GEMS: USAID Central Asia—Almaty, Kazakhstan • 11

2018 Asia Regional Advanced Workshop on Environmental Compliance and Environmentally-Sound Design and Management

The overall goal of the workshop was to strengthen development outcomes and sustainability of USAID actions in the Asia Bureau by assuring that participants have the motivation, knowledge, and skills beyond the introductory level necessary to: (1) achieve 22 CFR 216 environmental compliance, ADS 204 conformance, and address Climate Risk Management (CRM) over the program cycle and (2) otherwise integrate environmental considerations in activity design and management.

More than training on legally mandatory environmental procedures, this was a working-session for Missions to contribute crucial perspectives and to improve efficiency and effectiveness of environmental compliance processes, now and into the future. ADS 204, after a multiple-year revision process, is nearly finished, so the workshop discussed these proposed changes. The proposed ADS revisions require the development of Bureau Environmental Compliance Operating Procedures (BOPs), and this workshop collected Mission input on the Asia BOP before it becomes mandatory.

Similarly, the workshop sought input to Asia Bureau's version of Agency-mandated environmental compliance templates (e.g., for Initial Environmental Examinations and Requests for Categorical Exclusion) before they are launched. The workshop created a space for communication between USAID/Washington and the field on how to best address compliance and environmentally sound design and management (ESDM) challenges.

Approach to Learning:
The workshop design was field-based and emphasized practical application and peer-to-peer learning. Specifically:

Skills and processes briefed in presentations were built and practiced in hands-on exercises conducted in small working groups.
As an advanced workshop, basic material was covered in quick, intensive review. Presenters summarized key content quickly, to allow time in each session for discussion and Q&A.
Key integrative exercises were built around site visits and case studies
Session formats included group work and panels, but even presentation-centered sessions were intended to be interactive.

The materials listed below are the materials used and distributed at the workshop.