I’ve spent the last two weeks in London, spending some time being a tourist and also meeting with various people and organisations to spread the word about INFFER and discuss opportunities for trials and pilot applications. Interest has been strong and almost everyone I have spoken to says that a rigorous, transparent, consistent and structured process like INFFER would help organisations relying on government, donation or other grant-based funding immensely, especially in coming years, when funds are likely to be scarce on the ground. One of the particular benefits of INFFER that has excited people I’ve talked is the way it facilitates pre-prepared funding applications – using INFFER, organisations can prioritise their assets and prepare a suite of project proposals in advance of any additional funding announcements or changes in funding focuses, allowing them to be well ahead of the game when the time comes for submitting proposals. Not only will all the leg-work and background information be ready, but the proposal will be comprehensive, thorough and self-substantiating, increasing the chances of investment by funders in the project.
It is true that many if not all organisations already have some sort of asset identification and prioritisation in place; these seem to usually be criteria-based. This is mirrored in Australia, however that has not affected the applicability of INFFER there, nor the interest in it from potential users – INFFER offers so much more than the status quo in terms of rigour and justifiability that it’s seen as well worth the investment.
In Ireland, I will present a seminar on INFFER to representatives from Teagasc, the agriculture and environment department. The seminar will cover all aspects of INFFER as well as present case studies from Australia and Italy. Discussions afterwards regarding the establishment of potential pilot trials in Ireland will follow. It looks set to be a fantastic few days.
Well, that’s a wrap. Until next time…
