World Bank Group │ What Have We Learned? The Evaluation Podcast

Biodiversity is part of the productive machinery of an economy. Experts from the World Bank, the Global Environment Facility, and IEG discuss evidence on achieving biodiversity-positive growth and translating global commitments into development priorities that recognize nature as essential to thriving economies and jobs.

The World Bank Group has been working to capture the efficiencies offered by Artificial Intelligence, while building institutional foundations to identify and address its inherent risks. The overarching goal is to transfer AI-enabled gains to the countries it works with, in the form of better, faster support and greater accountability. 

In this episode of What Have We Learned?, host Darlene Christopher speaks with Craig Hammer, Manager of the World Bank's Development Data Group and its Global Data Facility, and Estelle Raimondo, Head of Methods at the Independent Evaluation Group and lead author of IEG's AI strategy. They discuss how they have been integrating AI into their workflows, from investing in robust data and building AI skills across staff, to advancing the governance and culture shifts that the responsible use of AI demands.

What does it take for the World Bank Group to truly become a knowledge bank?  

In this episode of What Have We Learned? we explore findings from IEG’s recent evaluation Learning in World Bank Lending, which examines how the World Bank captures, applies, and shares knowledge throughout the project cycle. Host Darlene Christopher is joined by Rasmus Heltberg (IEG), Andrea Kucey (World Bank), and Kristen Fenster (IFC) for a candid conversation on the Bank Group’s strengths, its persistent learning blind spots, and why informal, tacit knowledge often matters just as much as formal lessons.

This episode explores lessons from the World Bank’s support to the blue economy, a widely recognized approach to shift the way we work and think in ocean spaces. Blue economy principles emphasize planning, restorative, and inclusive actions that support the sustainable and equitable management of ocean resources for future generations.

This episode explores how monitoring and evaluation systems enable the World Bank Group to learn from its support for gender equality, assess whether it leads to meaningful change, and decide when to scale up or adjust efforts to maximize impact.