Socio-economic and ecological outcomes are what matter for communities. For governments, evaluating these outcomes is fundamental to good management, and to accountability.

From a change management perspective, evaluations of ecological and socio-economic outcomes give key feedback. These outcomes are the bottom line. Evidence of ongoing socio-economic or ecological problems is the key driver for further change management.

Key considerations for change managers include:

• scope: not missing key changes because we are only looking in a focused way: we need feedbacks that are open and broad (e.g. from professional gut feel, from community concern), as well as from focused scientific investigations;
• relevance: we need to evaluate in ways that enable us to tell whether our changed management practices are in fact making a difference; asking clear questions about how our changes in management will affect socio-economic and ecological outcomes is fundamental to this;
• interest: the suite of measures must include measures that a broad range of stakeholders will resonate with (e.g. measures of the 'ecological health' of an icon place), so that the results provide a platform for futher advocacy for change.

To respond to the wide range of social, economic and ecological outcomes of importance to communities, evaluations need to address multiple issues, at multiple scales and at diverse resolutions in time.

The fundamental issue is measuring performance in ways that support the wellbeing of people, plants and animals, and specifically that support appropriate change. From an organisational change perspective, judgments about how and when to evaluate need to flow, primarily, from the needs of the change processes that you are undertaking. Mandated formal reviews (e.g. State of the Environment reporting) are often excellent opportunities to carry change processes forward.

 

Finding methods of measurement that fit your ecosystem management needs is central. There is a wide range of options to explore. Amongst the possibilities are:

• reviewing catchment management outcomes
• reviewing land use planning practice
• reviewing the outcomes of engineering works
• reviewing implementation of community development and education strategies
• reviewing the effectiveness of programs of ecological investigations.

Diverse kinds of assessments can be helpful in ecosystem management. Assessments of socio-economic and ecological outcomes is a subset of these.

Ways of evaluating ecological and socio-economic outcomes include:

• scientific assessments of ecological dynamics
• rapid assessment techniques
• qualitative assessments of social impacts (e.g. focus groups) and quantitative assessments (e.g. surveys)
• informal professional and community assessments of socio-economic and ecological change.

Key considerations from a quality perspective include:

• asking clear questions (so that data gathered has a clear significance)
• measuring at multiple spatial and temporal resolutions
• tuning your experimental design to the needs of your statistical methods.

From a change management perspective, good design in an evaluation program is about clarity, insight and openness.

Evaluating ecological, social and economic outcomes makes sense because:

• they are the bottom line for (human) communities and for plants and animals, and
• testing the outcomes against plans (and tacit hopes) allows us to reorient ourselves, so we can shape our actions more appropriately.

 

Assessing outcomes of ecosystem management

Adaptive Management.
Evaluation is a key theme in the Adaptive Management tradition.

The use of ecosystem health indicators in evaluating ecological and social outcomes of collaborative approaches to management: the case study of the Diablo Trust (paper)

See also Designing Ecosystem Management Strategies

Ecological assessment

The Ecology section discusses diverse methods of evaluating ecological outcomes.

The Role of Indicators in Integrated Coastal Management (Canada)

• Conference abstracts: useful for scoping the issues
• Workshop report

Socio-economic assessment

Community Based Socio-Economic Assessment (NSW Water Reforms) (pdf)

Socio-economic Assessment Guidelines for NSW River Groundwater and Water Management Committees (pdf)

Research

Towards improving the role of evaluation within natural resource management R&D programmes: the case for 'learning by doing' (paper)
"The increasing use of participatory development approaches in recent years pose new challenges for decision-makers and evaluators. Because these programmes are designed to be responsive to changing community needs, one of the most pressing challenges is to develop participatory and systems-based evaluative processes to allow for ongoing learning, correction, and adjustment by all parties concerned. This paper outlines one such evaluation process, and uses a case study in New Zealand to illustrate its benefits in the light of current issues facing both evaluators and natural resource managers."

Reviewing implementation of ecosystem managment strategies

Reviewing implementation of an ecosystem management strategy is a broader task than assessing ecological and socio-economic outcomes. A wide range of management issues comes into focus. The following papers give perspectives on how reviewing can be done.

Case studies

Audits of Statements of Intent from the NSW Healthy Rivers Commission
The scope of the Statements of Intent is ecosystem wide. The focus is on whether organisations have followed through on their commitments. (Select 'Audit' from the menu bar.)

Waswanipi Cree Model Forest - Phase II: Evaluation Report (Canada)
An evaluation of implementation of an ecosystem management strategy.

Governance

Evaluating governance: a handbook to accompany a participatory process for a protected area (Ramsar Convention on Wetlands)
"Why this handbook? The purpose of this handbook is to assist in a systematic process of designing, conducting and following up a participatory assessment of protected area governance. We use the term governance to describe the processes, operations and relationships that structure the allocation and use of decision-making powers. This guide is for you, whether you are a member of a PA governing body, a PA staff, a member of a community traditional organisation governing a community conserved area, a village leader, a representative of a resource user group, or a conservation or development advocate. It is our hope that the guide will assist you in assessing and improving, if necessary, the governance of the protected area of your concern."