Climate Cooperative Initiatives Database - Methodology
A brief summary of FOF
We use this method to determine initiative performance.
- Initiatives have functions or activities: how they describe what they do (e.g. knowledge dissemination, project implementation)
- Initiatives have annual outputs: what they produce (publishing reports, holding events)
- Function-Output Fit (FOF) is the degree to which an initiative produces relevant outputs to fit its functions on an annual basis
- FOF can be understood as "the likelihood that an initiative will meet its social and environmental goals"
- FOF is a range of 0-1; a value of 0.5 or higher represents a medium-high or high likelihood
A ‘1’ or a ‘full function-output-fit’ does not ensure desired changes or problem-solving, rather output performance measured by FOF should be interpreted as a precondition for achieving other forms of effectiveness, including environmental impacts. Conversely, the absence of any fitting outputs precludes any attributable and desired effects. Table SI-5 gives an approximate interpretation of FOF scores.
The FOF Methodology
FOF indicates whether and to which extent a climate initiative’s declared function(s) matches with fitting outputs, using data on functions and outputs (see sections #1, #2, #3). FOF has previously been applied to ‘Partnerships for Sustainable Development’ and to smaller sets of climate initiatives. However in C-CID, function and output data categories have been adapted to better reflect the characteristics of the current set of climate actions, as well as to allow for time-series data on output performance.
To generate FOF, every function is linked to outputs that are considered relevant to it (see section #3). The FOF is calculated by dividing the number of functions for which an initiative has produced relevant outputs by the total number of functions that are relevant to the initiative, resulting in a score between 0-1, where 0 indicates that an initiative has not produced relevant outputs for any of its relevant functions, and 1 indicates the production of relevant outputs for every relevant function.
Interpretation of FOF values
A ‘1’ or a ‘full function-output-fit’ does not ensure desired changes or problem-solving, rather output performance measured by FOF should be interpreted as a precondition for achieving other forms of effectiveness, including environmental impacts. Conversely, the absence of any fitting outputs precludes any attributable and desired effects. Table SI-5 gives an approximate interpretation of FOF scores.
| Score category | FOF score range | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| low | 0.00 - 0.25 | The initiative remains largely a paper promise to take action. It has very few or no outputs that correspond with its commitment(s). |
| medium | Low 0.26 - 0.50 | The initiative has taken the first steps towards implementing its commitment(s). Outputs are produced, even when they are not yet enough to fulfil every function relevant to the initiative's commitment(s). |
| medium-high | 0.51 - 0.75 | The initiative is clearly implementing its commitment(s) to improve social and/or environmental indicators. Outputs are relevant to some of the functions that the initiative wants to address. |
| high | 0.76 - 1.00 | The initiative produces relevant outputs for all or a large majority of its functions. The initiative meets minimal criteria of output performance, and is in a comparatively better position to generate the social and environmental impacts it aims at. |
1. Functions of initiatives
| Function | Description |
|---|---|
| Knowledge production | Production of knowledge, information, innovation (scientific or applied) |
| Knowledge dissemination | Dissemination of knowledge, including dissemination of 'good practices' |
| Technical implementation & ‘on the ground’ action | Implementation of previously existing technologies, (mitigation and/or adaptation) plans and policies, including pilot and demonstration projects, building infrastructure. Including: local pilot projects, new installations and physical infrastructure. |
| Institutional capacity building | Building new social institutions (with or without legal status, for instance new partnerships) or expanding existing support organizations. Including the formation of new partnerships, organizations and networks. |
| Norm & standard setting | Setting up new norms or standards or spreading the use of such new norms, including the certification of products. Excluding internal (organizational) norm setting and policies (ruling out CSR) |
| Campaigning | Campaigns, including raising public awareness on a given topic, and education of the public at large |
| Lobbying | Lobbying, restricted to pressure applied on governmental actors from non-governmental ones |
| Participatory management/Increasing participation | Involvement of stakeholders in policy programmes / engaging more local communities and other partners in an initiative |
| Training | Training of employees, other social actors, or students (including school training if new curriculum is introduced with a specific content related to climate change and/or sustainable development) |
| Funding | Providing funds and/or financial services for climate related projects, or raising funds |
| Product development | Developing new or renewed climate-friendly commercial products and services. Excluding financial services |
| Policy planning | Facilitating policy planning at national or subnational levels (e.g. with the development of policy tools and instruments), including the production of large policy plans, development or planning of policy instruments |
2. Outputs of initiatives
| Output | Description |
|---|---|
| publication - research | any publication by the initiative (not by individual partners) documenting academic research, data-gathering for implementation, policy and action research |
| publication - advocacy | any publication by the initiative (not by individual partners) arguing in favor of the partnership cause with a wider audience than policy makers (public); including campaign material, newsletters, petitions, and promotion materials (such as posters, leaflets, and brochures) |
| publication - standards | any publication by the initiative (not by individual partners) setting out policy and/or procedural standards (excluding internal operating procedures) for application to climate or sustainable development issues |
| publication - education | any publication by the initiative (not by individual partners) aimed at training, including best practice manuals and instruction materials |
| publication - policy | any publication by the initiative (not by individual partners) arguing for specific policies (whether regional, national or transnational) with public policy makers to regulate and or manage climate (and sustainable development) issues. |
| publication - emissions | reports any publication by the initiative (not by individual partners) indicating emissions reductions as a result of an initiative's activities |
| publication - reports | any publication by the initiative (not by individual partners) pertaining transparency and accountability towards its partners, stakeholders and wider audiences (such as annual reports, and [self-] evaluations). |
| data aggregator | databases and systematically organized and retrievable information, including significant changes to existing databases |
| social media | active and operational websites (including subdomains), and social media accounts |
| event organization: science-to-science | science-to-science events (co-)organized by the initiative |
| event participation: science-to-science | participation by the initiative in science-to-science events |
| event participation: science-policy | participation by the initiative in science policy interface events |
| event participation: policy-to-policy | participation by the initiative in policy to policy exchange events |
| event participation: popular | participation by the initiative in popular (general audience) events |
| tools and instruments | new or enhanced public policy tools and instruments |
| funding: raised | funding raised for new and existing projects relating to climate action |
| funding: provided | funding distributed for new and existing projects relating to climate action |
| event organization: science-policy | science policy interface events (co-) organized by the initiative |
| event organization: policy-policy | policy-policy exchange events (co-) organized by the initiative |
| event organization: popular | popular events (co-) organized by the initiative |
| Infrastructure | construction or improvement of new and existing physical facilities as well as the application |
| institutions: setup | organizations, institutions and new partnerships and initiatives, (partly) brokered or set up by the initiative (excluding the initiative itself) |
| Institutions: partners | new partners involved in the initiative and/or in public policy processes |
| commercial products and services: new | any marketable or marketed new or enhanced products and services with benefits from a climate and/or sustainable development perspective, excluding consultancy services |
| commercial products and services: advice | provision of professional advice relating to climate (and sustainable development) |
| other | other types of outputs that do not belong to any of the above output categories |
3. Relevant outputs by function category
| Function | Fitting Output | |
|---|---|---|
| knowledge production | publication: research; data aggregator; event organization: science-to-science; event participation: science-to-science | |
| knowledge dissemination | publication: education; data aggregator; event organization: science-to-science; event organization: science-to-policy; event organization: policy-to-policy; event organization: popular; event participation: science-to-policy; event participation: popular; | social media |
| technical implementation & ‘on the ground’ action | Infrastructure; publication: emissions report | |
| institutional capacity building | Institutions: set up; tools and instruments; event organization: policy-to-policy; event participation: policy-to-policy | |
| norm & standard setting | publication: Standards | |
| campaigning | publication: advocacy; event organization: popular; event participation: popular; social media | |
| lobbying | publication: policy; commercial products and services: advice; event organization: policy-to-policy; event participation: policy-to-policy | |
| participatory management/ increasing participation | institutions: partner; publication: report; event organization: popular | |
| training | publication: education; event organization: popular | |
| funding | funding: raised; funding: provided | |
| product development | Commercial products and services: new | |
| policy planning | publication: policy-policy; event organization: science-to-policy; event organization: policy-to-policy; event participation: science-to-policy; event participation: policy-to-policy; tools and instruments |