Network analysis for evaluating on-farm conservation projects fact

On-farm conservation projects, as well as most projects that use research to foster development, usually involve multiple partners who play different roles, bring diverse perspectives and influence the project in multiple ways. These partnerships should not be seen in isolation or as piecemeal, but as a network of actors that enable the implementation of a project, influence its success or failure, generate learning and allow its implementers to achieve goals that would have been beyond the scope of a single institution working in isolation. Conducting a network analysis of partnerships is crucial at both the project planning stage (ex ante) as well as after its implementation (ex post). In the context of the McKnight Foundation-funded project entitled Assessing the Success of On-Farm Conservation Projects in Delivering Conservation and Livelihood Outcomes: Identifying Best Practices and Decision Support Tools coordinated and implemented by Bioversity International and carried out between March 2010 and May 2012 in the High Andes of Ecuador, Bolivia and Peru, the author used SNA to examine six projects that supported on-farm management of native crop diversity and sought to increase livelihood benefits derived from it. This analysis was done only ex post since ex ante data and information were not available

E. Gotor, 'Network analysis for evaluating on-farm conservation projects fact', p.3, 2012