Watershed Achievements Report
wq-cwp8-18
wq-cwp8-18
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Statewide <strong>Watershed</strong> <strong>Achievements</strong> <strong>Report</strong> 2015<br />
Clean Water Performance <strong>Report</strong> –<br />
Social Measures Monitoring System<br />
(MPCA)<br />
From July to September 2014, researchers from the<br />
Department of Forest Resources, University of Minnesota<br />
(U of M), and MPCA staff advanced efforts to integrate the<br />
Social Measures Monitoring System (SMMS, Davenport,<br />
2013) and the MPCA Participatory Program Development<br />
Project (PPDP) project and program management resources.<br />
This integration requires an application of social science<br />
assessment principles and methodologies drawn from<br />
current bodies of knowledge and standards of practice<br />
in both the basic (e.g. psychology and sociology) and<br />
applied (e.g., human dimensions of natural resources)<br />
social sciences. The PPDP Project Management<br />
Worksheet guides project teams in planning public<br />
participation implementation using an array of social<br />
science-based activities including critical thinking<br />
exercises, worksheets and sample measures menus.<br />
The SMMS consists of an overview document, five<br />
metadata sheets corresponding to five high-level<br />
social measures and a menu of project-specific sample<br />
measures that can be used to monitor progress towards<br />
these high-level measures. The SMMS is a systematic<br />
and science-based framework that provides concepts<br />
and principles to consider when planning, managing,<br />
tracking and reporting the human and social dimensions<br />
of watershed projects. The SMMS and PPDP both use the<br />
Multilevel Community Capacity Model (Davenport, 2013)<br />
to help ensure program consistency, project flexibility,<br />
and technique replicability and scalability.<br />
The specific objectives of this 2.5 month project were<br />
to (1) understand the SMMS in light of current MPCA<br />
program needs; (2) develop and deliver the first of five<br />
workshops on the Project Management Worksheet<br />
and (3) gather feedback to improve the workshop and<br />
worksheet. This is the initial phase of a multi-year effort<br />
to consolidate resources in development since 2009<br />
through the PPDP, pilot the SMMS within programspecific<br />
procedures and to generate content for the<br />
2016 Clean Water Fund <strong>Report</strong> to be compiled by the<br />
Interagency Social Measures Subteam. Project results<br />
justify continued project funding.<br />
Goals<br />
• Continue to integrate and test social science concepts<br />
and principles in MPCA PPDP project and program<br />
management resources; integrate SMMS and gather<br />
content for the 2016 Clean Water Fund (CWF) <strong>Report</strong>.<br />
• Develop workshop prototype to help orient project<br />
teams to Program Management Worksheet and social<br />
science concepts and principles.<br />
• Gather user-testing feedback to inform iterative<br />
development of PPDP project and program<br />
management systems and resources.<br />
Workshop participants developing a concept map during the<br />
workshop prototype on September 15 th , 2014<br />
Results that count<br />
• <strong>Watershed</strong> professionals have better understanding<br />
of community capacity assessment principles and<br />
techniques and their connection to MPCA <strong>Watershed</strong><br />
Program public participation and engagement<br />
practice and principles.<br />
• <strong>Watershed</strong> professionals have increased ability to<br />
design watershed projects for community capacity<br />
outcomes.<br />
• Program has increased ability to track human<br />
dimension of selected watershed project for 2016<br />
Interagency Clean Water Fund <strong>Report</strong>.<br />
Financial information<br />
Funding type: Section 319<br />
Grant amount: $33,179 Final in Kind: $1,447<br />
Contact information<br />
Dr. Mae A. Davenport, Associate Professor<br />
University of Minnesota, Department of Forest Resources<br />
1530 Cleveland Avenue N, Room 301F<br />
St. Paul, MN 55108<br />
612-624-2721, madaven@umn.edu<br />
MPCA Project Manager: Cindy Hilmoe<br />
Minnesota Pollution Control Agency www.pca.state.mn.us 28