Getting what you pay for: the challenge of measuring success in conservation

摘要: Imagine a construction project whose objective is to build bridge. The quality of the resulting bridge might be debated and disputed, but that it has been delivered, responsible for its delivery, usually relatively simple verify. It much more difficult evaluate success where aims deliver something existence costly or technically challenging monitor, status may affected (positively negatively) by range influences have nothing do with project. Conservation interventions seek influence conservation species, improve management an area habitat, change attitudes behaviour population people. All these things are measure in themselves. Importantly, they can also myriad factors external (global commodity prices, national politics law enforcement, shifting social norms) making tease apart on sought after outcome. projects widely criticized past poor evaluation (Saterson et al., 2004; Brooks 2006). In their paper, Howe & Milner-Gulland (2012) look at question what indices appropriate evaluating conservation. follow others distinguishing outputs (the amount delivered project, e.g. number workshops held, papers published posters distributed) outcomes long-term consequences size target species). Outcomes ultimately deliver, very measure. A recent study costs monitoring presence absence variety species concern dry forests Madagascar illustrates challenge directly. Sommerville, Jones (2011) found could robustly detect over time would unrealistically vast majority as cost than budget entire intervention. UK government launched Darwin Initiative Rio summit 1992. Since then, invested £88 million biodiversity 154 countries (DEFRA, 2012). This fantastic programme provided unrivalled opportunity investigate how agreement there was rankings evaluated using different (one based reported outputs, two subjective scoring information about outcomes) also, which explanatory variables best predicted defined indices. Their finding ranking outputs-based indicator well correlated from interesting worthy further exploration. However, authors themselves note, no quantitative, independent data available against various Because so directly, not achieved small timescale funded will always needed. Underlying this approach assumption mechanism links delivery outcomes. often explicit. If assumptions linkages between were explicitly spelt out, both proposals reports, alongside evidence upon based, output measures become valuable assessing success. investigated internal consistency (how assessors score individual same index) possible While high level index, outlier revealing. came similar academic background, while one discipline (pest-management rather conservation), scored quite differently. likely world view plays important role considers bs_bs_banner