SELECT SUMMARY OF SERVICES OFFERED

Tod Anthony Ragsdale, PhD
Socioeconomics, Environment, Development Anthropology

1954 Columbia Road, NW, #203, Washington, DC 20009, USA

Telephone: +1 202 265-6758
Fax: +1 202 265-6823
E-mail: TARagsdale@aol.com

"Forces in the cultural, social, economic and political environment can create enough negative momentum that it becomes a challenge to simply keep the project moving forward."

You Can Reach Dr. Ragsdale at TARagsdale@aol.com to learn about availability, rates, and services.

• Social Impact Assessment (SIAs)
• SIAs as part of Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) and Environmental Assessment and Management Plans (EAMPs)
• Project Preparation, supervision, monitoring and evaluation for Involuntary Resettlement to World Bank, Asian Development Bank, and other lending institutions specifications
• Review of legislative requirements and national capability for land acquisition, resettlement and economic rehabilitation
• Rapid Appraisals and Socioeconomic Surveys
• Recruitment of Local Expertise (NGOs, Consultants)
• Local Participation and Consultation with Stakeholders
• Watershed Management Planning
• Community Development
• Project Proposal Writing and Preparation
• Technical Report Re-Writing to Standard English and World Bank, Asian Development Bank requirements

SOCIAL ASSESSMENT SERVICES:

Upper Arun Hydroproject Reconnaissance, Nepal

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STUDIES -- Comprehensive socio-cultural evaluations and resettlement and rehabilitation programs (R&R) for Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs). Conduct or evaluate full scale environmental impact studies for industrial clients both domestic and international. These studies can be tailored to meet EPA, AID, or World Bank guidelines.

Baobob Tree, Kariba Resettlement Site, Zambia

REVIEW LAND ACQUISITION LEGISLATION AND PROCEDURES -- This aspect of project preparation often leads to considerable, expensive delays. Review these at a formal level and on the ground experience, sub-contracting local legal expertise as necessary.

Socioeconomic Survey, Planned Resettlement, Somalia

RESETTLEMENT AND REHABILITATION PLANNING -- Resettlement can be:

• An aspect of hydroelectric power creation reservoirs, the classic and most difficult case; or of
  
• Linear and smaller scale development projects such as thermal power plants, transmission lines, roads, and such; A third kind is
  
• Urban resettlement for urban renewal, storm water drainage, etc.

World Bank guidelines, followed increasingly by other donor agencies, indicate the need for:

• Restoration of pre-displacement income levels;
  
• Organizational capacity for resettlement and follow-up;
  
• Physical progress of relocation work;
  
• Consultation; and
  
• Project specific issues relating to budget, timetables, monitoring, and reporting.

Our services include conceptualization of R&R to achieve successful closure, linked to construction. Review of international and local documentation, identification and sub-contracts with local socioeconomic expertise for carrying out baseline surveys and consultation and for establishing monitoring and reporting programs. Follow-up supervision and evaluation.

Reservoir Fishing, Resettlement, Hyderabad Water & Sanitation Project, India

SOCIAL ASSESSMENT -- Increasingly an aspect of project planning and EIAs, Social Assessment (SA) is a process which supports participation and makes explicit the social factors that affect development impacts and results. In many cases it can improve design and delivery and forestall unforeseen consequences of project design that frequently occur without social science input. SAs are carried out to:

• Identify key stakeholders (those persons or organizations most affected by the project) and establish a framework for their participation in the project design and implementation;
  
• Ensure that project objectives and incentives for change are acceptable to the range of people intended to benefit, especially women and the poor;
  
• Assess the social impact of projects to determine how they can be overcome or at least substantially mitigated; and
  
• Develop capacity at the appropriate level to enable participation, resolve conflict, permit social delivery, and carry out mitigation measures as required.

You Can Reach MESAS at mesas@his.com to learn about availability, rates, and services.

Return to MESAS Page