Australasian Evaluation Society Conference- 'Doing Evaluation Better'

The Australasian Evaluation Society (AES) is a professional organisation for people involved in all aspects of evaluation. The society has an established journal (Evaluation Journal of Australasia) and published ethical guidelines for the conduct of evaluations.1 The conference is conducted annually to disseminate recent research findings, promote advances in theory and practice and provide a forum for networking. The 2007 AES International Conference was held from 3rd to the 7th September at The Sebel, Albert Park in Melbourne. The first two days consisted of facilitated workshops with the main conference program being held over the remaining three days. A total of 358 delegates attended including evaluation practitioners, managers, teachers and students from all levels of government, educational institutions, research agencies, community organisations and businesses. The conference was titled `Doing Evaluation Better ’ and had five major themes; Valuing, Describing, Attributing, Using and Influencing and Managing. Several pre-conference workshops by keynote speakers and other specialists were offered to delegates, including: • Reviewing the evidence: Principles, practice and prospects for realist synthesi