Assessing the Impact of Policy-Oriented Research: The Case of CIFOR's Influence on the Indonesian Pulp and Paper Sector

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2010.03.008 Byline: David A. Raitzer Keywords: impact assessment; policy research; evaluation; forests; Asia; Indonesia Abstract: Qualitative and quantitative methods are applied to assess the impact of CIFOR's political economy research on the Indonesian pulp and paper sector. Key-informant interviews triangulated by trend-series tests suggest important influence through advocacy intermediaries and counterfactuals of slower adoption of improvements. Effects on conservation set-asides, overcapacity, and plantation establishment are estimated to avert loss of 76,000-212,000hectares of natural forest (135,000 under main assumptions). Application of an economic-surplus framework for environmental benefits of forest conservation and avoided implicit wood subsidies finds benefits of US$19 to US$583 million (US$133 million main estimate), compared with US$500,000 of direct research costs. Author Affiliation: International Rice Research Institute, Philippines Article History: Accepted 21 March 2010