| "We wanted to have a better picture of where we are, where we want to go, and how we are going to get there." | |
| Ernesto Diaz, Puerto Rico Coastal Zone Management Program |
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Most people have heard the saying that you have to know where you have been to know where you are going. Coastal resource managers in Puerto Rico have taken this to heart and are doing a full program evaluation as a way to help celebrate the coastal program's 25th anniversary, and to chart a course for the next 25 years.
A survey of stakeholders has been completed, and the information collected has been used to update the program's guiding document.
"We used this survey as a self-administered performance evaluation," says Ernesto Diaz, director of the Puerto Rico Coastal Zone Management Program. "We wanted to have a better picture of where we are, where we want to go, and how we are going to get there."
Seven public meetings will be held island-wide beginning in July to get public feedback on the updated document. Once public feedback is incorporated, the document will need approval from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Diaz says they began the multiphase evaluation by surveying people who work with the program, such as staff members from federal, commonwealth, and local agencies and university researchers, to determine how effective the coastal program has been at achieving its goals and objectives, and the issues that should be addressed by the program in the future.
The results of the survey, Diaz says, were surprising. "We thought we were doing a little bit better. What we learned is that we have to do a better job of communicating our results, services, what we do, and how we network with other agencies and organizations."
In response to the survey, a Web page has been developed where coastal program research and products are posted. The site is www.coralpr.net. In addition, the program is digitizing much of its information so that it can easily be made available to the public.
Updating the program's guiding document was completed in June. Over the next several months, the draft documents will be presented to the communities for comments, which will be incorporated into the program's defining guidelines.
Diaz says the final document will improve the program's use of its limited resources, "both in terms of funding and human resources. This is an opportunity to improve our overall performance in delivering our message of sustainable use of coastal areas and resources."
The survey results and public comments will be considered a baseline for future evaluations, Diaz notes. The coastal program will continue the process every other year by evaluating the status of its coastal resources, updating land use and demographic statistics, and conducting additional surveys of stakeholders.
"We did learn a lot," Diaz says. "If we haven't been doing a good enough job of reaching our key people, if we are not effectively reaching other agencies and universities, then probably the public at large is even more lost as to what the coastal zone management program is all about."
For more information on Puerto Rico's evaluation process, contact Ernesto Diaz at (787) 721-7593, or eldiaz@caribe.net.
