Impact Assessment of Natural Resource Management Policy Research: Potential Economic Benefits of CIFOR Sustainable Wetlands Adaptation and Mitigation Project Contributions to an Effective Indonesian Forest Moratorium

The role of research in policy-making is complex and context specific, generating many challenges for evaluating the impact of policy research. Two key issues in policy-oriented research impact assessment (PORIA) are determining the degree of influence that can be claimed by a knowledge-generating entity and quantifying the eventual economic impact of a policy-oriented research program. This brief reports research that addresses these issues in an ex-ante impact assessment of the Sustainable Wetlands Adaptation and Mitigation Program (SWAMP); an environmentally-focused, policy-oriented research project led by the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR).