Information for Sustainable Development (ISD) - Brochure

Information for Sustainable Development (ISD)Information is an essential ingredient of sustainabledevelopment. Whether for reducing poverty and con-flict, managing agriculture and forestry, or improvingeducation and health care, robust, reliable data is fundamental. Accessible high-quality informationenables better planning and decision making, as well as the monitoring and evaluation of progress towardprogram objectives. Successful information support systems integrate data from diverse sources, define astrong decision framework, and build local capacity for sustainability.Stone Environmental, Inc. helps local and national governments, investors, and nonprofit organizationsuse information for sustainable development in the following areas:Poverty mapping and country profiles Multiple stakeholder land use analysisNatural resource profilesConflict prediction and prevention Investment targeting, monitoring, and evaluationSystem needs assessment and implementation planningISD PrinciplesOur projects adhere to a set of principles that ensurelong-term success. These include:Building Local Capacity and Support: We bring allstakeholders into the process, including elected offi-cials, ministers, program managers, technicians, andcitizens. Local talent is fully represented in our onsiteteam, and we train skilled nationals to manage theentire system.Creating a Multidimensional Model: We go beyond the“standard” indicators to determine the full range offactors that affect the question under study. We havefound that healthy, long-term development cannot beachieved without information on the social, economic,and environmental building blocks that underpin sus-tainability.Improving Investment Decision Making: We make sureour information systems can answer questions, not justprovide data and overlay maps.Using Credible Measurements: We develop a solidunderstanding of baseline conditions so that it is easyto track progress and change.In Lake Kokorou, Niger, Stone Environmental used a Landsat satellite image, village demographic data, and GIS technology todetermine the poverty vulnerability of a region surrounding a majorwintering site for migratory birds: a eutrophic lake of interest to theGlobal Environment Facility.LakeKokorouVillage population > 5003-4 indicators of poverty5-6 indicators of povertyVillage population < 5003-4 indicators of poverty5-6 indicators of povertyDesigning Open Systems: We recommend solutionswith long-term capacity in mind. Our system designsare adaptable and expandable, and they support inter-operability. The sharing of information internationallyand intranationally is a sine qua non of sustainabledevelopment.A Proven Systematic ApproachOur implementation model for developing countriesincludes the following steps:1. Refinement of project objectives2. Identification and collection of available data3. Assessment of data quality4. Development of analytical methodology5. Compilation and synthesis of data6. Creation of decision support tools7. Dissemination, education, and feedback 8. Transition to local controlWe provide tangible outcomes and deliverables,including:Needs assessment documentationAnalysis and indicator methodologiesInformation systemsAtlasesTraining and workshopsInstitutional evaluationsImplementation plans and budgetsInvestors in African countries, such as Mali, are using ISD as a cost-effective way to predict and monitor poverty.In the Maradi region of Niger, Stone Environmental compared thevillage poverty rankings summarized by canton to the locations ofongoing donor assistance. The cantons with the darkest shadingsare the most vulnerable, and those with diagonal lines are currentrecipients of assistance. According to this analysis, Tibiri is the mostvulnerable canton receiving no assistance—a suitable target forfuture investment. This was the first time such information could be visualized.An Example from Africa In one of the most impoverished areas of the world,donors, investors, and non-governmental organiza-tions are trying to find comprehensive and inexpensiveways to predict poverty vulnerability and to track theimpact of investment dollars. Stone has worked inNiger and Mali to help meet these goals. We developedinnovative techniques for visually displaying indicatorsof living conditions, designed comprehensive plans andbudgets for implementing national poverty informa-tion systems, and used the Internet to communicate theresults of these efforts to the host country and worldcommunity. Our presentations at workshops educatedcountry decision makers and demonstrated how simplesystems can dramatically help in the targeting of invest-ment dollars to the areas with greatest need.For additional information, contact David Healy at802.229.1879 or dhealy@stone-env.com.NigerBP E4169Bamako, MaliTél. / 223 671 14 70Web Site / www.stone-env.com535 Stone Cutters WayMontpelier, Vermont05602 USAPhone / 802.229.4541Fax / 802.229.5417