2007 jpnwrksp bestpracticesfinalversionmmf

Paper and Presentation for the US-Japan Workshop on Climate Actions and Developmental Co-Benefits,
March 5-6, 2007- Myra M. Frazier

Draft for Discussion Purposes Only

Identifying Best Practices for Co-Benefits:
Improving Decision-Making for Policymakers

Since its inception in 1998, the Integrated Environmental Strategies (IES) program has
engaged developing countries to promote integrated, strategic planning for environmental
management that will achieve co-benefits.1 The IES program is a part of a larger U.S.
government strategy to foster long-term engagement and increased capacity in
developing countries as they seek economic growth opportunities that will achieve
greater environmental sustainability. The IES approach utilizes a customizable suite of
modeling and assessment tools. Its analysis enables local researchers to quantify the co-
benefits that can be derived from implementing specific policy, technology, and
infrastructure measures to reduce air pollutants and GHG emissions. IES analysis
quantifies the effects of air emissions in order to bring research on co-benefits into the
public decision-making process and provide a solid foundation upon which to build
environmental and public health policy.

An important outcome of the program is that it has positively improved institutional
decision-making, policy analysis, and technical capacity in several of the participating
countries. To date, the IES Program has conducted successful studies in Argentina,
Brazil, Chile, China, India, Mexico, the Philippines and the Republic of South Korea that
focused on at least one of the following sectors: (1) Industrial /manufacturing; (2) Power
Generation; and (3) Transportation.

As the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency launched its co-benefits analysis program,
the international public health community also began to assess the health costs associated
with increasing air pollution in many of the world’s megacities. Public health experts
from leading institutions such the World Health Organization, World Bank and the
OECD have undertaken their own efforts to conduct a series of studies that examined
linkage between the health benefits of reduced air pollution and associated GHG
reductions. Examining the relative effectiveness of certain mitigation measures and
policies, in a systematic way, when compared to others offers the research and policy
communities and opportunity to identify the most effective policies and measure or Best
Practices. Best Practices will assist policymakers in making optimal policy choices to
maximize improvements in air quality, public health and reductions in GHGs.

This analysis of Best Practices is not an all-inclusive or exhaustive review of the
literature as it relates to Best Practices or co-benefits. Instead, this paper highlights
resources written by leading institutions that are illustrative of various viewpoints on the
1
For the purposes of this paper, co-benefits are generally defined in the following manner: (1) The health
and economic benefits that result from reducing local air pollution, and 2) the GHG reductions associated
with reducing ambient air pollution. This definition is taken from the Integrated Environment Strategies
Handbook-A Resource Guide for Air Quality Planning, USEPA, p. 8, http:// www.epa.gov/ies.

1



subject. Given these parameters, this paper attempts to address some of the ways in which
Best Practices can assist developing country policymakers in making optimal decisions.
The following aspects of Best Practices for co-benefits will be considered:

• Why is measurement in important to the discussion of Best Practices for
Co-Benefits?
• What are the prerequisites for achieving Best Practices for Co-Benefits?
• How do we define Best Practices and how has the definition been applied
in various contexts?
• What types of enabling environments promote the establishment of Best
Practices?
• Putting it all together, how do you make Best Practices a standard part of
the policymaking process?

The importance of measurement in establishing Best Practices for Co-
Benefits

In our current policy environment, more emphasis is being placed on measuring the
effectiveness of policy choices. This is necessary for improved decision-making and the
identification of co-benefits opportunities. In order to achieve optimal results for both
GHGs and local benefits, analyzing the performance of a given policy measure through a
Best Practices framework can be extremely useful. Establishing such a framework that
captures the multi-disciplinary nature of co-benefits represents a significant
methodological and technical challenge. However, by drawing on the lessons learned
from the current academic and industry literature as well as the experiences of leading
institutions, Best Practices can become an effective planning tool to advance co-benefits.

Before establishing Best Practices, there is a need to identify precise measurement tools
and to develop criteria for selecting them. There is not a set formula for identifying such
measurement tools. However, there are several examples from other contexts where Best
Practices guidelines have already been established—such guidelines may be relevant to
our discussion.

Within the U.S. Government, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) monitors the
performance of federal agencies using performance-based metrics. As a part of OMB’s
oversight of the federal budget process, it has established Best Practices for Budget
Performance Integration.2As an example of budgeting Best Practices, one federal agency
identified qualities required of efficiency measures. They should have the following
characteristics:

2
Presentation on Best Practices: Budget Performance Integration, presented to OMB, December 15, 2004,
p. 6, http:// www.results.gov .

2



• Meaningful and relevant to program and office
management
• Clear and quantifiable
• Trendable over several assessment cycles
• Cost less to achieve than efficiency gained
• Work from an established baseline3

While the above list applies to measures in the context of federal budgets, they can be
adapted to the measurement of co-benefits. In choosing various policy options to measure
the effectiveness of policies to promote co-benefits, policymakers would want to avail
themselves of a suite of measures that are: (1) Relevant; (2) Clearly defined; (3) Current;
(4)Will assist in meeting a range of objectives; and (5) Sustainable. The fifth
characteristic, measurement of sustainability, is a critical issue for developing country
policymakers.

The Role of Indicators in Establishing Best Practices

Effective measurement tools are a critical factor in determining what constitutes effective
performance in policy planning. To that end, indicators have emerged as a useful tool by
which to evaluate environmental performance in a clear and concise way. Indicators are
defined in the following manner:

Indicators can be defined as statistics, measures or parameters
that can be used to track changes of the environmental and
socio-economic conditions. Indicators are developed in
synthesizing and transforming scientific and technical data into
fruitful information. They can provide a sound basis for
decision-makers to take a policy decision on present as well
as potential future issues of local, national, regional and global
concern. They can be used to assess, monitor and forecast parameters
of concerns towards achieving environmentally sound development. 4
(Emphasis Added)

The above referenced definition of an indicator is fairly comprehensive and reinforces
several important points regarding the need for effective measurement tools in co-
benefits analysis. The italicized text, which was added for emphasis, further underscores
the important role that indicators play in the policymaking process. The actual units of
measure can take the form of a statistic, measure, benchmark, metric, standard or policy

3
Presentation on Best Practices: Budget Performance Integration presented to OMB, December 15, 2004,
p.6-7, http:// www.results.gov.
4
“Environmental Indicators—South Asia,” United Nations Environment Programme, Regional Resource
Centre for Asia and the Pacific, 2004, p. 9.

3



target.5 As stated previously in the paper, these units of measure can either be quantitative
or qualitative.6 Additionally, this definition of indicator focuses on the need to translate
technical and scientific information into “fruitful information.” A desire for “fruitful
information” underscores an ongoing need for information that is analyzed and
interpreted in such a way that is relevant and useful to the policymaker.

The United Nations Environment Programme is one of several institutions that have
begun an in depth research and analysis of role that indicators play, both quantitatively
and qualitatively, in the policymaking process. In 2001, the United States Environmental
Protection Agency inaugurated its Environmental Indicators Initiative, in an effort to
develop indicators that would equip the U.S. to evaluate and track the current condition
of the country’s natural environment and strengthen the environmental policy decision
making process.7 In addition, IES draws from the lessons learned about the benefits of
indicators in environmental policy decision-making and incorporates them into the IES
analytical model. According to the program description, it acknowledges that different
types of indicators play an important role in the evaluation process. It states the
following, “To help decision makers understand the analysis, the technical team can use
different criteria, or metrics, to prioritize and rank specific policy measures.”8 The U.S.
5
UNEP’s Environmental Indicators Report for North America highlights several criteria for measuring
environmental performance. UNEP (2006) “Environmental Indicators Report for North America,” p.5,
http://www.unep.org.

Type of Criteria Example
Benchmark Highest percentage of households connected to
sewage system in a comparable entity the same
jurisdiction.
Threshold Maximum sustainable yield of a fishery.
Principle Policy should contribute to the increase of
environmental literacy.
Standard Water quality standards for a variety of uses.
Policy-specific target Official development assistance shall be 0.4 per cent
of grow national product. (GNP).
Targets specified in legal agreement Per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by
target date.

6
See footnote 9. For further information on the role of quantitative indicators in the environmental
policymaking process please refer to the following paper written by Mr. Masakuzu Ichimura, “Verification
and Improvement to quantitative indicators of urban environment improvement.” Institute for Global
Environmental Strategies, (IGES), http:// www.iges.or.jp.
7
“Environmental Indicators for North America,” United Nations Environment Programme, Regional Office
for North America, 2005, p. 31. For a more comprehensive review of U.S. EPA’s Indicators Initiative,
please see http://www.epa.gov/indicators.
8
Integrated Environmental Strategies Handbook-A Resource Guide for Air Quality Planning, US EPA,
Chapter 7, p. 74. For a comprehensive list of measures used in the IES Program, please refer to Chapter 9,
p. 99-100, http://www.epa.gov/ies.

4



EPA Indicators Initiative and the Integrated Environmental Strategies Program are two
examples of how indicators can improve the decision-making processes of an institution
in a given programmatic area. However, in order to achieve Best Practices across an
institution and sector, there will need to be a greater level of coordination and
harmonization both organizationally and analytically.

In selecting measurement tools that meet the above referenced criteria, there is a tension
in choosing tools those are either quantitative or qualitative. There is a long-standing
debate within the social science research and policy communities about the use of
quantitative versus qualitative metrics. Quantitative metrics generally apply methods that
“produce quantifiable, reliable data generalizable to some larger population.” Such
measures are most appropriately used “to conduct needs assessments or for evaluations
that compare outcomes with baseline data.” In contrast, qualitative metrics are generally
viewed as “softer” measurement tools. Such measures are drawn from “an assessment of
a total cultural context or situation.”9

Effective measurement of sustainable development goals, using quantitative or qualitative
measures is of great importance to policymakers for several reasons. In many instances,
climate change objectives are at odds with more immediate domestic priorities such as
improved transportation and energy services. Often, this basic tension results in a
compromise that will ultimately give priority to local, domestic needs. Both climate
change and development experts have begun to assess how best to promote activities that
achieve both climate and development results. In order to attain these goals, there must be
an integrated framework for analyzing these issues, such as the IES approach developed
by EPA.

Metrics play an important role in evaluating policy options that advance domestic
development objectives while at the same time promote significant climate benefits that
achieve reductions in GHGs. Sustainable Development Policies and Measures or SD-
PAMs are policies that do just that. Ultimately, SD-PAMs are designed to give
policymakers an approach for analyzing climate change, including co-benefits and
development priorities. Generally, SD-PAMs are defined as “Policies and measures taken
by a country in pursuit of its domestic policy objectives.”10

SD-PAMs are very useful in providing developing country policymaker a framework and
greater flexibility to make decisions to meet a range of objectives. The SD-PAMs
analysis relies on both quantitative as well as qualitative metrics in applying its analytical
framework. Often, developing country policymakers will need to rely on a range of
9
These research methods help others “To understand social phenomena and mental processes underlying
certain behaviors.” Definitions cited in “integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Methods in Social
Marketing Research” by Nedra Kline Weinreich at http:// www.social-marketing.com/research.
10
Rob Bradley and Jonathan Pershing, “Introduction to Sustainable Development Policies and Measures,”
Growing in the Greenhouse—Protecting the Climate by Putting Development First, 2005, p. 2,
www.wri.org.

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measurement tools both quantitative as well as qualitative to make optimal policy
decisions.11

Prerequisites for Achieving Best Practices

Over the last eight years, several national and international organizations have developed
various research and methodological approaches for identifying and measuring co-
benefits. While such variation in research methods and methodological approaches is
expected, an even greater set of challenges emerge when seeking to identify Best
Practices. The identification of Best Practices across disciplines and sectors requires
harmonization of analytical approaches and methodologies. Before launching into a
detailed discussion of Best Practices, there are several important prerequisites to
consider: (1) organizational structure; (2) the role of the policymaker; and (3) the role of
the technical adviser.

Organizational factors that promote Best Practices

The first factor to consider is organizational structure. More specifically, from an
organizational design standpoint, how can one optimize an organization’s structure to
achieve Best Practices? The literature on Change Management from the business world
provides several important examples of how organizations can be best configured to
promote optimal results in leadership, sustainable change and performance.

A basic goal for undertaking a review of Best Practices is to assist policymakers in
making optimal decisions that will achieve “win/win results” to reduce GHG benefits and
improve local air quality, and public health benefits and promote effective energy policy
planning. If we accept that this premise is true, then the nature of an organization’s
structure to achieve optimal performance for Best Practices for co-benefits becomes an
important factor. Major U.S. corporations have adopted the “Best Practice Systems
Model” for identifying and analyzing Best Practices. The Best Practice Systems Model
relies on a 360º feedback loop to promote the constant flow of information to optimize
organizational performance to achieve Best Practices.

11
Ibid.

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THE BEST PRACTICE SYSTEMS MODEL

Evaluation Diagnosis

Support/Re-
inforcement Assessment

Implement Design

Best Practice System Model™ Best Practices Institute 200712

How does the Best Practice Systems Model inform our understanding of Best Practices
for co-benefits? One, this tool can greatly assist developing country policymakers in
making better choices by encouraging more sound organizational planning to promote
integrated, strategic, environmental and energy resource planning. This model provides a
structure to capture more fully multi-criteria analysis. Two, the 360º feedback loop
provides constant and consistent feedback by moving the decision-making process from
one that is static to one that is dynamic. A more dynamic decision-making process
ensures a more robust set of results that have taken into consideration a broader set of
criteria which lends itself to integrated environmental planning.

The Role of the Policymaker in Achieving Best Practices

A central element in the policymaking process is the role of the policymaker who must be
informed and engaged in order for it to maximize co-benefits. Decision-makers are in
need of policy-relevant information that will inform and assist the evaluation and
selection of appropriate policies and measures.13 The contribution of scientific/technical
information and its role in the policymaking process has been the source of a long-
standing debate in the environmental community. Despite best efforts to obtain as
complete information as possible, often, policymakers are forced to make decisions with
incomplete information and are under significant time or budgetary constraints.
12
https://bestpracticeinstitute.org.
13
Policy-relevant information can be defined as information that is timely, accurate and contextually
appropriate. See “Gaps in Policy-Relevant Information on Burden of Disease in Children,” Lancet 2005;
365:2031-2040, http://www.thelancet.com.

7



According to one author, the value of scientific/technical information is viewed in the
following manner:

Policy analysts use scientific research and studies to decipher
the causes, effects, mitigation, and remediation associated
with public environmental policy decisions. Scientific
information is seen to be objective discrete, and value-neutral.
As such, policymakers and other ‘users’ commonly view it as
an indispensable political resource that provides important
information requires for the fuzzy arena of public policy
and decision-making. 14

The Role of the Technical Expert in Achieving Best Practices

An important contributor to the policy making process is the technical expert. The
collective expertise of the technical team is a critical component of the decision-making
process. The technical adviser can provide a policymaker specialized advice regarding a
range of topics such as energy and emissions, air quality, public health, and economics.
Based on the lessons learned from the IES program, a carefully selected team of
professionals can recommend effective strategies for reducing air pollution and GHG
emissions. More importantly, well-crafted recommendations that can add value to a
country’s policy initiative will most likely be implemented. After giving careful
consideration to some of these prerequisites, now our attention can be turned to what
actually constitutes a Best Practice.

Definition of Best Practices and their application to Co-Benefits

Arriving at a consensus definition of Best Practices that is relevant to a discussion of co-
benefits is both an analytical and conceptual challenge. Generally, definitions of Best
Practices are specific either to the discipline or industry to which they apply. For
example, in the context of co-benefits analysis, it is fairly easy to identify definitions of
Best Practices as they relate to public health, energy, air quality and other related sectors.
However, at present, there is not a definition of Best Practices which fully captures the
interdisciplinary nature of co-benefits. This section will begin with a review of some
basic characteristics of Best Practices. Then, this section of the paper will undertake a
general review of several definitions of Best Practices. It will turn to definitions that are
more specific to the environmental context.

14
For a more detailed discussion about the relationship between scientific/technical information and the
policymaking process, please review the following paper, “Policy Relevant Scientific Information: The
Co-Production of Objectivity and Relevance in the IPCC,” Paper 14, Year 2005, University of California
International and Area Studies Breslauer Symposium, authored by Alison Shaw,
http://www.repositories.cdlib.org/ucias/breslauer/14.

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Characteristics of Best Practices

At a fundamental level, a Best Practice applies methods, actions or processes that
produce beneficial results. Three fundamental characteristics of a Best Practice are
replicability, sustainability, and applicability. Replicability suggests that an action or
process that has produced positive results on one occasion or setting can be reproduced.
Sustainability suggests that the results that have been reproduced can be carried out
multiple times within the socio-cultural, economic and political context of a particular
country. Lastly, the applicability of an action should be considered. Essentially, the action
should be relevant to the issue at hand and the context in which it is occurring.

After considering these fundamental characteristics of Best Practices, our attention can
now turn to a fuller general definition of Best Practices. The definition reads as follows:
“A best practice is a technique or methodology that, through experience and research has
proven to reliably lead to a desired result.” This definition goes on to include additional
statements to explain the impact of using Best Practices. It states, “A commitment to
using the Best Practices in any field is a commitment to using all the knowledge and
technology at one’s disposal to ensure success. The term is used frequently in the fields
of health care, government administration, the education system and project
management.” 15

This knowledge-based and technology-based definition of Best Practices informs our
discussion of Best Practices for co-benefits in several ways. More specifically, a
knowledge-based definition offers a precise statement of the cause and effect relationship
of a Best Practice to desired outcomes. It also emphasizes both theory and practice in
determining what constitutes a Best Practice. More importantly, a knowledge-based
standard for co-benefits Best Practices ensures that the actions taken are theoretically and
methodologically sound. Finally, it informs our discussion about how Best Practices can
be applied across disciplines and sectors by highlighting “the need to use the best
practices in any field is a commitment to using all the knowledge at one’s disposal to
ensure success.” Ultimately, this knowledge-based approach for Best Practices serves as
a baseline approach for applying Best Practices across disciplines and sectors.

A technology-based standard for Best Practices is equally useful and ensures that a state-
of-the art approach is undertaken where technologically-based solutions are required to
achieve Best Practices. A technology-based standard would be especially useful in when
examining issues related to energy, transportation and air quality.

Best Practices in the Environmental Context

15
http:// www.bitpipe.com/tlist/Best-Practices.html.

9



A knowledge and technology-based standard provides a baseline for considering how
these standards apply to the environmental context. The Institute for Global
Environmental Strategies, (IGES), has established guidelines and criteria for good
practices that were developed in conjunction with an inventory of projects. For purposes
of this paper, “Good Practices are considered similar to “Best Practices.”

The “Good Practices” that have been collected in this inventory are practices that
meet the following conditions:

• Lead to an actual improvement in the environmental area considered, or
breaks new ground in non-traditional approaches on the issue.

• Involve indicators for some visible or measurable change, giving
consideration to:

o Improvement in the environmental situation with at least no
deterioration in the socio-economic situation, or
o Improvement in the socio-economic situation with at least no
deterioration in the environmental situation;
• Demonstrate an innovative (uniqueness of either the product process) and
replicable approach;
• Be self-sustaining (e.g, capacity of being sustained by key
proponents/beneficiaries-government, academia, media, the UN, aid
institutions, etc.);
• Involve a range of actors (civil society, private sector, government, etc.)
through a participatory process.16

The IGES guidelines for good practices set forth an important definitional framework for
evaluating Best Practices in an environmental context. They incorporate several of the
characteristics that have been previously identified as positive attributes of Best Practices.
One, the IGES guidelines provide a precise statement of what constitutes a positive
benefit. These guidelines highlight two specific positive outcomes—an actual
improvement in the environmental area considered or the breaking of new ground in
non-traditional approaches on the issue.(emphasis added). Two, the IGES guidelines
highlight the importance of indicators as a means of benchmarking changes in
performance. The guidelines also rely on fairly common characteristics of best practices
definitions—replicability and sustainability. An interesting feature of the IGES guidelines
that is not typically found in most definitions of Best Practices is innovation. By adding
innovation as a characteristic of good practices, it introduces an even higher standard of
performance.

16
APEIS/RISPO Project-“Guidelines and Criteria for Good Practices,”
http://www.iges.or.jp/APEIS/RISPO/guidelines.html.

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Sector-Specific Definitions of Best Practices

After reviewing some of the more foundational concepts related to Best Practices, we can
now begin to look at a definition of Best Practices as it relates to co-benefits. An
important distinguishing feature of co-benefits analysis is its integrated, multi-
disciplinary approach. As stated previously, co-benefits analysis draws on a range of
academic disciplines as well as sectoral analysis. Primarily, co-benefits analysis draws on
the disciplines of public health, economics, air quality as well as several key industrial
sectors such as energy and transportation. Each of these academic disciplines and sectors
brings with it its own rigorous standards of review and analysis which have given rise
unique and specific standards of Best Practices. The real challenge lies in how to
establish a common set of best practices across disciplines? More specifically, how does
one establish a Best Practices guidance that will adequately capture standards from public
health, air quality and economics, and related sectors?

Best Practices and the Public Health Sector

The academic and industry literature provides many examples of Best Practices in air
quality, economics, public health, energy and transportation. Each of these disciplines
brings with it a well-defined set of methods, analytical tools and metrics for measuring
performance and outcomes.17 The public health sector serves as an excellent example of
how indicators can be used to measure the performance of a particular action and to
actually define what constitutes a Best Practices. This section will consider how the
public health sector has defined and applied Best Practices. Specifically, the World
Health Organization’s Health Metric Network (HMN) serves as a good example of one
sector’s attempt to harmonize metrics and other evaluation tools across an institution to
achieve Best Practices.18

Definition of Best Practices in Public Health

The Interactive Domain Model (IDM) of Best Practices in Health Promotion and Public
Health defines Best Practices in the following manner:

“Best Practices in health promotion/public health are those sets of
processes and activities that are consistent with health promotion/public

17
For an example of best practices in the energy sector please refer to the U.S. Department of Energy—
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy-Industrial Technologies Program-Best Practices is a program
area within the Industrial Technologies Program (ITP) that supports ITP’s mission to improve the energy
intensity of the U.S. industrial sector through a coordinated program of research and development,
validation, and dissemination of energy-efficient technologies and practices.
http://1eere.energy.gov/industry/bestpractices/printable_version/about _bestpractices.html.
18
For more information about the World Health Organization’s Health Metrics Network, refer to the
website at http://www.who.int/healthmetrics/en.

11



health values, goals and ethics, theories and beliefs, evidence, and
understanding of the environment, and that are most likely to achieve
health promotion/public health in a given situation.” 19

The IDM definition of Best Practices is consistent with other approaches on the subject.
One, the IDM definition follows a knowledge-based standard of Best Practices with its
emphasis on “health values, goals and ethics, theories and beliefs, evidence and
understanding of the environment” in order to achieve optimal public health outcomes.
Additionally, the IDM approach also places a great deal of emphasis on policy-relevant
information. This definition emphasizes the cause and effect relationship between the
knowledge and optimal policy outcomes. Specifically, the definition focuses on the
attainment of two optimal policy outcomes that are consistent with existing public health
processes. 20

The World Health Organization’s Health Metrics Network (HMN)-Establishing Best
Practices in the Public Health Sector

The Health Metrics Network (HMN) strives “To increase the availability and use of
timely and accurate health information by catalyzing the joint funding and development
of core country health systems.”21 HMN’s harmonized framework plays an essential role
in setting common standards for health information systems. This framework helps to
define the types of systems that are needed at the country and global levels, including the
appropriate standards and measurements.

An important contribution of the HMN is its movement towards standardization.
Organizationally, this framework process plays an important role in promoting donor
alignment by fostering technical advances and disseminating experiences and good
practices through collaboration between partners. 22 The HMN serves as excellent
example of how an organization can promote Best Practices by harmonizing strategic
goals.23 After considering one sector’s efforts at establishing Best Practices, now lets turn
our attention to broader strategic frameworks for establishing Best Practices.

19
IDM Manuel for Best Practices for Better Health, Barbara Kahan and Michael Goodstadt, May, 2005 (3rd
edition).
20
For more information on the valuation of public health benefits as the result of air pollution reductions,
please read “Evaluating the Health Benefits of Air Pollution Reductions: Recent Developments at the U.S.
EPA, “Bryan J. Hubbell, prepared for the UK DETR/UN ECE Symposium on The Measurement and
Economic Valuation of Health Effects of Air Pollution London, Institute of Materials, February 19-20,
2001.
21
http://www.who.int/healthmetrics/about/whatishmn/en/print.html.
22
http://www.who.int.healthmetrics/about/whatistheevalueaddedofhmn/en/print.html.
23
Cost Benefit Analysis is an important evaluation tool for assessing policy performance. For more
information, please refer to the following presentation entitled, “Evolving Consideration of Co-Benefits in
U.S. Analyses of Environmental Regulation” US-Japan Workshop on Climate Actions and Developmental
Co-Benefits by Dr. Mark Heil, March 5, 2007.

12



Enabling Environments to promote the establishment of Co-Benefits for
Best Practices

Top-Down Approach to Best Practices for Co-Benefits

Strategic planning in decision making plays an important role in promoting Best Practices
for co-benefits. One author places strategic planning in the context of environmental
decision-making in the following manner: “One of our primary assertions is that advice
on best practices has to be thoroughly anchored in a larger strategic context of
developments in environmental management.”24 By taking a strategic approach we can
look at national systems, policies and programs and assess the role in which they play in
promoting Best Practices from a “Top-Down” perspective and then from a “Bottom-up”
perspective.

What is meant by a “Top-Down”Approach to Best Practices for co-benefits analysis?
For the purposes of this discussion, it refers to a broad set of strategic decisions that
promote or enhance environmental policy performance, thereby strengthening the
enabling environment.

Enabling environments are those factors and conditions that promote good governance
and policy development on a global or national scale. Their contribution to Best Practices
is especially important because we can consider those factors make it more favorable to
promote the development of Best Practices for co-benefits. Some of the factors that are
typically considered are legal/regulatory reform, energy and trade policy reform.

Each of these actions advances national systems to encourage better policy planning and
decision-making. In the context of the IES Program, the impact that the enabling
environment played in improving environmental outcomes was significant. For example,
Chile’s integrated planning to improve air quality through transportation measures was
largely driven by its accession to the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas and its
desire to comply with the trade agreement’s environmental side agreements. At the other
end of the spectrum, China’s use of a centrally-planned political structure has increased
the influence of environmental considerations in Chinese national economic planning. 25

24
“Managing the Environment—A Review of Best Practices,” Executive Summary-Executive Resource
Group, January 2001, p. 2.
25
For a more detailed analysis of the Chile and China case studies, the full text of the case studies can be
found at http:// www.epa.gov/ies.

13



Top-Down Approach to Strategic Policies
Which Promote Best Practices

Free Market Economies Centrally-Planned economies
Trade Policy (Chile) Command and Control policies (China)
Legal Reform
Environmental Regulations
Bureaucratic Re-organizations
Energy Policy Reform

—

Bottom-Up Approach to Best Practices for Co-Benefits Analysis

What is the impact of a “Bottom-Up” approach for establishing Best Practices for co-
benefits analysis? Again, in the context of energy and economic analysis, the term
“Bottom-Up Approach” carries with it a very specific set of assumptions and contextual
meaning. For the purposes of this discussion, this concept refers to a broad set of
decisions that are made at the local, regional and sub-national level to promote Best
Practices.

For example, the World Bank and other institutions have evaluated the performance of
several projects to improve environmental assistance programs over the past decade and a
half by focusing on key client countries. By examining the Bank’s role in assessing
changes in key indicators of environmental quality at the national, subnational levels,
one can draw several important conclusions that will have a positive impact on the
Bank’s lending operations that will promote Best Practices.26

Again, one can then turn to a project level assessment of successful measures that have
been effective. By assessing successful project level practices, one can make the case that
26
“Assessing the Effectiveness of World Bank Group Assistance for the Environment—Approach Paper,”
World Bank Group, July 5, 2006.

14



certain decisions can be optimized to improve country-level and sub-country level
assistance. Additionally, one can consider the design and performance of environmental
projects and components and the environmental aspects of other lending instruments.

Putting it all together—Mainstreaming Best Practices into the Policy
Development Process

In summary, this paper has considered several factors that promote the establishment of
Best Practices for co-benefits. One, we considered the importance of measurement in
identifying Best Practices for co-benefits. It was determined that indicators play an
important role in assisting both policymakers and technical advisers in measuring the
effectiveness of policy choices to promote co-benefits. Two, in considering the various
definitions of Best Practices and approaches to co-benefits, it was determined that both
knowledge-based and technology-based standards serve as important baseline standards
in establishing co-benefits. A knowledge-based and technology-based standard will also
promote innovative thinking. Three, organizational planning can play an important role in
establishing co-benefits. Here, we found that organizations that align themselves to
create dynamic decision-making processes are in the best position to make optional
decisions to promote Best Practices for co-benefits. The World Health Organization’s
Health Metrics Network is one such organization.

Most importantly, in order to incorporate fully Best Practices in to the policy
development process, they must become a policy planning tool. When considering Best
Practices as a policy planning tool, the goal will be to promote greater coordination and
alignment between the policy planning process and implementation.

In creating a standard for Best Practices for co-benefits, there are several factors to
consider and they provide opportunities for additional research:

• Greater alignment between the underlying disciplines and to promote greater
harmonization of methods, metrics and evaluation tools;
• Greater alignment between local development goals and national GHG mitigation
strategies;
• Greater alignment between policymaker and technical adviser;
• Greater alignment between policy inputs and outcomes for co-benefits;
• Greater alignment between organizational structure and performance and
outcomes.

15

2007 jpnwrksp bestpracticesfinalversionmmf

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