethical evaluation looks like in an evolving context.

Our inaugural session in February will introduce the SIG and outline what we hope to explore together in 2026. Dr Colin Sharp and David Turner, who each have worked for years to build AES ethics capacity, will host a discussion on how AES recognition of and responses to ethical issues in evaluation evolve. Please send questions before the session to ethics.sig@aes.asn.au

We look forward to starting the year with a thoughtful and engaging conversation, and warmly invite all AES members to attend. Any AES member with an interest in evaluation ethics is warmly welcome. Whether you’re an experienced evaluator, new to the profession, a commissioner, a researcher, or simply curious, you are invited to join our community.

Presenter details:

Colin Sharp
Associate Professor Colin Sharp was the original Chair of the AES Committee on Ethics and Standards in Evaluation, leading the development of the initial version of AES Code of Ethics and Guidelines for the Ethical Conduct of Evaluation, while he was Vice-President then President of the AES and overseeing consultations on the issues members faced and appropriate responses to them. He stepped back in 1995 to take on other responsibilities such as AES conference organisation, contributing to AES journals and the South Australian regional evaluation group in 1991 and — most recently, in 2025 — co-leading an AES mentoring group on strategic evaluation. 

David Turner
David Turner, a former public service evaluator in New Zealand, led the most recent completed update of the AES code and guidelines, launched in 2013. Although in recent years he has focussed on the AES mentoring program, conducting surveys and co-authoring papers on it, he has also continued to engage with AES ethics, surveying members in 2003 on their ethical challenges and use of AES guidelines, in 2009 conducting research on the different ethical perspectives of AES members, and has facilitated AES conference sessions at which participants discussed evaluation scenarios that raised ethical issues, and how they thought people should respond in such situations.

Emma Williams
Emma Williams is Co-Chair of the newly established AES Ethics in Evaluation SIG. She works with Iris Ethics, is contributing to the current (2025/26) update of the AES ethics code and guidelines, is engaged with the ongoing 'Everyday Ethics' working group, and is conducting research on evaluation ethics decision-making. Emma previously contributed to the 2013 update of AES ethics code and guidelines and has published on evaluation ethics issues.

Su-Ann Drew
Dr Su-Ann Drew is Co-Chair of the AES Ethics in Evaluation SIG, and a Senior Manager within Grosvenor's Program Evaluation practice. Prior to consulting, Su-Ann was an in-house public service evaluator in the WA state government where she delivered evaluations of mental health and alcohol and other drug programs. Su-Ann also led statewide research ethics and governance policy across the WA public health system during her time as a WA public servant, and continues to hold a keen interest in ethical issues in research and evaluation.

This free event has been organised by the AES Ethics in Evaluation SIG. Our seminar series provides an opportunity for you to meet with AES members and others in the evaluation community and to share and learn from the experiences of fellow evaluators. 

Session start times:

• VIC, NSW, ACT, TAS: 1.00pm

• QLD: 12.00pm

• SA: 12.30 pm

• NT: 11.30am

• WA: 10.00am

• New Zealand: 3.00pm

For other time zones please go to https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

Please ensure you have access to your email address just prior to the start time to access Zoom details. Please also check your email address is correct on your registration form before submitting. Thanks.

 

Date and time: Thursday 26 February 4.00pm - 5.30pm AEDT
Topic: NSW Interactive Session: Economic evaluation: Some issues for evaluators
Location: online via zoom, details will be shared just prior to the event
Presenter: Melanie Kelly | Insight Economics
Register online by: 25 February 2026

Event description: 

Governments across Australia and internationally are placing an increasing emphasis on integrating economic evaluation components in their program evaluation requirements and guidelines. In this workshop, Melanie will:

1. outline different types of economic evaluation (e.g. CBA, CEA, cost utility analysis)
2. point to some differences across jurisdictions in their approaches to economic evaluation
3. discuss some current issues around economic evaluation that are relevant to evaluators (e.g. discount rates; measuring and costing longer term outcomes)
4. recommend ways that overall evaluations can be designed and planned to better incorporate economic evaluation components.

The session will be run in workshop mode with plenty of opportunity for interaction, including Q&A.

Presenter details:

Melanie Kelly has 25 years’ experience in public policy and economics consulting. Her career began at a boutique consultancy (the Allen Consulting Group) before launching a start-up firm, Insight Economics, as a Company Director with four co-investors. The venture was successful, and in 2007, the company was acquired by Deloitte Australia. As a founding member of the economics practice within Deloitte, Melanie helped to grow the economics practice to more than 150 staff over more than 10 years of service. At Deloitte, Melanie progressed to serve as the Lead Partner for the Government and Industry Advisory practice and Business Case Centre of Excellence in Victoria within the Deloitte Access Economics practice. She was a member of the Financial Advisory Services’ Gender Diversity working group and was selected to the Under-40 Partner Leadership Group.

Over her career, Melanie has specialised in the life sciences, defence and resources sectors, with deep competencies in industry and innovation policy, economic cost benefit analyses, labour market modelling, computable general equilibrium modelling, and business case development. Her expertise in economic methods, strategy development and business case requirements has enabled her clients to secure more than $3.5 billion in government funding for a range of projects and policies across the health, defence, aerospace, resources, life sciences, education, emergency services, transport, and manufacturing sectors.

This seminar will be recorded and available on the member portal for AES members only.

This free event has been organised by the NSW Regional Network of the AES. Our seminar series provides an opportunity for you to meet with AES members and others in the evaluation community and to share and learn from the experiences of fellow evaluators. Please ensure you have access to your email address to receive the zoom details. Please also check your email address is correct on your registration form before submitting. 

Session start times:

VIC, NSW, ACT, TAS: 4.00pm

QLD: 3.00pm

NT 2.30pm

SA: 3.30pm

WA: 1.00pm

New Zealand: 6.00pm

For other time zones please go to https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

 

Date and time: Friday 27 February, 12.00pm-1.00pm AEDT
Topic:  AES Systems Evaluation SIG: Social Network Analysis for Program Evaluation
Presenter: Matt Healy | First Person Consulting & Brian Keogh | Cobalt59
Venue: Via Zoom. Details will be emailed to registrants just prior to the start time.
Register online by: 26 February 2026

Event description:

The Systems Evaluation SIG invites you to another engaging event on systems thinking in evaluation. This time we're fortunate to have Matt Healey running a session on social network analysis (SNA), a powerful method for mapping and describing relationships between actors in a system. Matt has extensive experience using and training people in SNA, so you can expect practical insights that will help advance your systems practice.

Learning outcomes:

By the end of the session, participants will:

1. Understand the role of SNA in visualizing and analysing network structures to evaluate programs

2. Practice the basic processes of developing a network map and interpreting it

3. Recognize limitations and ethical considerations in network analysis

We encourage you to attend the upcoming Workshop: Practicing systems: Introduction to Social Network Analysis (Online 7 & 14 May 2026) for an in depth exploration.

Presenter(s) details:

Matt Healey

Matt is a Consultant and Co-Founder at First Person Consulting (FPC). Since 2014, Matt has worked on research, evaluation and design projects that span health, social and environmental content areas with clients of all types. Matt’s passion is the exploration of different approaches and tools used in other industries, and how they might be applied in evaluation and design contexts. His latest interest is all things ‘systems’ and what this means for addressing the sorts of needs and problems that we tackle.

Matt has used SNA and other systems methods in a range of projects. This includes partnership mapping and evaluation in public health, exploring barriers and enablers to the repair of household electrical equipment for the circular economy, and design opportunities to improve student physical activity in secondary schools.

Matt has a reputation as an enthusiastic and adaptable consultant and facilitator, known for consistently producing and providing products and services that are both engaging and useful. Matt has delivered both in- person and online training in a range of contexts, including a 50-person evaluation capability building program for the Victorian State Government.

Brian Keogh

Brian is a seasoned evaluation expert with over 20 years of experience developing monitoring and evaluation frameworks for complex environmental, water and social programs. He has led evaluations for the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, NSW Office of Water, and Sydney Catchment Authority, integrating legislative requirements with ecological, economic, and social indicators. His work emphasises strategy mapping and systems analysis, particularly in contentious contexts like water policy where political alignment, regulatory currents, and community receptivity heavily influence outcomes.

As chair of the Australasian Evaluation Society’s Systems Evaluation SIG, he advances context-sensitive approaches, currently applying these to climate adaptation initiatives. Last year he completed a 'social power' evaluation with the Paul Ramsay Foundation. This session leans on this work.

This free event has been organised by the Systems Evaluation SIG Our seminar series provides an opportunity for you to meet with AES members and others in the evaluation community and to share and learn from the experiences of fellow evaluators. 

This seminar will be recorded and available on the member portal for AES members only.

 Seminar start times:

VIC, NSW, ACT, TAS: 12.00pm

QLD: 11.00am

SA: 11.30 am

NT: 10.30am

WA: 9.00am

New Zealand: 2.00pm

For other time zones please go to https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html

Please ensure you have access to your email address just prior to the start time to access Zoom details. Please also check your email address is correct on your registration form before submitting. Thanks.