www.inffer.org
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www.inffer.org |
Using INFFER to develop and assess projects for "Caring for our Country", the Australian Government program
David J. Pannell and Anna M. Roberts
Note: This document was prepared for the 2009 round of Caring for our Country competitive bids. A new version will be prepared for the 2010 funding round once it is announced.
INFFER is designed to assist natural resource managers and policy makers to achieve highly valued outcomes cost effectively. The Australian Government has nominated INFFER as a "Planning tool" to assist groups developing proposals for the Caring for our Country (CfoC) program (see their Planning your project page).
This page is for people who have been directed to the INFFER web site from the CfoC page, and are wondering what, if anything, to do with INFFER.
First, don't panic! It is not compulsory to use INFFER in developing your project proposal.
However, we hope that you will look carefully at INFFER, because we think it is a tool that will be very helpful to many people who are developing CfoC proposals, especially medium and large projects focusing on specific assets. We have gone to considerable efforts to make INFFER as simple as possible to use, and the approach has been honed through collaboration with around 10 regional NRM bodies.
This page attempts to provide answers to your immediate questions, and get you started on learning about INFFER. It addresses the following questions:
● Why use INFFER for CfoC proposals?
● Which sorts of projects will INFFER help with?
● What information is required?
● What is the output from the process?
Why use INFFER for CfoC proposals?
INFFER provides a very structured and guided approach to pulling together the information you need to apply for CfoC funding. It helps you integrate the information in a way that makes it very clear whether the proposed project will be a cost-effective investment. It will help you assess which of a number of projects you may be considering are likely to be most attractive, from the point of view of cost effectiveness. It will help you make the case that you have considered the cost-effectiveness of your project.
INFFER is highly consistent with the "Project Assessment Criteria" that are specified in the CfoC Business Plan 2009-2010, as shown in the table below.
Caring for our Country assessment criteria How is it dealt with in INFFER? Technical feasibility Assessed explicitly. Delivery mechanisms Policy mechanisms and policy interventions explicitly documented. Their selection is guided by the Public: Private Benefits Framework. Scale and degree of intervention proposed Proposed specific on-ground works documented. Likely degree of adoption Assessed explicitly. Adoption by three potential target audiences is considered: landholders, partner organisations, and the general community (in the sense of political acceptability of the proposal). Alignment to national strategies Involves assessment of asset significance, which includes factors such as alignment with national strategies. Public benefit per dollar Considered using the Public: Private Benefits Framework and the Cost-Effectiveness Index. Value for money Assessed using the Cost-Effectiveness Index. Best available science and collective knowledge Required by INFFER as a whole. Risk Captured and managed in various ways: knowledge gaps documented, probabilities of success specified, influential factors driving cost-effectiveness can be identified, clear goals or targets identified for the project. Engagement with stakeholders and partners The full INFFER process includes community consultation about about asset identification and valuation. Additional aspects would be drawn out in the project proposal, separately from INFFER. Capacity of proponent and partnership Is implicit throughout the INFFER Project Assessment Form, and in the assessed cost effectiveness of the project. Additional aspects would be drawn out in the project proposal, separately from INFFER. Potential to raise community awareness INFFER is focused on assets, rather than on general community awareness, although awareness raising and capacity building can be specified as delivery mechanisms, if they are judged to contribute sufficiently to outcomes.
Which sorts of projects will INFFER help with?
INFFER is an asset-based approach. It is for projects where the aim is to protect or enhance a particular natural resource asset, or group of assets. This is consistent with a large part of what CfoC is seeking.
INFFER is not designed for projects where the activities are not targeted to specific natural resource assets, such as general capacity-building projects, or the indigenous engagement component of CfoC. It is also not specifically designed for assessing projects that consist solely of research, but it could help to make a case for research to fill a crucial knowledge or technology gap, perhaps as part of a larger project that seeks on-ground changes.
For projects in the "Improving Land Management Practices" section of CfoC that are to be assessed using INFFER, the definition of the asset will be a key step. It could be, say, a particular area of agricultural land. Or, if appropriate, it could be defined to encompass an off-site asset, such as a river that is being affected by sediment coming from agricultural land. The latter approach will probably increase the public benefits and cost-effectiveness of the project, two of the assessment criteria for the program.
At this stage, we suggest that INFFER be used for projects with budgets of $500,000 or more. In principle, it will work for smaller projects, but considering the effort required, and our limited capacity to support users in the immediate term, we're suggesting that it is more appropriate to focus its use on medium and large projects for now.
To get maximum value out of INFFER, it is best to come to the process without fixed views on the works, actions and delivery mechanisms that the project will involve. INFFER helps you to develop your thinking about these things, based on what will be required to achieve a specific goal that you specify for the asset. It supports you to think critically about what the project should involve, and puts an emphasis on the internal consistency of the proposal. For example, it asks, will the proposed on-ground works really deliver the goal? Will the proposed delivery mechanisms really deliver the required on-ground works? Will the proposed budget really be sufficient for those delivery mechanisms? The result is a very robust and realistic project proposal.
The core of the assessment process is completion of a Project Assessment Form, which asks you for the required information in a very structured and guided way.
This information is used to drive two tools: (a) the Public: Private Benefits Framework, which gives advice about the delivery mechanisms in cases where the project requires cooperation from private landholders; and (b) the Cost-Effectiveness Index, which helps you assess whether the project is worthwhile, and to compare the cost-effectiveness of different projects.
The information required relates to the key factors that need to be considered when assessing the cost-effectiveness of a natural resource project. You will find that most of the information requirements are just the sorts things you would expect -- common-sense considerations like:
● The significance of the asset
● The threats
● Current or expected future damage to the asset
● The goal for the asset
● The works or management changes required to achieve that goal
● The likely adoption of those management changes in different situations
● The delivery mechanisms to be used
● Costs of the project, and ongoing costs that will be incurred after the current project
The full set of information is laid out in the INFFER Project Assessment Form, which is downloadable from the INFFER home page.
What is the output from the process?
A key outcome from using INFFER is a project design that is internally consistent, realistic and feasible. You end up with an assessment of the cost-effectiveness of the project, and a detailed description of the project itself (why, what, how, when, by who). You also have information about the the feasibility of the project and its likelihood of success.
How will INFFER output feed into your CfoC proposal?
Unfortunately, the 2009 template for CfoC proposals does not provide you with much opportunity to show that you have done an excellent job of addressing the project assessment criteria using INFFER (or any other approach). However, INFFER will help you structure, and provide content, for the brief project description (800 words) that you are required to provide. We suggest that you refer to the results of your use of the Cost-Effectiveness Index and the Public: Private Benefits Framework. We are working with the Australian Government to assist them to develop a better template for 2010.
The person completing the Project Assessment Form needs to have good knowledge of the asset(s) that are the focus of the project, or at least access to people who do. They need to know about existing management actions and projects relating to the asset. They need to be able to engage with other experts with specialist knowledge about the asset and its management, and to capture their advice and interpret it appropriately. They need to be able to handle a range of different types of information (community knowledge, scientific knowledge, economic information). They need to be able to use Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel at a basic level.
Depending on the amount of information available and how accessible it is, our experience is that it usually takes between 1 and 5 person-days to complete a Project Assessment Form. We believe this represents an appropriate level of due diligence in preparing and assessing an application for significant public funding.
The INFFER project team offers a high level of support to our partner NRM organisations. For users with whom we do not have an established partnership, we are willing to respond to questions. Contact details here.
1. From the INFFER home page, read Summary and overview
2. Read Frequently Asked Questions
3. Read the INFFER Pre-Assessment Checklist (to see whether your project/asset is worth putting through the INFFER process)
4. If you decide to proceed, download the INFFER Project Assessment Form. This prompts you for the required information and guides you step by step through the assessment process.