International Development: The help project curriculum

International Development: The help project curriculum Fighting Poverty, Empowering People

What is “International Development”? “What so complicates the study of international development…is that the most commonly adopted meanings (and thus explanations and strategies) do not simply differ; from diagnosis to prescription, they are almost diametric opposites. Development is a standard borne by those who would promote the interests of the affluent and powerful as well as by those who would serve the unaffluent and the unpowerful; by those who would expand the reach of the most-industrialized states and those who would shield the least-modernized from nefarious influences…”

What is Development? …..by those who would stress the virtues of entrepreneurship and individualism and those who would nurture community and collective concerns; by those who would pursue strategies of top-down initiative and decision-making and those who advocate a bottom-up, or grass-roots, approach; and finally, by those who would exploit and maim Mother Nature for the benefit of either business or labor in today’s world, as well as by those who concern themselves with a bountiful and livable environment for future generations.” • Jan Black, 1991

HELP International’s Development Model “Fight poverty, empower people” ….but how? • Understand your purpose • Understand your context • Understand your resources • Act wisely

1) Understand your Purpose DEVELOPMENT = REALIZING ASSETS Q: WHAT IS AN ASSET? A: An asset by definition paysdividends in the future. Q: Great. But really. What is an asset? A: Lots of things can be assets. Consider: - Who owns it? Who owns the benefits from it? - Is it tangible or intangible? - Is it big or small? - Is it permanent, or temporary? - HOW does it create Dividends?

1) Understand your Purpose DEVELOPMENT = REALIZING ASSETS Q: WHY “REALIZING”? A: Verb reflects an active process; A: It also reflects our relationship with our partners—we don’t “donate”, “give”, “create” or “produce” assets, we catalyze the community to capitalize on raw materials to make the asset “real” BUT WAIT….don’t we bring something new to the table? YES! Your skills and resources are unique, and your presence can create change, but that is not enough. You need the community to make your contribution valuable.

1) Understand your purpose INPUTS ASSETS DIVIDENDS Your job is to make this process work. It takes creativity, dedication, and passion. And it is not easy. Some things to remember (we’ll talk more about this later) First, do no harm. Second, Efficiency. Third, sustainability.

2) Understand Your Context YOU… YOUR COMMUNITY… How does them being them and you being you change the way you understand each other?

3) Understand your resources What types of resources do you have? Physical Capital: Money, machines, tools, ropes, mud, sticks, livestock, etc. Human Capital: Labor, knowledge, skills, power & influence, team dynamics, etc. Intangibles: Time, social cohesion, norms and expectations, etc.

3) Understand your resources Organize your resources to be most effective • Don’t overestimate your resources—don’t commit to more than you can manage • Make your team modular— • There should be clearly assigned responsibilities • Team members should communicate and collaborate to train one another. • Don’t be dependent on one person—what happens when they leave?

4) Act wisely—the HELP model This is where HELP comes in… …How do we do act wisely? KEY COMPONENTS OF THE HELP MODEL • Needs assessment—What needs to be done? • Project design—How should we do it? • Project implementation—DO IT! • Project monitoring—How is it going? Does it need altering? Can it be done better! • Completion and evaluation—Did it work?

Process is *** Non-Linear, Non-Sequential,& Iterative The HELP Project Cycle Plan the project execution Propose the Solutions Understand the Problem 2)Project Planning 1)Needs Assessment 3)Project Implementation Watch carefully/ test After Action Review Pivot or Scale up 4)Monitoring 5)Project Completion * Community Mobilization info taken from “How to Mobilize Communities for Health & Social Change”

Step 1: Needs Assessment GOALS: • Understand the context you will be working in • Understand what people expect, want, and need • Learn information that will help you succeed • Make information accessible to you and others • Help your team acclimate & learn skills that make or break development organizations • Word of warning…

Step 1: Needs Assessment TOOLS: Gathering information Surveys Participant observation RAP Assessment FAMA Method (participatory research) Organizing information Problem Trees FAMA (Facts, Associations, Meaning, Action) Using information

Step 1: Needs Assessment TIMEFRAME: • First 1-2 weeks HELP Participants arrive in country: This should be a team’s/wave’s MAJOR OCCUPATION right after they arrive • Thereafter: Keep it on your mind. Never stop asking questions. If you get an idea about something you may have missed in the initial assessment, start the process again, investigating your new issue. (see timeline handout & why evaluate handout)

Step 2: Project Planning GOALS • Make a hypothesis about what will work in context. • Narrow potential project ideas based on what you learned in your assessment • Set the scope and focus the work you can do to make sure it really addresses needs • Outline the entire delivery process • Articulate your plans and try to prevent fatal errors!

Step 2: Project Planning TOOLS • PROJECT PROPOSAL FORM: We write up a project proposal for every project. This is how you will track what is going on, get budgets approved, and hold your team accountable for their plans. • Logic Model: Tool that helps visualize the progression from needs  project structure  completion • Everything should logically link together, hence the name. • Outside resources: Handbooks. Manuals. The internet. Other NGO’s best practices, etc.

Project Proposal Process 3) Present proposal to entire team 2) Submit proposal to CDs 4) CDs submit project to HQ * Only if project exceeds $200 Utilize suggestions and revise project 1) Write proposal Project Approved & Funds Allocated

Step 2: Project Planning TIMEFRAME: • Write proposal • The budget • Thus, your planning will go in phases— • community input, team negotiation, writing, rewriting, refining. That’s good! • Just remember…YOU HAVE TO LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE.

Step 3: Project Implementation GOALS: • Realize assets. • Do it well, with as little waste as possible. • Have fun!

Step 3: Project Implementation Tools: This is more open—your project could be anything, so your tools will be whatever you need!

Step 3: Project Implementation Timeframe: • After initiation and planning. • Your first attempts at a particular project type will run in to all sorts of unexpected issues. Planning helps minimize them, but you aren’t perfect. • Solution: Start small—Do one thing to test your hypothesis. If it works, scale up. If it doesn’t work, pivot—change your plan and your process.

Step 4: Monitoring GOALS: • Stick to the PLAN • What’s going well/not well • Stakeholders’ response?

Step 4: Monitoring TOOLS: Participant observation FAMA/community based evaluation Weekly reports (MANDATORY) Record logs—Who? What? When? Where? How? You want to have information for next years crew on EXACTLY how to find and assess your projects.

Step 4: Monitoring TIMEFRAME: • During implementation. • Implementation and monitoring are a feedback loop--Every time to take a step back to evaluate within your team, your partners, or the recipients, you have an opportunity to change course and improve implementation.

Step 5: Completion GOALS: COMPLETION: make sure your projects have a natural conclusion when you leave (this doesn’t mean that ongoing systems you create stop happening, it means that you have unambiguously ended your role in the process) EVALUATION: Understand the short term impacts of what you have done. This is different from monitoring because you are interested in the impact, not the intervention.

Step 5: Completion TOOLS • Project proposals/Plans should have an exit strategy. • Surveys for recipients, partners, and your team. • Gift giving to major partners can be used as an excuse to interview them. • After Action Review • Year end report

Step 5: Completion TIMEFRAME • Mostly, this happens at the end of the summer as you are signing out. • But, projects will die out over the course of the summer. As you complete them, review and evaluate with your partners while the memories are fresh.

Working Together: HELP Team/Community Team • Select project leader, team members and other resources • Commit to the project requirements • Develop team ground rules • Determine meeting guidelines/times • Create a “Parking Lot” & “Issues List” • The implications of Temporary Morphing Project Teams

Timeline and Exit Strategy • What is the purpose of making our project time-bound? • Avoiding DEPENDENCY • How might your timeline be effected by local conditions and culture? • How might your timeline be effected by wave changes? • Sustainability  A stable asset that repays its owner!

A Few Resources • Community Tool Box • http://ctb.ku.edu/en/ • “How to Mobilize Communities for Health and Social Change” • A Field Guide by Lisa Howard-Grabman and Gail Snetro. • A pdf version that you can download • for free and print out is at • http://www.hcpartnership.org/Publications/Field_Guides/Mobilize/pdf/ • An interactive website with free downloadable worksheets and other planning tools is available at: • http://www.hcpartnership.org/Publications/comm_mob/htmlDocs/cac.htm • Tools and Resources for Assessing Social Impanthttp://trasi.foundationcenter.org/

International Development: The help project curriculum