** AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** EVALUATION IS A CRITICAL PART OF EFFECTIVE AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND LAND MANAGEMENT, BUT THE NEW SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS (SAS) PROGRAM'S LARGE, TRANSDISCIPLINARY, INNOVATIVE PROJECTS LEAVE TRADITIONAL EVALUATION METRICS INADEQUATE TO MEASURE MEANINGFUL CHANGE. THIS PROJECT WILL DEVELOP A NEW EVALUATION FRAMEWORK FOCUSED ON CORE PRINCIPLES AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION. IN DEVELOPING THIS FRAMEWORK, WE WILL COMPILE TOOLS TO SUPPORT COLLABORATION AND COMMUNICATION, ASSESS THE EMERGING IMPACTS OF THE SAS PROGRAM, AND BUILD EVALUATIVE CAPACITY IN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH, EXTENSION, AND EDUCATION.OUR EVALUATION TEAM AT THE NATURAL RESOURCES INSTITUTE WILL SYNTHESIZE THE KEY OUTCOMES AND ACTIVITIES OF THE SAS PROGRAM THUS FAR AND IDENTIFY AREAS FOR GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT. WE WILL WORK CLOSELY WITH SAS PROJECT LEADERSHIP, EVALUATORS, AND NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE (NIFA) STAFF TO IDENTIFY KEY QUESTIONS ABOUT PROGRAM PROCESSES AND INDICATORS OF TRANSFORMATION. WE WILL DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT AN EVALUATION FRAMEWORK FOCUSED ON SHARED PRINCIPLES THAT CAN ALIGN AND INTEGRATE PROJECT ACTIVITIES WITH PROGRAM PRIORITIES. WE WILL CONDUCT A MULTI-STATE SURVEY TO ASSESS ENGAGEMENT AND INCLUSION OF STAKEHOLDERS ACROSS SAS PROJECTS. OUR COMPREHENSIVE SYNTHESIS WILL IDENTIFY STRATEGIES TO EXPAND PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AND DIRECT THE CREATION OF EVALUATION TOOLS, TRAININGS, AND METHODS ACROSS PROJECTS. THE RESULTING PRINCIPLES-FOCUSED EVALUATION FRAMEWORK AND ITS IMPLEMENTATION WILL PROVIDE A DETAILED PICTURE OF SAS PROGRAM SUCCESSES, PRODUCTS, AND PRIORITIES. ULTIMATELY, THIS PROJECT AIMS TO DEVELOP A ROBUST SET OF EVALUATION APPROACHES TO GUIDE INNOVATION, INCREASE ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY, AND SUPPORT A NATIONWIDE TRANSITION TO MORE REGENERATIVE, SUSTAINABLE AGROECOSYSTEMS.