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Improving Economic Accountability when using Decentralised, Collaborative Approaches to Environmental Decisions

Australia is at the forefront in pursuing decentralised community-based approaches to environmental governance. These approaches recognise the importance of collaboration among key stakeholders in planning and implementing integrated responses to the complex natural resource problems we face. The ‘regional delivery model’ for public funding of on-ground investments in natural resource management (NRM) exemplifies this new approach to governance.

When the regional delivery model was established, economic evaluation was identified as having a key role to play in keeping regional NRM bodies accountable to investors, communities and other stakeholders. However, economists have struggled in developing methods of economic evaluation that are, firstly, consistent with the reasons for adopting this model, and, secondly, feasible to apply given the resourcing constraints and decision timelines faced by regional bodies. The project seeks accordingly to develop and test a cost-effective method of economic evaluation that is consistent with the rationale of the regional delivery model and other collaborative community-based approaches to environmental governance.

A project funded by the Australian Government’s Commonwealth Environmental Research Facilities (CERF) program.

Project bulletins

A series of bulletins will be issued over the three-year term of the project (2008-10) to spread awareness of the project and provide updates on its progress. Bulletins already issued can be downloaded below. Please contact Graham Marshall if you want to be added to the email distribution list for forthcoming bulletins.

  Bulletin no. 1 - About the project, August 2008
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  Bulletin no. 2 - Understanding investment planning processes and issues in three Australian NRM regions, October 2008
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  Bulletin no. 3 - Economics for Accountability in Community-based Environmental Governance, March 2009
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  Bulletin no. 4 - Trialing a method for economic evaluation of asset-focused investments under community-based environmental governance, August 2009
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Publications from project

  Working Paper 1 - Investment Under Regional NRM Delivery: Current processes and issues in three NSW regions
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  Working Paper 2 – Economics for Accountability in Community-based Environmental Governance
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  IRF Occasional Paper 2009/01 – What does 'community' mean for farmer adoption of conservation practices? Some logic and evidence
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Contact: Dr Graham Marshall