Better Cotton Initiative
Request for Proposals - Training Cascade Review Survey
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Description
The Better Cotton Initiative (BCI) is the world’s largest cotton sustainability programme. Our mission: to help cotton communities survive and thrive, while protecting and restoring the environment. In difficult times, we are meeting the challenge head on. Through our network of field-level partners we have provided training on more sustainable farming practices to more than 2.9 million cotton farmers in 26 countries. More than a fifth of the world’s cotton is now grown under the BCI Standard and our membership network includes more than 2,400 members.
More information about BCI can be found on our website: www.bettercotton.org
Background
We are seeking proposals from skilled individuals or organisations interested in supporting BCI in their review of the training cascade model for delivering effective capacity strengthening to BCI farmers to facilitate the adoption of improved farming practices.
The ISEAL Compliance Code requires BCI as a member organisation to undertake a regular five-year review of the main pillars of the BCI Standard System (BCISS), one of which is capacity strengthening (CS). BCI currently references two models in its CS implementing framework: the training cascade and Behaviour Change Wheel (BCW). The training cascade for each country detailing the knowledge flow from Global BCI to Country Teams, Programme Partners, PU Managers, Field Facilitators and ultimately farmers was first mapped in 2020 with the intention to regularly update but this has not been done since 2021.
The Behaviour Change Wheel (BCW) takes a holistic approach to capacity strengthening, recognising that behaviour change (practice adoption) is the result of a combination of different factors centring on three main elements: Capability (e.g. knowledge, skills), Opportunity (e.g. social economic environment, time) and Motivation (e.g. peer pressure, community values) that interact together to determine whether a new behaviour / practice is adopted. The BCW was adapted for use in the BCI context in 2023 and subsequently shared with Programme Partners, but it is unclear to what extent this model and/or its underlying principles have been adopted and implemented by Partners.
There is a need to formally review how effectively the cascades are working in each of the BCI direct countries and how they can be effectively integrated with the BCW or similar behaviour change approaches. Opportunities for enhancing the use of digital tools to improve CS including AI will also be considered as part of the project.
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Scope of Work
This review will enable BCI, as part of its ISEAL five-year review of capacity strengthening, to decide what to retain, adapt, or redesign in the training cascade model — recognising that the answer may differ by country — and how the Behaviour Change Wheel or similar behaviour change approach should be integrated. For the purposes of this review, the cascade is effective if knowledge reaches farmers with reasonable rigour, is understood by them, and contributes alongside other capability, opportunity and motivation factors to increased practice adoption. We need to avoid the simplistic assumption that the cascade is effective simply because training sessions are delivered.
The review should therefore explore how the training delivered by Partners interacts with other components of behaviour change approaches including the enabling environment (Opportunity) and motivation of farmers as these will also be key determinants of practice adoption. However, the delivery of training on specific topics as evidenced through annually collected Results Indicators currently provides the best proxy data source available to compare with practice adoption outcomes.
BCI will therefore provide the consultant with relevant existing data at kick-off, including anonymised assurance findings and practice adoption indicators, and survey findings should be checked against these. Options for change should be assessed for their expected impact on farmer practice adoption, cost and effort to implement, and feasibility across differing country contexts. BCI is in the process of updating the training cascades in producer countries that were part of the BCI programme in 2021 and creating new cascades for those countries that have been recently onboarded such as Côte d'Ivoire and Benin. Building on these cascade updates, the expected outputs of this project will be:
- A benchmarking review of existing CS models for other ISEAL standards, particularly those operating in the agricultural sector to highlight best practices being implemented by other standards that could be utilised by BCI, to enhance the effectiveness of BCI’s cascade model – including how other standards use digital tools or AI based approaches to deliver capacity strengthening directly to farmers – and which will inform the options presented in the final report.
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Co-design and run an online survey of Programme Partners (translated as needed) covering: how the cascade operates in practice, where knowledge transfer weakens, actual use of the Behaviour Change Wheel or similar, what digital channels PPs and farmers currently use and PP views on the feasibility of digital delivery direct to farmers in their context, and what PPs would change. The consultant will review BCI’s suggested questions and propose amendments for BCI approval prior to launch. Responses are confidential to the consultant with BCI only receiving anonymised responses.
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Conduct webinars and up to two face-to-face consultations: with Programme Partners, to test and deepen survey findings and explore any discrepancies with existing BCI data; and separately with Country Teams, to gather their perspectives on the PP descriptions of how the cascade operates in their context and where options for change exist which should differ by country.
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Analyse the survey results alongside existing BCI data and consultation findings, and present options for improving the cascade's effectiveness in supporting farmers to adopt improved practices. Options should be assessed against the criteria in the purpose statement, indicate where a single global approach is appropriate and where country-differentiated approaches are needed, and include a recommendation on the future role of the Behaviour Change Wheel or alternative behaviour change approach in the cascade. Ideally options would include digital or AI enabled delivery channels, including direct-to-farmer approaches, assessed against the same criteria – with particular attention to farmer connectivity, literacy and equitable access including for women farmers.
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Produce a report detailing the above analysis, findings and improvement options.
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Produce and deliver a presentation to BCI to summarise these items.
In addition to skills, competencies and expertise, we will consider value for money and demonstrable commitment to the sustainability field to evaluate applications.
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