Many development projects are influenced by the ecological setting in which they are implemented or the natural resources they draw on. For instance, the right to water is not only about assured access to a certain volume of water but it also includes the idea of safe water i.e. water of a quality that is fit for human use and consumption. In other words, the quality and health of ecological resources are as important as access and control of the resources. However, resources such as the weather, soil, water and vegetation are often taken for granted in the framing and monitoring of development projects. Instead, development professionals need to take an adaptive approach and fine-tune their interventions according to the ecological settings in which they work.

Therefore, this 4‑day residential workshop aims to bridge the knowledge and skill gap in ground-level assessment and monitoring of ecological parameters of natural resources. The workshop will provide a foundational understanding of how to identify the ecological settings in which your project is located, as well as how to monitor certain key variables and use this information to tweak a project. In other words, this workshop will enable participants to integrate ecological considerations into the design and implementation of their development projects. It will focus on simple, low-cost field and lab techniques that can be used for ecological monitoring and the scope for community participation in these activities. 

By the end of this course, participants will be able to:

• Explain how ecological monitoring can add value to development interventions
• Gather baseline data on weather, soil, water and vegetation
• Carry out simple analysis and interpretation of the baseline data

This residential workshop is designed for development professionals who have 2 to 5 years of experience. Those working on holistic development interventions related to conservation of natural resources or sustainable livelihoods, including adaptation to climate change, will find this particularly useful. Candidates must have working knowledge of Excel (how to make tables and graphs) and English; they will need to bring their own laptops.

The workshop will be conducted in English.

Participants will be awarded a certificate of participation if they attend at least three days of the workshop and complete all three practicums.