Remediation recommendations

Workshop design & outcomes

2012-10-29T12:04:47Z

Workshop design

An initial workshop design was presented at the 2010 DESIRE Plenary Meeting in China for feedback from study sites, and was significantly amended in response to this feedback, to ensure that workshops were flexible enough to work effectively across the full range of project contexts, whilst providing standardised responses for comparison between sites.

In particular, the idea of a single workshop with separate (but interlinked) sessions for both local stakeholders and national policymakers was deemed infeasible by most study site teams. Workshops were therefore designed in most study sites for local/regional stakeholders, and feedback was sought from national policymakers in separate workshops or individual interviews (many of these are ongoing).

To assist study site teams in planning the workshop, a flowchart decision aid and a Frequently Asked Questions list was developed. Preparation for workshops proceeded as follows:

Update stakeholder analysis, from which an invitation list can be extracted – these lists were checked by the WB5 team to ensure a good balance between different types of stakeholder
Develop facilitation plan and agenda for the workshop, assign the facilitator, book the venue and invite participants so as to achieve an appropriate balance between (local) stakeholders identified in step 1
Run the local stakeholder workshop based on the workshop format in Appendix 1, discussing any changes deemed necessary with the WB5 team
Conduct interviews/meetings with representative members of the national policymaker stakeholder community identified in the updated stakeholder analysis (policy messages were discussed in the DESIRE Plenary Meeting in Almeria in October 2011 to assist with this)
Send workshop report to participants and to WB5 (template provided)

All workshops followed the same generic format:

Brief presentation to introduce the DESIRE project
Presentation of WB4 trial results
Presentation of WB5 model outputs
Workshop 1: Multi-criteria evaluation of remediation options at study site scale
Workshop 2: how could we facilitate the adoption of the priority remediation options that have emerged at the study site scale?
Workshop/project evaluation
Next steps

Workshop Outcomes

A total of 15 workshops were held between July and November 2011. The only site that did not hold a workshop was the Italian site, due to long-running difficulties with stakeholder engagement there. In Portugal, one workshop was held with participants from both study areas. On average, workshops consisted of 27 participants (range: 8-60), and included a wide range of (mainly local and regional) stakeholders representing different interests.

Feedback from stakeholders about the workshops was generally very positive with participants in all sites saying that they appreciated receiving feedback from field trials and models (Table 1)

»show Table 1

Table 1: Feedback from participants about the final DESIRE workshop

Theme	Example comments	Number of sites making the comment
An opportunity to express views	An excellent opportunity to make their views known regarding the national program of soil conservation and the way they think It was a very good opportunity to debate frankly key issues relevant to the management of the natural resources in the region	3
Helped participants prepare for the future	Farmers especially welcomed the team’s approach to determining future steps through discussion with them	2
An opportunity to learn about the DESIRE research	An opportunity to know the results of the project that they were part of You see simple and feasible solutions	2
Learn from and become more tolerant of each other’s views	Learn from participatory projects; tolerance between the different sectors (stakeholders)	1
An opportunity to connect with people and institutions	Workshops helped them to identify and connect with the institutions and the people who are working with them	1
Clear objectives	“The objective was very clear”	1

Feedback about the overall DESIRE process was also very positive, with positive feedback focussing on the participatory and inclusive approach to the work (Table 2).

»show Table 2

Table 2: Feedback from participants about the overall DESIRE project summarised from workshop reports (feedback in the words of workshop participants is given in quotation marks)

Theme	Example comments	Number of sites making the comment
Benefits of a participatory approach	The participatory approach gave each group of stakeholders the opportunity to be part of the project and share responsibility for the success of the selected technology As workshops were open to anyone, the workshops helped to give more transparency to the actions and decisions that arose from the process Being involved in the project from the beginning Being able to assess the technologies “will greatly facilitate the extension of the results” Farmers were very enthusiastic about the undertaken actions Technicians/engineers appreciated the participatory approach more than farmers in one site It is the best way to include all sectors, empathizing with others and getting better understanding of the other peoples opinion “It facilitates participants to express their opinion” “The possibility to start a debate over different subjects and that all opinions are valid, independent of from who it originates”	8
Poor stakeholder representation	The only real problem was the difficulty of including some other institutions other than those that typically attended workshops as part of the DESIRE process. Although the project team interacted with these other organisations, it would have been better to have them present more often during the land-user workshops Participants agreed that a higher participation of farmers is required and that to achieve this, a different approach may be needed with meetings outside in the field and only for maximum half a day Field work prevented farmers from attending some of the planned meetings Only one farmer was present at the final workshop in one study site More participation of farmers is needed, which requires new strategies for participation More participation of general public (people who do not work in the field) is needed	5
Learning from each other	Participants indicated they learned a lot from each other, from discussions and from the results of field trials. The interactive approach of workshops was considered effective to achieve interaction between participants, and was highly valued Learning from other study sites via the HIS “The DESIRE project has been good. It brought knowledge that we can pass on to younger generations” “Very enriching, mutual learning” “The DESIRE approach] promotes participation, collaboration and helps to better understand” “Exchange of experiences and generates ideas”	4
Contribution to policy	“The objectives of the DESIRE project fit in the goals of UNCCD and the positive results should be applied to other watersheds...” The results of the DESIRE project have been important for a number of programs and actions linked to the Government’s Secretariat of the Environment and Natural Resources. A number of proposals have already been accepted, while others are still under development	3
Time-consuming	All participants agreed that the inclusive nature of the DESIRE project was particularly useful, although it was time-consuming	2
Concerns about follow-up	Lack of funding for some remediation strategies and future research in the area Want to continue meeting in such events in future	2
Making connections	Highly encouraged the synergies between all the partners: research, development, policy, regional and international cooperation “[The project] integrated different stakeholder groups (farmers, administration, scientists)”	2
Attitudinal change	“The project changed the attitude of land users regarding the use of natural resources”	1
Lack of trust in research findings	“The engineers didn’t appreciate a lot the research protocol and were suspicious with some of the results”	1
Innovation	“Very tangible results were provided over solutions that are innovative”	1
Learning between researchers and stakeholders	“You learn and value other measures” “I learned that the mulch type as applied in this project did not give the expected results” “It combines the opinion of scientists and farmers” “I think this is the best available method to facilitate the active participation between scientists and administration”	1
Information overload	“Too much information to deal with”	1

A survey of study site teams at the Spanish DESIRE Plenary Meeting in October 2011 found that 54% of study site teams believed that stakeholders were more positive about most technologies after hearing the findings from field trials and models, and 31% were ambiguous about stakeholder responses (either due to a mix of responses or because it was difficult to tell if perceptions of technologies had changed in response to hearing findings). In some cases, remediation strategies were deselected in response to research findings, for example if model results showed that a technology was unlikely to be cost-effective for most land users, or if field trials showed that proposed remediation strategies were not as effective as stakeholders had initially believed (and in some cases counter-productive).

Table 3 shows how the process of trialling and modelling remediation strategies clearly influenced stakeholder priorities, leading to a priority list of remediation strategies for dissemination at a regional scale, by extenionists or other regional government representatives/agencies.

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Table 3: Remediation options in priority order, as ranked by stakeholders during WB3 workshops (prior to field trials and modelling) and during final workshops (after being presented with results from field trials and models). For detailed descriptions of technologies, see »More details ... evaluation of model results and remediation recommendations for each study site

Study Site	Priority order pre-results	Priority order post-results	Comments
Cape Verde	Small barrage/dam Water harvesting Afforestation Contour stone walls Vegetative barriers	Vegetative bunds on steep rainfed arable fields, and vegetation spread across non-sloping fields	Only afforestation and vegetative barriers were evaluated in WB4/5. Vegetative barriers were significantly adapted in response to field trial results.
Mexico	Agronomical strategies Wood saver ovens Run-off control in gullies	Agave forestry sustainable plantations with native plants = Wood saver ovens Agronomical strategies Spatially targeted run-off control in gullies	Agave plantations emerged as a new option during field trials.
Spain	Traditional water harvesting (Boquera) Reduced tillage in Cereal and Almond fields Organic mulch to reduce water losses Green manure in Almonds orchards	Green manure in Almonds orchards Reduced tillage in Cereal and Almond fields Traditional water harvesting (Boquera) Organic mulch to reduce water losses
Turkey (Karapinar)	No-till technology Pressurized irrigation Drought-resistant crops	Fallow with stubble farming Fallow without stubble farming Minimum tillage	No-tillage was adapted as minimum tillage for field trials, and stubble farming was added to field trials after the WB3 workshop.
Turkey (Eskişehir)	Planted soil bunds Stone bunds Fanya juu terraces	Wooden fences with soil bund Contour tillage	Vegetation and stones were replaced by fencing on soil bunds for field trials. Contour tillage was discussed but not ranked during the WB3 workshop.
Chile	No tillage with subsoiling Agroforestry systems Crop rotation with legumes	No tillage with subsoiling Crop rotation with legumes Agroforestry systems
China	Check dams Reforestation Terraces	Check dams Reforestation Terraces
Portugal (Mação and Góis)	Primary Strip Network System for Fuel Management Prescribed Fire	Primary Strip Network System for Fuel Management Prescribed Fire
Tunisia	Tabia and jessour Flood spreading & recharge units Supplement irrigation Stone ridges =Cisterns Range resting Medicinal herbal and aromatic plants	Flood spreading & recharge units = Supplement irrigation Medicinal herbal and aromatic plants = Cisterns
Greece (Nestos)	Fresh water transport	Fresh water transport
Greece (Crete)	Messara area: Sustainable grazing Chania area: No tillage Pesticides Tillage	Sustainable grazing	The team worked in two areas – one prioritised no-tillage and the other sustainable grazing. The majority of workshop participants came from the location that had prioritised sustainable grazing, and so no-tillage was not explicitly evaluated during the workshop.
Morocco	The improved system based on cereal cropping with rotation, plus grass strips The improved system based on grazing and cereal cropping with control of the gullies The cereal/leguminous system mixed with olive trees and runoff water harvesting	Cereal/leguminous system mixed with olive trees, figs trees; cactus opuntia and runoff water harvesting, in order to improve the production and restore the lands fertility Protection of existing grazing lands, forests and former cultivated areas Improved system based on grazing and cereal cropping with control of the gullies
Botswana	Game ranching Biogas production Rainwater harvesting Solar cookers	Biogas production	Biogas production was the only remediation strategy that was trialled in this study site
Russia (Novy)	Precision irrigation of forage instead of overhead sprinkler irrigation (which uses excessive amounts of water) Drip irrigation Reducing of the infiltration losses from water supply channels	Precision irrigation Drip irrigation Impermeability of irrigation channels Drainage of irrigated agricultural fields Phytoreclamation of soil secondary salinity at agricultural fields
Russia (Dzhanibek)	Grazing land management by rotation introducing Drip irrigation Forest, apple tree plantation or shrub belt planting Contour planting and gully control	Drip irrigation Impermeability of the bed of water storage capacities

However, rather than simply using these research findings to prioritise remediation strategies, Table 4 shows how the workshop process provided invaluable local knowledge about how best to promote each of these strategies to optimise adoption rates. This builds on evidence from WOCAT that developing “approaches” to soil and water conservation, that may include changes in policy or incentives for example, is as important as the technologies themselves (Schwilch et al., 2009).

Table 4 shows the wide range of suggestions made during workshops to help facilitate the adoption of different technologies. These include, for example: the need to adapt technologies to make them relevant in different contexts or for different farmer goals; policy recommendations to create a more favourable economic context for adoption; financial incentives, and a variety of approaches to communication.It may be difficult to do much to change the preferences and constraints of the land users that remediation strategies are targeted at, the cost of adopting a remediation strategy, or to alter the policy or economic climate in which remediation strategies are promoted. However, where remediation strategies are deemed applicable and cost-effective across a wide enough area, the workshop findings suggest that there are a number of key ways in which uptake could be enhanced. For example: there may be ways that remediation strategies can be adapted, packaged or communicated that could enhance their uptake; or key individuals or institutions may be able to play an important role in spreading knowledge and changing attitudes, ultimately leading to more widespread adoption decisions.

»show Table 4

Table 4: Factors identified by workshop participants that could enhance the adoption of remediation strategies prioritised in the final DESIRE workshop. For detailed discussion of factors that could enable further uptake, see workshop reports in see »More details ... evaluation of model results and remediation recommendations for each study site.

Study Site	Priority Remediation Strategies	Summary of key enablers
Cape Verde	Vegetative barriers/cover	Target the technology to specific types of land Secure funding from NGOs and municipality Build the capacity of farmers and provide technical assistance Promote adoption of the proposed strategy via specific existing national and international policies Use drought resistant species in more arid areas or target at irrigated land
Mexico	Agave forestry sustainable plantations with native plants Wood saver ovens Agronomical strategies Spatially targeted run-off control in gullies	Establish and maintain long-term working relationships with local and regional stakeholders, including Government Ministries and agencies Adapt remediation strategies to fit in with ongoing Government initiatives Spatially target the adoption of remediation strategies that do not work everywhere Investigate funding and legal aspects of technologies in addition to their technical feasibility Consider the potential for unintended consequences of promising technologies (e.g. wood burning stoves displacing gas burning stoves and so increasing demand for wood)
Spain	Green manure in Almonds orchards Reduced tillage in Cereal and Almond fields Traditional water harvesting (Boquera) Organic mulch to reduce water losses	Training: a) of technical representatives at farmers organizations , and b) at high-schools and universities to create awareness and put environmental sustainability higher on the agenda. Demonstration activities in the field and development of a network of demonstration and experimental farms throughout the region Better cooperation and collaboration between different institutes (i.e. researchers, administration and farmers organisations) Economic support for implementation of SLM measures Lobby and convince responsible policy makers Put higher economic and social value on products that are produced in a sustainable manner Link payment of agricultural subsidies to implementation of effective SLM measures More dissemination and publicity for SLM measures through newsletters and websites
Turkey (Karapinar)	Fallow with stubble farming Fallow without stubble farming Minimum tillage	Communicate results of field trials and models as widely as possible via brochures and meetings Articles in newspapers and specialist press
Turkey (Eskişehir)	Wooden fences with soil bund Contour tillage	Communicate likely future challenges relating to ground water availability and wind erosion to raise awareness of the need to adopt more sustainable approaches to land management e.g. through newspapers, brochures and meetings
Chile	No tillage with subsoiling Crop rotation with legumes Agroforestry systems	Provide economic incentives for the adoption of sustainable practices via Government programmes Use participatory approaches that take the context and goals of farmers into account, when disseminate results Facilitate local leadership and long-term coordination between local institutions Training for technicians to support the adoption of the technologies Further evaluate the economic and social impact of the soil conservation practices
China	Check dams Reforestation Terraces	Communicate both environmental and economic benefits as widely as possible Work with existing schemes where possible
Portugal	Primary Strip Network System for Fuel Management Prescribed Fire	Reformulate legislation and simplify bureaucracy Promote association membership and then promote remediation strategies through associations Provide economic incentives Create demonstration sites Raise awareness of the benefits of prescribed fire among rural populations
Tunisia	Flood spreading & recharge units Supplement irrigation Medicinal herbal and aromatic plants Cisterns	Consolidate synergies between research programs and development projects Maintain traditional techniques and local know-how in the management of natural resources while introducing improvements where it is relevant Integrate remediation strategies into regional and national action plans for combating desertification and climate change
Greece (Nestos)	Fresh water transport	Promote via local agricultural unions and the Regional Department of Water Management Local press and debates in local coffee shops Change local water policy (to permit water transport >500 m)
Greece (Crete)	Sustainable grazing	Change in EU subsidies to incentivise destocking
Morocco	Cereal/leguminous system mixed with olive trees, figs trees; cactus opuntia and runoff water harvesting, in order to improve the production and restore the lands fertility Protection of existing grazing lands, forests and former cultivated areas Improved system based on grazing and cereal cropping with control of the gullies	Ensure remediation techniques are profitable and have a real effect on farmer incomes The selected actions must be simple and easy to reproduce, in order to facilitate their adoption by other farmers Better coordination betwee Government departments working on agriculture and forests Financial incentives to exclude grazing and plant fodder shrubs, to prevent soil erosion and stabilize gullies
Botswana	Biogas production	Education, awareness and information dissemination Demonstration in the context of development projects Financial assistance Conservation initiatives (development)
Russia (Novy)	Precision irrigation Drip irrigation Impermeability of irrigation cabals Drainage of irrigated agricultural fields Phytoreclamation of soil secondary salinity at agricultural fields	Financial incentives Develop human resources and capacity to use new technologies Develop relevant technical infrastructure
Russia (Dzhanibek)	Drip irrigation Impermeability of the bed of water storage capacities	Communicate benefits via mass media, including economic and health benefits as well as environmental benefits

Rather than simply presenting research findings to decision-makers, as per the technology transfer paradigm, the DESIRE process was designed to facilitate knowledge exchange and joint ownership of findings. At best, the technology transfer paradigm is an inefficient approach to spreading knowledge of new remediation options, with those who receive the information potentially not engaging with it or questioning its validity or relevance. At worst, a one-way transfer of knowledge can lead to the development of technologies that are not adapted to the local context, leading to low adoption rates and/or unintended consequences. In contrast to this, the DESIRE approach puts local and scientific knowledge on an equal footing, giving stakeholders ownership of the research process via their involvement from the initial stages, through selection and trialling of remediation strategies, to the final decisions about priority remediation strategies for dissemination via extension services at a regional or wider spatial scale. Modelling studies in particular have been widely criticised for creating a “black box” where it is impossible for stakeholders to identify or question the assumptions of the model builder, leading to a lack of trust in the final output (Prell et al., 2007). Being able to question findings from trials and models during the final workshop enabled stakeholders in the DESIRE process to open this “black box”, so that evidence based on field trial results and model outputs could be weighted appropriately in their final prioritisation. This resulted in a level of stakeholder trust and satisfaction in the research findings that is unusual in model-based studies, as evidenced by the generally positive feedback from workshop participants re: the contribution that research findings made to their knowledge (see see »More details ... evaluation of model results and remediation recommendations for each study site).

Workshop and interview formats

2012-11-13T12:27:45Z

The following guidelines were prepared for use in all study sites for the final workshop, in which experimental and modelling results and remediation recommendations were reviewed with the stakeholders.

1. Workshop Format

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Duration:

Local stakeholder workshops will take one day

Summary:

The workshops will combine presentations of results with participatory methods to engage participants in evaluating trial results and model outputs, and formulating recommendations for policy and practice. As such, they represent an opportunity to both disseminate findings and collect new information on model output evaluation and policy recommendations. The workshop will focus on:

Sharing and evaluating results from WB4 trials of remediation options that were prioritised during the previous WB3 workshop
Sharing and evaluating results from WB5 models which show how the remediation options can be applied throughout the local area, taking into account the physical limitations and socio-economic assessment criteria
Selecting and/or prioritising remediation options for wider dissemination/application and making lists of recommendations relevant to stakeholders at local, up to national scales, that can facilitate their widespread adoption

Checklist:
The following inputs and materials need to be prepared before the workshop can be conducted:

Presentation of the DESIRE project
Presentation of WB4 trial results
Presentation of WB5 model outputs
Overview of criteria used in WB3
Computer(s) with Facilitator software installed
Flip-chart, tape, markers (overhead projector pens), post-it notes, sticky dots

Structure during the day [with indicative timing of elements between brackets]:

1.	Brief presentation to introduce the DESIRE project [09:30] (there may be new participants present and for those who have engaged with the project previously, a re-cap will be useful context): this should include a general overview of the project, a summary of results from WB1-WB3, focussing in particular on a) the state of land degradation and conservation efforts in the study area (WB1); b) assessment of land degradation according to indicators (WB2); and c) the reasons why remediation options were chosen for trial (explaining the criteria that were chosen by WB3 workshop participants and the results of the multi-criteria evaluation that was done then)
2.	Presentation of WB4 trial results [09:45] (presentation to be compiled in advance by study site teams) Either: a) study site teams include a pre-evaluation based on stakeholder opinion of those engaged in monitoring; or b) allow time for stakeholders who were involved in monitoring to express their experience and opinions.
3.	Presentation of WB5 model outputs [10:05] showing which remediation options are most applicable and most likely to be adopted where, across each study site. These will be pre-prepared as Powerpoint slides by the WB5 team (which can be printed as posters where projection equipment is not available). Model outputs will include analyses of feasibility vs. spatial assessment of desertification risk (WB2). Furthermore, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach, outputs will be focussed according to priorities expressed by stakeholders in their selection of criteria for Multi-Criteria Evaluation in WB3 (e.g. showing which remediation options would be most likely to be adopted by the poorest in the community (e.g. with no need for up-front costs) in Botswana where poverty alleviation was an important criteria expressed in WB3, rather than focussing on which options would most likely maximise farmer profits, as prioritised in other sites like Spain)
4.	Workshop: Multi-criteria evaluation of remediation options at study site scale [10:20]
	a.	Revisit criteria used in WB3 – do we need to add new criteria (or drop certain criteria that are no longer deemed relevant) in light of what’s been learned so far today, and to ensure we can evaluate remediation options at a study site scale? For example, there may be criteria used in the model and presented in maps in the previous presentation that were not considered during WB3, which participants may want to include in the decision-making process [25 min].
	b.	In light of WB4 and 5 findings, do a Multi-criteria evaluation using revised criteria, to prioritise which remediation options (tested in WB4 and/or modelled in WB5) are most relevant for dissemination across the study site:
		i.	Using the Facilitator software (used in WB3 workshops – see WB3 training manual for instructions), enter relevant criteria and remediation options. In sites where only one option has been trialled and/or modelled, this should still be done, as a structured way of enabling everyone to evaluate the benefits/drawbacks of the technology. For study sites with a larger number of technologies to consider, it could be worthwhile splitting the stakeholder group to make separate evaluations along such lines as arable crops vs. tree crops, flatland vs. sloping land, livestock vs. cropping, etc. – whichever is a major distinction locally affecting applicability of selected technologies. Splitting the group is not advisable if this leads to low numbers of participants [45 min].
		ii.	Participants evaluate each option by each criterion individually, and group results are displayed, ranking the most popular remediation options and showing why these were deemed most relevant for dissemination (see instructions in WB3 manual for details of how to do this) [45 min] – inputting scores and deriving results from the facilitator software may take some time, so you may need to break for lunch at this point, and discuss the outputs (next step) immediately after lunch
		iii.	[This may need to be done immediately after lunch] Discuss the ranked list that emerges from the Facilitator software. Should all remediation options be disseminated, prioritising certain options? Or should some options not be further disseminated (the cut off point at which options are dropped can only be decided through discussion). Or should certain options that appear to be ranked lower than others only be promoted to certain groups in certain areas? This will result in a list of priority remediation options that excludes any options deemed inappropriate for further dissemination [45 min]. Note that two specific situations may occur (a flowchart decision aid tool is available to verify these):
			-	In some study sites, multiple (or all!) trialled remediation options may be prioritised for dissemination – in this case, the important information from this analysis is understanding why different options have been prioritised, so that this can inform the development of strategies to promote these options (see step 5 below).
			-	If none of the remediation options that were trialled and modelled are deemed appropriate for dissemination, the following workshop (step 5) should be replaced by a session which focuses instead on the reasons why they were not deemed appropriate, in order to: i) identify ways that remediation options could be adapted to make them more acceptable/effective; and/or ii) identify alternative remediation options that are less likely to have the problems associated with the options that were trialled and modelled. Potentially, stakeholders are not convinced by scientific results (e.g. trials of insufficient length) – this is another direction that the discussion might take.
5.	Workshop: how could we facilitate the adoption of the priority remediation options that have emerged at the study site scale? [14:00] This may be done very simply using a “meta-plan” followed by a “sticky dot prioritisation” (in study sites where people are largely illiterate or don’t feel comfortable writing other techniques may be substituted for this – see Section 5 below). An important element of the technique proposed here is to ensure that all participants have their say in a transparent and fair way, and to enable this to happen in a limited amount of time (just discussing this question will take much longer, and may lead to dominant characters biasing results):
	a.	Stick at least 4 sheets of flip-chart paper together on the wall (use more if you have a large group to provide plenty of room), and write the question you want people to answer at the top of the paper e.g. “How could we facilitate the adoption of the priority remediation options we’ve identified?” (ideally in less technical language!). Note that facilitating adoption is about taking advantage of opportunities, i.e. eliminating threats. Hence this workshop will give important information on the constraints and opportunities perceived by stakeholders [10 min]
	b.	Give all participants 3-5 post-it notes (for small groups 10-15, give people 4 or 5 each, but if group is over 20, only give out 3 each)
	c.	Give all participants an Over Head Projector (OHP) pen (something that’s bold enough to be seen from a distance, but fine enough to enable people to write something meaningful in such a small space)
	d.	Ask participants to answer the question on the wall, including only one point per post-it in as few words as possible, making their writing large enough to be read from a distance. They can write up to the maximum number of post-its you gave them (3-5 post-its) but don’t have to fill all their post-its [15 min]
	e.	As people finish writing their points, ask them to come and stick them on the wall, putting different points in different places, first looking at what else has been written, and putting their points next to points that are similar. Emphasise that people can discuss with each other as they come to the wall, and can move each other’s points around if they want [30 min]
	f.	Go through each of the groups of post-its that emerge in turn, suggesting what theme the post-its represent (e.g. “all these post-its are talking about different ways of subsidising remediation options”), reading out a sample of the post-its in the group, and checking if the group agrees with the way you’ve summarised the points. Be prepared to split the group up or put it with another group of post-its, if participants think this is necessary. Then circle each group of post-its in turn, writing in large letters the title/theme of the group. The themes thus evolved together constitute the “meta-plan” [20 min]
	g.	Finally, give everyone 10 sticky dots (available from any stationer – or just tell people to put crosses next to each idea but warn them to keep count and not use more than 10 crosses) – it is important that everyone has the same number of dots. Ask them to stick their dots next to the groups of ideas they like best (for whatever reason) – they can stick as many as they like next to any point (if they only think there’s one good idea, they can put all 10 next to one group of post-its). This final part of the exercise can potentially be done over a coffee break [20 min]
	h.	Count up the sticky dots (or crosses) and rank the ideas [10 min]
	i.	If there is time, you can then facilitate a discussion about the advantages and disadvantages, and practical steps that can be taken for the top ranked ideas, to make them happen in practice [45 min]
6.	Workshop evaluation [16:30]: Take a moment to evaluate the workshop in order to get feedback on the process used and the participants’ opinion on the importance of the project’s results.
	a.	Evaluation of the role scientific results from the project have played to arrive at individual evaluations by stakeholders on each criterion (step 4b – ii). Write each criterion on top of a sheet of flip-chart paper. Draw a table with three rows below it and write respectively ‘no’, ‘little’ and ‘much’ in them. Ask the participants to walk around and put one sticky dot (or cross) per sheet to characterise how much the scientific results from the project have influenced their evaluation of the remediation options.
	b.	Facilitate a round of open comments on what people thought about the workshop and the rest of the DESIRE process over the last 4 years (all WBs). The comments/remarks may generate a rich qualitative feedback (nice quotes).
7.	Next steps [16:50]: Before finishing the workshop, explain what the next steps will be – at minimum, this will involve them all receiving a workshop report specifically targeted to local stakeholders. This should include contact details for participants (with their permission) or external parties that can be contacted by people requiring advice on how to adopt/implement any of the technologies discussed. A number of other actions are likely to have emerged during the workshop, which should be documented, and people should be assigned to these actions with deadlines. One of these actions should be a clear dissemination (product) of the most promising strategies; when we want the most promising strategie(s) to be implemented and the word spread around in the area, clear guidelines should be issued on how to implement measures and how to manage implemented measures. This could be done in the form of a brochure in the language for farmers. We must prevent that the stakeholders (especially farmers) involved, having invested a lot of their precious time, end up with the feeling: ‘and now what?’. Farmers and landowners are the most important group here, in the sense they are the people who have to implement strategies on their land. They should get the feeling that an optimized end product has been produced, that can really be used in practice.

2. Interview format

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Duration:

Allow for a minimum of two hours.

Summary:

The interviews with at least three representative district and national level members of the policy community, will focus on:

Sharing and evaluating the results of the local stakeholder workshop (above)
Sharing and evaluating WB5 model outputs showing the likely effects of a range of policy scenarios (this may be done before the results of the first session are shared, if this is deemed a more logical order by study sites)
Discussing how priority remediation options could be disseminated and promoted at district and/or national scales, using WB5 policy scenarios as a starting point

Checklist:

Schedule an individual meeting with at least three different key policy stakeholders: identify the key policy stakeholders from the stakeholder analysis (after having received feedback from the WB5 coordination team). If appropriate, ask them to organize a lunch-time seminar internal to their institution in which you will present the findings from the local stakeholder workshop and policy scenarios, including an interactive discussion element.
Pre-workshop stakeholder information: time available during an interview is likely to be limited. A folder with brief information about the DESIRE project, the context of the interview and results of the local stakeholder workshop could be sent out together with the invitation to participate in an interview, serving both to raise interest and to inform participants beforehand.
Presentation of results from the local stakeholder workshop and WB5 policy scenarios: a brief presentation introducing the framework within which the local stakeholder workshop was operated and what conclusions were drawn, and the regional effects of policy scenarios, prioritised where possible in relation to information from WB1.

Structure of the interview:

Brief presentation of the results of the local stakeholder workshop and WB5 policy scenarios [30 min]. The presentation should finish with the results from step 5 of the Workshop format: a preferred list of strategies to facilitate adoption of prioritised remediation technologies.
Allow questions and discussion [15 min], to be recorded and differences of opinion noted. Keep this reasonably short, as you want to get structured views of policy makers on what they suggest should be the strategy (d)
Ask the question: “How could we facilitate the adoption of the priority remediation options from the previous session at a study site and up to a national scale?” [5 min] Revisit the preferred list of strategies from the local stakeholder workshop and WB5 policy scenarios simulating their regional effects, and invite the audience (individual or group) to add elements as the audience represents the same stakeholder, equal individual presentation is not an issue but if differences of opinion exist between them this should be recorded)
Ask the audience to distribute 10 points over the list of suggested strategies [10 min]
Follow up with discussion [45 min] what the advantages and disadvantages are of the top-ranked ideas, and what policy actions need to be taken, how feasible that is, and what their role is in ensuring long-term adoption of the research results (cf. Workshop format, 5i)
Next steps [15 min]: Before finishing the meeting, explain what the next steps will be – at minimum, this will involve your promise to send your host a policy brief after you have taken into account the comments of various policy level stakeholders. A number of other actions are likely to have emerged during the meeting, which should be documented, and people should be assigned to these actions with deadlines.

3. Alternative set-ups for the Local Stakeholder Workshop

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The following is a list of considerations for which a Flowchart is available to aid planning the workshop. Two phases are distinguished: i) considerations while preparing the workshop; and ii) considerations emerging during the workshop. The Flowchart itself is a digital attachment to this guide (Powerpoint file); Appendix C includes a form to keep track of Flowchart recommendations for planning.

Considerations while preparing the workshop:
Size of the study site:

Some study sites may be too large for local stakeholders (or an important group of local stakeholders such as individual farmers) to have an overview of the suitability of different remediation options across the area. Where this is the case, special attention needs to be paid to geographical representation of stakeholders, i.e. to make sure that the participants as a whole are informed about the total area. A section of the flowchart will address this issue.

The flowchart will also guide study sites through questions determining whether the workshop format of step 4 and 5 is culturally or practically appropriate. So far the following alternative set-ups will be supported:

If (some) stakeholders are illiterate; take care to select a good facilitator who can express things clearly and who is sensitive to the information needs of (some) stakeholders. A pre-assessment of remediation options by study site teams with a few stakeholders (e.g. those involved in monitoring) might serve to identify the themes likely to evolve from step 5e and visual aids may be developed prior to the workshop to support stakeholder comprehension. If less than half of the participants are expected to be illiterate (and if it is not embarrassing for individuals), writing up of comments can be done in pairs, or moderated by the facilitator (in this case it is important to give equal attention to all participants). Also go through the other flowcharts to identify if any of the other issues apply to your site.
If it is culturally not acceptable to express individual thoughts in written form, or if in the local culture discussion prevails over the suggested workshop format; a good facilitator is needed who can collect all points (paying equal attention to all) and then prepares the themes of step 5e for sticky dot voting.
If certain stakeholders have difficulties expressing themselves plenary (e.g. women do not speak out in front of men), the facilitator has a decisive role to play! Let (preferably) groups of people (according to type of stakeholder) raise their points, the facilitator first just collects all the ideas (post-its; which in some cases might need reformulation), and then groups the different points (aggregating those belonging together etc) in a plenary discussion (step 5e-f). It will be important to point out where different stakeholders agree, but also where there is disagreement, inconsistencies, contradictions etc.
If sticky dot voting is not well adapted to the local customs; alternative systems which are familiar to stakeholders can be adopted (e.g. scoring using beans as was mentioned for Botswana)
If open sticky dot voting could be problematic for (some) stakeholders; creative alternatives should be plenty, e.g. handing out 10 flat paper fiches to be deposited in closed boxes representing the various options by each participant, or a A4 paper with the options listed in table form with boxes to write any combination of numbers summing up to 10 privately (and to be deposited anonymously in a box if required).

Considerations arising during the workshop:

Most of the issues that might arise during the workshop should, based on your knowledge of the area and experience in conducting WB3 workshops, be possible to consider while preparing the workshop. However, should you unexpectedly be confronted with any problems as sketched above on the day itself, re-run through the flowchart to change strategy real-time.
One consideration you cannot plan ahead is what to do when multiple or none of the remediation technologies are evaluated favourably. The flowchart will suggest to focus the discussion following evaluation accordingly, and to replace step 5 with an alternative session if none of the technologies is recommended.