About Fred Carden

Biography

Fred is an evaluation specialist with over 30 years' experience in evaluating development research and programming, and the development of evaluation methodologies. In addition to his focus on methods, Fred has interest and expertise in the use of evidence in public policy.

In 2015 Fred established Using Evidence Inc., a global consultancy that focuses on efforts to improve the use of research and evaluative evidence in decision making.

Prior to establishing Using Evidence, Fred spent two years in Jakarta as Lead Technical Advisor to the Knowledge Sector Initiative (KSI), a 15-year Australian funded project to support the knowledge to policy cycle in Indonesia.

Before joining KSI, Fred was Director of Evaluation at the International Development Research Centre in Canada, where he worked from 1993-2013.

Current Work & Expertise

Fred's current work includes research on the use of agricultural research evidence at the national level in Africa, evaluating implementation research, exploring the implications of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in middle income countries, and integrating learning and evaluative thinking more effectively into organizations.

Fred serves on the Board of the Partnership for Economic Policy and is an Advisor to the Doing Research project of the Global Development Network. He sits on the editorial boards of the American Journal of Evaluation, the Journal of Evidence and Policy, and New Directions for Evaluation.

Education & Background

Fred holds a PhD from the University of Montreal (1990) and a Fellowship in Sustainability Science at Harvard (2008). He lives in Ottawa, Canada.