We Need a New Strategy for Wetland Protection

I’m heartbroken that the Supreme Court made the decision they did, but not shocked. This is because the rules used to protect and restore wetlands have always been tenuous.

Kathlene ButlerMay 26, 2023Comment

3 Ways to Optimize Environmental Results by Understanding the Nuances

Program evaluation can help you optimize your work and maximize your results. How does this work? It’s not magic. Optimization work involves looking for ways to make work simultaneously efficient and effective.

Kathlene ButlerFebruary 22, 2023Comment

The Geographic Reason for the Season(s)

Life on Earth is filled with a rejuvenating cycle of colors, sounds, sensations, and the traditions that follow seasons.

Kathlene ButlerDecember 14, 2022Comment

Space and Place in Evaluation: How GIS Illuminates Stories

Geographic information systems (GIS) allow us to view our work and analyses through a spatial lens. But GIS is not just for those who know how to use GIS like me; GIS concepts allow evaluators in any discipline to view subjects and results differently.

Let’s think about GIS through three geographic concepts: scale, proximity, and clustering.

Kathlene ButlerNovember 22, 2022Comment

3 Ways to Navigate Barriers to Environmental Success

No matter how well we plan our environmental work, impediments will arise.

Here are three ways evaluation can help you find the root of impediments to progress. and get you back on track.

Kathlene ButlerSeptember 28, 2022Comment

How program evaluation helps you get better environmental outcomes

You’ve spent time, resources, and, most importantly, heart to get your environmental work going. You’ve trudged through wetlands, knocked on doors, written thousands of letters and comments, planted umpteen hundred seedlings, filed lawsuits, lobbied companies, reduced and recycled and reused until you were out of options.

So what?

Program evaluation can help you identify, explain, and tell stories about results.

Kathlene ButlerJune 8, 2022Comment

Blossoming Needs and a Big Tent in Environmental Evaluation

We need to build the bench of environmental evaluators. The environmental sector needs people who can design a good study, assess behavior changes, and connect them to interventions and environmental outcomes. We need information on what works well and why to maximize our chances of making a positive impact quickly.

Kathlene ButlerApril 20, 2022Comment

We Have to Work Harder to Make Sustainability More Diverse, Inclusive, and Representative

There is a Long Way to Go to Make Sustainability More Inclusive and Representative

Without a diversity of perspectives, the middle of the ESG equation (the “S” for social good) falls completely flat. It is essential to correct the representation problem in corporate sustainability.

Kathlene ButlerMarch 15, 2022Comment

Shoot for Imperfect but Better: Sustainability Observation

Sustainability solutions vary widely in terms of costs and benefits to companies and the planet, and it can seem daunting to a sustainability decision-maker to select one option. What can we do when there are still so many unknowns? Answer: well, at least do SOMETHING.

Kathlene ButlerMarch 1, 2022Comment

How to Stop This Comet.

A movie is so much better when you don’t know what’s coming. In life, success is made from anticipating what’s coming correctly and meeting the moment.

Kathlene ButlerJanuary 12, 2022Comment

Axial Tilt: the reason for the season!

As we circle the sun on our cozy spaceship Earth, we are lucky enough to do so at an angle. 23.5 degrees, to be specific. Every December 21st, I save a moment of holiday awe and gratitude for the amazing conditions that make our planet home.

Wishing all of the best to you, your kin family, your friend family, and, especially your pets!

Kathlene ButlerDecember 22, 2021Comment

What rocket science, environmental results, and 38 Special have in common

Just like exploring the universe, restoring the planet deserves rigorous study and careful implementation.

Luckily for us, unlike the vacuum of space, the Earth is forgiving. We just need to keep working on getting it right.

Kathlene ButlerNovember 22, 2021Comment

Spread Ideas that Work

Carolyn Copper produces and hosts a podcast that gives listeners a glimpse into her photography and wildlife work and showcases her continued commitment to environmental conservation and protection. She generously asked me to participate in the November 1, 2021 edition. We talked about the meaning of “geoliterate” and how my work at the EPA influenced where I’m heading now.

Kathlene ButlerNovember 4, 2021Comment