A
Actual change diagram: A diagram documenting what actually occurred during a project in terms of the work packages carried out and the results achieved. The actual change diagram shows the cause-and-effect links between actual work packages and actual results, including biodiversity targets, threats, behaviours, influences, ecosystem services, human well-being, and unexpected effects.
Actual indicator values: The values measured for indicators during or at the end of a project, used to document the actual change in selected results.
B
Baseline indicator value: The indicator value recorded at the start of a project, used as the reference point for measuring change in a result.
Behaviour: The actions and activities of specific groups of people that affect biodiversity targets either directly or indirectly through threats.
Biodiversity target: The species, habitat, or ecological system that a conservation project is working to maintain or restore.
C
Confidence rating: An assessment of how reliable a linkage is in an actual change diagram, based on the information source supporting that link. Ratings range from very high (incontrovertible fact or verified study) to low (non-expert opinion).
Conservation strategy: The documented approach for achieving conservation goals, including a current situation diagram showing existing cause-and-effect relationships and a planned change diagram showing the work planned and results expected.
Control situation: A location or scenario with similar conditions to the situation of interest where no project work is carried out, used to help determine how much change would have occurred without the project.
Current situation diagram: A diagram documenting the cause-and-effect links between influences, human behaviours, threats, and biodiversity targets in the situation before project work begins.
D
Direct results: Changes that will only be caused by the project work, with no contribution from other results not linked to the project.
E
Ecosystem services: Services provided to humans that are generated by biodiversity targets. Four types exist: provisioning services (food and water), regulating services (water, climate, and disease regulation), cultural services (spiritual and aesthetic), and supporting services (nutrient cycling and soil formation).
Evaluation: The process of determining what caused changes in selected results and how much of that change was due to the project work.
Evaluation activities: Activities carried out to determine what caused changes in selected indirect results and to assess how much of that change was due to the project as opposed to other factors.
Expert opinion: Information provided by individuals with specialist knowledge or experience in a particular field, used as a medium-confidence source for establishing linkages in actual change diagrams.
F
Face up to failure: A principle encouraging project teams to focus on identifying, documenting, and sharing project failures as much as project successes, to enable learning and prevent wasting resources on ineffective approaches.
H
Human well-being: Benefits generated from ecosystem services. Five types exist: security (personal safety and access to resources), basic material for a good life (livelihoods, food, shelter), health (mental, physical, clean air and water), good social relations (social cohesion and mutual respect), and freedom of choice and action (opportunity to achieve what individuals value).
I
Impact: The change in a result that is attributable to project work. For direct results, impact is measured as the difference between actual indicator values and baseline values. For indirect results, impact is measured as the difference between actual indicator values and predicted indicator values.
Implementation success: The percentage of planned selected direct results that were achieved within their tolerance limits.
Indicator: A specific, observable, and measurable attribute of a result used to track changes. Indicators should be closely linked to the result they measure and may include quantitative measurements or qualitative assessments.
Indirect results: Changes that will be caused, either entirely or in part, by other results that are not caused by the project work.
Influence: A factor that affects human behaviour, such as knowledge, attitudes, skills, beliefs, values, or access to resources and services.
M
Match the need: A principle encouraging project teams to focus monitoring and evaluation activities on gathering only the information essential for making management decisions, reporting to stakeholders, and improving conservation effectiveness.
Monitoring: The process of collecting information over time to measure the current state and changes in selected results.
Monitoring activities: Specific activities carried out to collect information needed to generate indicator values for selected results. Activities may measure or estimate indicator values.
Monitoring and evaluation worksheet: A document used to record planned indicator values, actual indicator values, and to calculate implementation success, strategic success, and overall project success during and at the end of a project.
N
Non-expert opinion: Information provided by individuals without specialist knowledge or experience in a particular field, used as a low-confidence source for establishing linkages in actual change diagrams.
O
Objective: A specific, measurable target for a selected direct result that defines what the project aims to achieve. Objectives specify the desired state of the result and the timeframe for achieving it.
Overall success: A rating combining both implementation success and strategic success to provide a comprehensive assessment of project performance.
P
Planned change diagram: A diagram documenting the planned cause-and-effect links between the work packages a project team plans to carry out and the results they expect to achieve, including changes to biodiversity targets, threats, behaviours, and influences.
Planned indicator values: The expected values for indicators at specific points during the project timeframe, set to match objectives and tolerance limits for selected direct results. These values are used to track whether the project is achieving its intended results.
Predicted change: The change in an indirect result that would have occurred in the absence of project work, determined through methods such as analysing pre-project trends, modelling, or monitoring control situations.
Predicted indicator values: The indicator values representing what would have occurred in an indirect result without the project, used to calculate the impact attributable to project work.
Principles: Fundamental approaches and attitudes that guide project teams in planning, implementing, and reporting on monitoring and evaluation activities in an effective and ethical way.
Project: Any type or level of conservation work, including individual projects, multi-project programmes, or organisational portfolios of work.
Project-end report: A document created during the close phase of a project to report on project success, documenting what caused changes in selected results, how much change was due to the project, and the overall level of success achieved.
Project plan: A document created during the plan phase that defines project success by documenting selected results, objectives, tolerance limits, indicators, planned indicator values, and the schedule of monitoring and evaluation activities.
Project success: An overall rating of achievement combining implementation success and strategic success, calculated automatically in the monitoring and evaluation worksheet.
Project team: The individuals working together to plan, implement, and report on conservation work, regardless of the scale or type of project.
Protect participants: A principle encouraging project teams to identify and minimise any potential harm to wildlife, people, or project team members that could result from monitoring and evaluation activities.
R
Result: A change in the state of biodiversity targets, threats, behaviours, influences, ecosystem services, human well-being, or other factors that the project aims to achieve or measure.
S
Stakeholder: Any individual, group, or organisation that has an interest in, is affected by, or can affect the conservation project and its outcomes.
Strategic success: The percentage of planned selected indirect results that achieved any desired actual change, regardless of the magnitude of that change.
T
Threat: A direct human activity or natural process that degrades, damages, or destroys biodiversity targets.
Tolerance limits: Upper and lower boundaries around an objective that define the acceptable range of values still considered as implementation success. Tolerance limits acknowledge that achieving an objective exactly is often difficult or unnecessary.
U
Unexpected effects: Results that were not anticipated in the original conservation strategy. These can be unexpected positive effects that benefit humans or wildlife, or unexpected negative effects that harm humans or wildlife, both occurring outside the focus on planned threats and biodiversity targets.
Unexpected negative effects: Results that harm humans or wildlife caused by project work but not directly linked to changes in the threats and biodiversity targets that were the focus of the original conservation strategy.
Unexpected positive effects: Results that benefit humans or wildlife caused by project work but not directly linked to changes in the threats and biodiversity targets that were the focus of the original conservation strategy.
Unverified study: Research, reports, or documentation that has not undergone peer review or independent verification, used as a high-confidence source for establishing linkages in actual change diagrams.
V
Verified study: Research or documentation that has undergone peer review or independent verification, such as scientific publications, used as a very high-confidence source for establishing linkages in actual change diagrams.
W
Work package: A major component of project work comprising multiple related activities that together contribute to achieving specific results. Work packages are documented in the planned change diagram and represent the interventions the project team will implement.
