When Numbers Fall Short: Capturing Impact through Story

In 2021, WeRobotics in collaboration with seven Flying Labs embarked on a three-year-long journey to inspire youth, especially those in remote and underserved communities, to pursue STEM education and careers. This was the Fly for the Future program, and we are excited to introduce its impact report based on our experience implementing the "Most Significant Change" story-based evaluation technique. 

Each of the seven Flying Labs that implemented the program is shaped by their distinct contexts and priorities. And it is this diversity that led us to question what we mean when we talk about measuring impact. Any initiative that runs in multiple countries that speak different languages and stand on different cultures has to contend with what is lost when we paint with broad brushstrokes. Data collection methods such as surveys and questionnaires failed to capture the vibrancy of what we witnessed, experienced, and accomplished in this program. We needed something that could do justice to the uniqueness of every journey. So, we turned to stories, a language as old as humanity itself. 

The “Most Significant Change” (MSC) evaluation method became our guide. This participatory approach allowed us to go beyond numbers, uncovering powerful stories of change that traditional M&E tools might have missed. As the stories unfolded, we learned that impact is most articulate and profound when those affected by our interventions become co-authors of the changemaking narrative. 

In our latest learning report, we share our experience using the MSC evaluation technique to measure the impact of the Fly for the Future program. This methodology gave us invaluable lessons on how participatory storytelling approaches can enrich our understanding of program impacts and provide deeper insights into the lives of those we seek to collaborate with to create change. We hope to inspire other organizations to consider participatory approaches in their evaluations and to adapt tools that center the experiences of those impacted.

This program would not have been possible without the dedication of Ghana, India, Kenya, Morocco, Senegal, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe Flying Labs, who worked tirelessly to implement the initiative in their local communities, and the generous support of Fondation Botnar, whose funding made this journey possible.