Clare Nolan is Co-Executive Director and co-founder of Engage R+D, a consulting firm that partners with nonprofits and their funders to strengthen learning and strategy in service of equity and systems change. With more than 25 years of experience as an evaluator, strategist, and facilitator, she helps organizations grapple with complexity, cultivate shared learning, and translate insights into action.
With more than 25 years of experience as an evaluator, strategist, and facilitator, Clare is recognized for her thought leadership at the intersection of philanthropy, learning, and strategy. She has designed and led numerous multi-year, multi-stakeholder evaluations focused on early childhood, economic justice, arts and culture, and climate. Her approach emphasizes participatory and equity-driven learning, helping organizations navigate complexity and use evaluation not just to adapt, but to transform systems.
Clare has contributed significantly to the field’s knowledge base, co-authoring articles in The Foundation Review, Stanford Social Innovation Review, and Center for Effective Philanthropy on topics such as strategy resilience, shared learning, governance, and equity-focused evaluation. She also co-authored Evaluation & Learning at Foundations: A Field Guide (2022) and Fostering Participatory Learning in Philanthropy: A Guide for the Curious (2024). She frequently presents at national convenings, including the American Evaluation Association and Grantmakers for Effective Organizations.
Beyond consulting, Clare has played a leadership role in strengthening the broader field of philanthropic evaluation. She co-founded the Funder & Evaluator Affinity Network, which strengthened collaboration among funders and evaluators. In 2022, she helped launch a Community of Practice focused on systems change measurement and learning for foundation learning leaders.
Clare holds a Master of Public Policy from UC Berkeley and a BA in Anthropology from American University. She serves on the board of Nonprofit Quarterly and is a long-time peer reviewer for The Foundation Review.
Disclosure information not submitted.
57: What Should the Field Learn Next? Shaping a Shared Learning Agenda for Systems Change
Friday, November 14, 2025
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM CST