Institutional development and strengthening
Institutions are critical to the implementation of environmental initiatives. Institutions are adhesive, and when well-structured, can provide stability and minimize the risks associated with bad actors and changing political or economic headwinds. To be effective, institutions must benefit from the appropriate structure and staffing and a sound legal basis, robust internal policies and standards of practice, and competent planning, management and decision-making processes. Starling Resources works with clients to assess and design organizational structures and strategies, develop business and management plans and standard operating procedures, and design approaches to sustainable financing. We work closely with practitioners to assess management bottlenecks and design institutional effectiveness strategies often through the creation of work plans, budgets, and other management tools relevant to an organization’s needs.
Our institutional effectiveness strategies aim to strengthen local ownership and leadership by enhancing the capacities of organizations and individuals to carry out duties and achieve natural resource-related objectives. We do this by building on global best practices while ensuring contextual suitability, linking organizational strategies with national and local government policies, planning and budgeting processes, as well as indigenous and customary natural resource management systems. We utilize a comprehensive institutional effectiveness framework to craft strategic interventions that focus on enabling conditions, organizational development, and individual capacities.
Selected Projects
Project summary
The Bird’s Head Seascape (BHS) in West Papua is one of the most bio diverse marine environments in the world and provides critical support for more than 700,000 people. However, these vital resources are under threat from poorly planned development, destructive and intensive fishing, climate change and other factors. Since 2005, a collaboration between local governments, Conservation International (CI), The Nature Conservancy (TNC), World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and others has successfully established more than 3.5 million ha of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) across Raja Ampat, Kaimana, Tambrauw and Cenderawasih Bay.
After providing financial and operational analysis and advisory to the early planning and development stages of the BHS initiative, Starling Resources in 2012 began to develop and implement a comprehensive sustainability strategy for the MPAs to correspond with the eventual drawdown in donor funding and NGO presence.
Our services
Working closely with local governments, NGO partners, and local CSOs, Starling Resources designed and implemented a comprehensive sustainability strategy for the BHS protected areas focusing on developing the following:
Sustainable financing
- Maximizing government budget allocations by supporting medium-term development planning (RPJMD), annual strategic planning (Renstra), and annual budgeting processes (RBA)
- Increasing independent revenue streams by redeveloping an ecosystem services tourism fee that now generates over $700,000 annually; and the deployment of the first public service agency (BLU) for conservation in Indonesia
- Designing a multi-million-dollar conservation trust fund to fill financing gaps, including financial projections, fund structure and design, and other details
Capable MPA management
- Developing regulatory and political support for the MPA management body
- Strengthening the MPA management body through the development of organizational structure and staffing, management plans, and operational procedures and systems
- Providing individual capacity development and mentoring including the delivery of numerous management-related curricula and the seconding of a full-time mentor
Constituencies of support
- Working with our partner, SeventyThree, to identify and position local beneficiaries as strong advocates for the MPAs
Project term
2011 – present
Clients and Partners
Walton Family Foundation (Client)
David and Lucile Packard Foundation (Client)
Trust for Conservation Innovation (Partner)
Conservation International (Partner/Client)
The Nature Conservancy (Partner)
World Wide Fund for Nature (Partner)
73 (Partner)
Project documents and reports
Project summary
The Palau Conservation Society (PCS) was formed in 1994 and remains Palau’s leading local NGO dedicated to protecting Palau’s natural resources. PCS focuses on supporting various constituencies throughout Palau with regard to conservation and resource stewardship. Starling Resources has worked closely with PCS over many years to support development of organizational strategies, procedures, and capacities, and to improve financial sustainability.
Our services
PCS worked with Starling Resources in order to improve its financial and operational performance. Our team helped PCS develop a variety of management strategies and organizational development tools to promote more effective organizational management and worked one-on-one with key staff to support individual management skill development. Specific strategies and tools included an organizational business and strategic plan, cost recovery strategy, and an organizational cost model to monitor revenue and expenses, as well as timesheets, staff and supervisor evaluation forms, fundraising databases and internal budgets.
Project term
2009 - 2014
Clients and Partners
David and Lucile Packard Foundation (Client)
Trust for Conservation Innovation (Partner)
Project documents and reports
Palau Conservation Society Business Plan
Palau Conservation Society Cost Recovery Strategy
Blue Swimming Crab Sustainable Fishery Initiative
Project summary
Blue swimming crab is the nation’s third most valuable export fishery and supports livelihoods for thousands of Indonesians. However, data and anecdotal evidence point to declining stocks and value. Fisheries management is critical to ensuring fishery sustainability. However, while Indonesia has embraced best practices in fisheries management, in practice few examples exist of well managed fisheries in Indonesia.
The BSC-SFI is an initiative to implement participatory, science-based management at an appropriate scale with explicit consideration to the cross-sectoral nature of fisheries systems. The initiative brings together relevant stakeholders from across sectors to collaboratively develop and implement fisheries management plans. The methods and approaches tested through this initiative will be a model for other fisheries and point the way toward improving fisheries management in Indonesia. The fisheries management plan developed through this effort will also support national BSC fishery management planning (RPP) and Indonesia’s commitment to the Ecosystem Approach to Fisheries Management (EAFM).
Our services
In 2015, Starling Resources with support from other partners, designed and hosted a national workshop for BSC stakeholders to identify challenges and opportunities regarding BSC sustainability in Indonesia. Participants identified opportunities to improve BSC sustainability and prioritized the development of a pilot project to test best practice approaches to BSC management. Starling Resources has since worked under the leadership of the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, local governments, and the Indonesian BSC Processors Association (APRI), and in close partnership with EDF and many other organizations, to design and implement the BSC-SFI. Phases and milestones completed to date include:
- Systematic and collaborative pilot site selection
- Socialization and characterization of the pilot site (Lampung)
- Launching of the Lampung multi-stakeholder management planning team
- Completion of the fishery management planning process including collaborative decision-making, broad consultations, and capacity development to accommodate each step in the planning process
- Launching of the Lampung BSC management “action plan” including a science-based adaptive management cycle
- Launching of the Lampung BSC management implementation committee
Project term
2016 – 2020
Clients and Partners
The David and Lucille Packard Foundation (Client)
The Walton Family Foundation (Client)
The Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (Partner)
Asosiasi Pengelolaan Rajungan Indonesia (APRI) (Partner)
Environmental Defense Fund – Yayasan Bina Usaha Lingkungan (Partner)