Assignment Six Homework

Online Learning: OL 241 How to Write a Community Climate Action Plan:

https://csd-i.org/climate-change/climate-change-action-plan-241/

Center for Sustainable Development: https://csd-i.org

This week’s resources:

Assignment Six Discussion

Magee Example Project Assignment Six

OL 241 Assignment Six Student Logframe Template to Fill In

Assignment Six. How will you organize your ideas for presentation to a donor?

Beginning Logframes

The Logical Framework (logframe) is a powerful tool that aids in project planning, budgeting, project management, and monitoring and evaluation (M&E). In working with donors and stakeholders, your logframe will allow you to communicate to others exactly what you are trying to accomplish, and convey to them if you are making progress toward your goals.

In Assignment One, we used a participatory needs assessment to define the challenges, and in A2 and A3 we defined the problem statement and project outline. In Assignments 3 and 4 we researched activities that would provide solutions. Your project can be laid out in a simplified logframe matrix that allows you to organize and correlate:

the problem statement
the project goal
sub-goals that fulfill the project goal
activities that fulfill the sub-goals

This simplified matrix is the first step in building a more advanced logframe, detailed budget and project schedule—which we will be doing in the next course: OL 242, Fund Your Climate Change Action Plan.

Here is how to do it:

Part 1. Organizing your project description into a beginning log frame (30 minutes)

Get your homework assignment that you finished during Assignment 3 which includes your problem statement, your project outline, and your project goal.

Download a simple matrix called ‘OL 241 Assignment Six Student Logframe Template to Fill In’. The matrix has already been filled in with my example Groundwater Recharge and Reduce Urban Heat Programs that you should use as a template for your own project. Rename it to include your name instead of mine.

Cut and paste the different components of your project outline from Assignment Three into the matrix just like I did with my project. Please do not change your project from Assignment Three; it needs to remain the same project. Copy and Paste—do not rewrite it, don’t modify it, don’t change anything.

Please leave the empty cells, columns and rows empty and alone; we will use them in the next class.

Choose a working title for your project and type it into the top of the matrix.

Paste your Problem Statement and the Goal into the appropriate cells. You can see that I have annotated the matrix so that you can see that the problem statement and the goal statement are parallel to the sub-goals below.

Paste the names of your different programs from your project outline into the sub-goal program title cells: I gave Sub-Goal 2 the short program title from my project outline: Street Tree Program to Reduce Urban Heat.

Paste the sentence from your positive goal statement that relates to the sub-goal program title into the cell next to the sub-goal program title.

These Sub Goals should be sub-components of your main goal, and when added together will fulfill the main goal. So my Sub-Goals 1 and 2, equal the solutions 1 and 2, noted in the main goal.

Make sure that the problem statement, goal and sub-goals remain absolutely parallel to each other.

So for example, one of my problems is “3200 townspeople and their businesses in Willcox, Arizona, are suffering from 1) diminishing water supplies due to A) climate related droughts and B) heavy, rapidly flowing runoff from surrounding agricultural fields and mountains caused by extreme weather events not charging groundwater.”

This is positively reflected in the goal statement: “3,200 townspeople and their businesses in Willcox, Arizona, will be able to enjoy 1) replenished water supplies through an A) B) Groundwater Recharge Program.”

Consequently, for Sub-Goal 2, I have said: ” Heat waves will be reduced through a C) Street Tree Program leading to b) businesses enjoying renewed tourism dollars.” This is absolutely parallel to the clause in my main project goal.

Paste your proposed program activities below the appropriate sub-Goals next to the cells labeled Outputs. Your first activity [Activity 1] from your first program would therefore go next to Output 1.1, and so on.

You may need to add more rows to the table if you have additional Sub-Goals and outputs.

Part 2. Sharing your project with a donor.

This week you will meet with an important person for sharing your project. I hope that you decided to meet with a donor. You can explain that this is an initial project concept on which you are hoping to receive feedback before you continue with its development.

In the meeting they will tell you one of two things:

The project concept falls within their goals and that you have some good ideas. Ask them for suggestions on what you could do to improve the project based upon their experience, and how you can modify the project to best fit their programming guidelines. Find out if they have any submission deadlines and what levels of funding do they provide ($5,000.00, $50,000.00, $500,000.00?). Ask them that if you develop the project further and incorporate their suggestions can you return in 6 weeks to show them the result?

Or…..

The project concept is very interesting, but doesn’t fit within their programming goals. At this point ask them: What kinds of projects fit within their programming goals? Get very specific and take lots of notes. They might not have anything that fits your organizational goals, but it is good to find out what they focus on for future reference. Ask them if they can refer you to anyone at another funding agency that might be a better fit for your project.

But they might have an interest in an area that fits another one of your organizational goals. Maybe you presented a health project to them, and you discover they are more focused on agriculture. Maybe your organization also does agricultural projects. Think quickly and say that you have a similar scale project in agriculture—can you return in a week to show it to them?

In either case, you have learned valuable information, and you have learned how to begin partnering with donors.

The homework to turn in will be:

A beginning log frame matrix of your project to be sent as a Word attachment to the course e-mail.
The name of the person you chose to visit, the organization they work for, their job title, and a short summary paragraph of their comments on your project.

Go to Magee’s example project Assignment Six to see what this could look like. Please consider filling out the Course evaluation in Download Course Documents.

See you next month in OL 242, Fund Your Climate Change Action Plan.

Tim Magee