The questions asked in this section of the full application allow us to understand the detail of your tree-growing project and its socioeconomic impact. We compare the metrics outlined in this section with your historical work to see if the proposed project is attainable, but we also look at the proposed project's impact.
Projects will only be selected if they fall within our three target states: Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, or Maharashtra.
In this article, we highlight each of the questions we ask in this section of the full application, why we ask them, address any common concerns around each question and (where relevant) provide you with resources/examples to help answer the question.
In this section, non-government organizations and enterprises answer the same questions.
If you have any further questions, you add them below as a comment or submit them here, and our support team will try to address them.
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- Describe how land degradation has impacted livelihoods of communities in proposed project area
- Describe how restoration in project area would improve lives of local people and their communities
- Describe any connections between proposed project and improved food + nutritional security
- Describe any connections between proposed project and improved water availability, quality, or flow
- Describe any connections between proposed project and improved climate adaption + resilience
- Describe any connections between proposed project and improved soil health
- What kind of new jobs would this project create
- Number of paid jobs that your project would create
- Number of people benefited by project
Q: How has land degradation impacted the livelihoods of the communities living in the proposed project area?
Why we ask this question:
Understanding the historical impact of land degradation on the livelihoods of local communities provides valuable insights into the long-term consequences and patterns of degradation. We expect applicants to share their knowledge and experiences to gain a comprehensive understanding of the specific challenges faced by communities in the project area.
What do we expect? In this question, you are asked to describe in detail the ways in which the degradation is harming the livelihoods and well-being of the local community via reduced crop yields, income instability, worsening nutrition, reduced access to education (i.e. young people have to work the land and cannot attend school), and any other factors that may be relevant. We are seeking to measure how urgently a restoration intervention is needed on this landscape. By sharing your knowledge, we can better understand the unique challenges, opportunities, and potential solutions that align with the specific historical context of land degradation in the project area.
Q: How would restoring the project area improve the livelihoods of local people and their communities?*
Why we ask this question:
Understanding how restoring the project area would improve the livelihoods of local people and their communities is crucial to assessing the potential impacts of this funding. We want to ensure that your restoration efforts not only improve the ecological health of degraded lands but also create meaningful socioeconomic benefits for local communities.
What do we expect? In this question you are asked to describe how this proposed project will restore economic vitality to local communities. It is recommended to include how the project’s proposed tree species, restoration interventions, improved supply/value chains, or other factors would lead to the improvement of local livelihoods during the project timeline and into the future. Wherever possible, explain how your project would affect each relevant demographic category of people, such as women and youth. If you differentiate between “direct” and “indirect” beneficiaries, define each of those terms.
Q: Describe any connections between the proposed project and improved food and nutritional security.*
Why we ask this question:
Understanding the potential connections between the proposed project and improved food security is important to assessing the your proposed strategies and their impact on this indicator.
In this question you are asked to identify the specific ways that this proposed project would impact food security in the target landscape. The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the UN defines food security as the intersection of food availability, food access, stability of supplies, and biological utilization. To better understand if your project has significant impacts on this area, please consider the following expanded definitions and guidance examples:
- Availability – Impacting the physical availability of appropriate food at farms and in local markets. This interconnects with the establishment of well-functioning market infrastructures with adequate road and rail networks, as well as ensuring adequate storage and processing technologies.
An example for this could include introducing species or reforestation techniques that improve rural food production among smallholder farmers. - Access – Increasing the capacity for acquisition and maintenance of appropriate foods for an adequate diet and nutritional level. This might be directly obtained as mentioned through own-grown produce, earning sufficient income, barter & exchange, or indirectly via social arrangements either at the community or national levels such as through family, welfare systems, traditional rights, access to common resources, and emergency food aid. An example for this could include implementing a village savings & loan program to provide socio-economic access & opportunities for communities to increase their access to food.
- Utilization – Positively impacting the ability of communities to effectively absorb the nutritional value of the food they eat. This encompasses the capacity for proposed work to interconnect with proper healthcare & childcare, clean water & sanitation services, and adequate knowledge of nutritional & physiological needs as well as the proper application of such knowledge.
An example for this could include introducing nutritional and medicinal education programs as part of a community engagement plan around agroforestry & reforestation benefits. - Stability – Mitigation of risks and vulnerabilities to the food supply. This involves issues of stability and vulnerability, inclusive of positive impacts to the wider economy in general or of livelihoods in particular; of incomes, or even of food supplies themselves concentrating on shocks, sudden or otherwise such as floods, droughts, or pests. An example for this could include introducing new agroforestry species that diversify agricultural production to provide stability against environmental shocks.
If your project has no direct food security impact, answer with “No direct impact.” It is understood that some restoration projects do not directly improve food security or may have a difficult time assessing these impacts.
Q: Describe any connections between the proposed project and improved water availability, quality, or flow?*
Why we ask this question:
Understanding the potential connections between the proposed project and improved water availability, quality, or flow is important to assessing the your proposed strategies and their impact on this indicator.
In this question you are asked to identify the specific ways that this proposed project would impact water security in the target landscape. We are asking for applicants to define how their proposed project impacts could impact water quantity, quality, stability, or accessibility in the target landscape. To better understand if your project has significant impacts on this area, please consider the following expanded definitions and guidance examples:
- Quality – This area of impact involves improving the quality of drinking & agricultural water by tree planting and other sustainable land management measures.
Examples of this could include tree planting that improves filtration; blocking saltwater intrusion; reduced runoff, erosion and sedimentation. - Quantity – This area of impact involves increasing the available quantities of drinking & agricultural water by groundwater recharge or enhancing surface water flow. Examples of this could include tree planting that targets improved water flow towards communities or ecosystems with critical water need.
- Stability – This area of impact involves buffering the landscape from the detrimental effects of excess water. Examples of this could include tree planting that targets reducing flooding, landslides, gully formations or building soil erosion control structures to increase landscape stability
- Access – Increasing the capacity for acquisition and maintenance of appropriate foods for an adequate diet and nutritional level. This might be directly obtained as mentioned through own-grown produce, earning sufficient income, barter & exchange, or indirectly via social arrangements either at the community or national levels such as through family, welfare systems, traditional rights, access to common resources, and emergency food aid. An example for this could include implementing a village savings & loan program to provide socio-economic access & opportunities for communities to increase their access to food.
- Accessibility/ Protection – Planting trees near critical rural water infrastructure and other source water protection measures. An example of this could include tree planting that shelters existing water access infrastructure or improve the accessibility of drinking & agricultural water.
If your proposed project has no direct impact on improving local hydrological conditions, answer with “No direct impact.” It is understood that some restoration projects may not directly improve hydrological conditions or may be difficult to assess.
Q: Describe the connections between the proposed project and improved climate adaptation and resilience?*
Why we ask this question:
Understanding the potential connections between the proposed project improved climate adaptation and resilience is important to assessing the your proposed strategies and their impact on this indicator.
What do we expect? Please indicate the specific ways and interventions through which this proposed project will contribute to helping communities adapt to the effects of climate change and build resilience.
If your proposed project has no direct impact on climate adaptation and resilience, answer with “No direct impact.”
Q: Describe the connections between the proposed project and improved soil health?*
Why we ask this question:
Understanding the potential connections between the proposed project improved soil health is important to assessing the your proposed strategies and their impact on this indicator.
What do we expect? Please indicate the specific ways and interventions through which this proposed project will contribute to improving soil health.
If your proposed project has no direct impact on soil health, answer with “No direct impact.”
Q: What kind of new jobs would this project create?*
Why we ask this question:
Understanding the potential types of jobs that could be created through the proposed project is important for assessing the socioeconomic benefits of the project and for ensuring that the proposed restoration efforts align with the local community's needs and priorities.
Restoration projects require many different skills, from nursery management to monitoring and evaluation. With this question, please describe the types of paid jobs that this project would create, how employees would be compensated, and what safeguards would be put in place to ensure that workers are protected. You are encouraged to explain how this project would create lasting jobs in the landscape.
Please note that Harit Bharat Fund expects its partners to abide by the principles of ethical engagement and employment to ensure fair compensation, prevent land grabbing and the use of coercion for accessing land, exclude forced labor and child labor in their operations, and prevent harassment, including sexual harassment. Projects must pay wages that are appropriate for the landscape. During the interview and evaluation process, Harit Bharat Fund may ask for additional documentation about the workforce.
Q: How many new paid jobs would your proposed project create?*
Why we ask this question:
Understanding the potential number and types of new paid jobs that could be created through the proposed project is important for assessing the socioeconomic benefits of the project and for ensuring that the proposed restoration efforts align with the local community's needs and priorities.
In this question we are asking partners to estimate the number of new jobs that will be created as a result of their proposed project. We are asking for the sum of the jobs across the various types of jobs specified in the previous question. For this question, please input your numbers assuming that your full proposed budget is approved.
A “job” is defined as a person aged 15 years or older who has worked for pay, profit, or benefit for at least one hour during a given week. In this tally, include all proposed full-time and part-time jobs that would work directly on this project and that your organization would pay. Do not include volunteers or project beneficiaries that are not paid directly by your organization.
A sample version of this table can be seen below. Note that you should enter the number of proposed new jobs and the percentage of those jobs that you expect will be allocated to men, women, youth, and non-youth.
Total New Jobs* | 256 |
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Percentage of new jobs that would be full-time* | 45% |
Percentage of new jobs that would be part-time* | 30% |
Percentage of new jobs that would be filled by women | 55% |
Percentage of new jobs that would be filled by Scheduled Caste/Other Backward Class/Scheduled Tribe* | 28% |
Percentage of project beneficiaries that would be between 15 and 29 years of age | 72% |
Q: How many people would this project benefit?*
Why we ask this question:
Understanding the number of people that a project would benefit is crucial for assessing its social impact and for ensuring that the proposed project aligns with the needs and priorities of the local community.
In this question we are asking partners to estimate the number of people who will benefit from this proposed project. We are asking for the number if individual beneficiaries (number) and the percentage of those beneficiaries who would identify as women, smallholder farmers, large-scale farmers, and between 15 to 29 years of age. For this question, please input your numbers assuming that the full budget is approved. Do not include any people in the jobs total above in your answer to this question; include each person only one time.
A sample version of this table filled in can be seen below:
Total Expected Project Beneficiaries* | 454 |
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Percentage of project beneficiaries that would be women** | 53% |
Percentage of project beneficiaries that would be smallholder farmers*** | 68% |
Percentage of project beneficiaries that would be large-scale farmers | 32% |
Percentage of project beneficiaries that would be Scheduled Caste/Other Backward Class/Scheduled Tribe* | 40% |
Percentage of project beneficiaries that would be between 15 and 29 years of age | 72% |
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