Communication and Dissemination Plan

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Communication and Dissemination Plan

THIRD EDITION

FLOODsite is co-funded by the European Community

Sixth Framework Programme for European Research and Technological Development (2002-2006) FLOODsite is an Integrated Project in the Global Change and Eco-systems Sub-Priority

Start date March 2004, duration 5 Years Document Dissemination Level

PU Public

PP Restricted to other programme participants (including the Commission Services) RE Restricted to a group specified by the consortium (including the Commission Services)

CO Confidential, only for members of the consortium (including the Commission Services) CO

Report Number

T28-05-02

Revision Number 6_1_P01

Co-ordinator: HR Wallingford, UK

Integrated Flood Risk Analysis

and Management Methodologies

Date

August 2007

Deliverable Number: D28.1

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D

OCUMENT

I

NFORMATION

Title Communication and Dissemination Plan

Lead Author Helen Udale-Clarke

Contributors Erik Mosselman, Mark Morris, Paul Samuels, Jonathan Simm

Distribution Project Team and Affiliates

Document Reference T28_05_02

D

OCUMENT

H

ISTORY

Date Revision Prepared by Organisation Approved by Notes

19/05/05 1_0_P12 EM TU Delft First rough outline

08/06/05 2_0_P01 MM HRW Notes for discussion by Theme 26/08/05 3_0_P01 HUC / MM HRW Initial draft for circulation to Theme

and Task Leaders and the Management Team

18/10/05 4_0_P01 HUC HRW Revised draft incorporating feedback

27/10/05 4_1_P01 MWM HRW Edits

28/10/05 4_2_P01 Paul Samuels HRW Additional information & corrections 10/02/06 4_3_P12 E Mosselman TU Delft Additional information

10/02/06 4_4_P01 MWM HRW Additional information / actions from 9/12/05

03/03/06 4_5_P12 E Mosselman TU Delft Edits after Braunschweig workshop 13/03/06 4_6_P12 E Mosselman TU Delft Recovery of corrupt file and further

edits after Braunschweig workshop 13/03/06 4_7_P01 Paul Samuels HRW Minor typographical corrections 07/12/06 5_0_P01 HUC HRW New summary, actions by task,

updated timings, draft structure for the public access website

19/12/06 5_1_P01 HUC HRW Minor amendments based on

feedback from Management Team 01/02/07 5_2_P01 HUC HRW Revised structure for public access

website

24/08/07 6_0_P01 HUC HRW Amendments to provide consistency with T28-05-01 Guidance and Procedure for Publication, Revision 2_5_P01 and update progress of C&D actions.

30/08/07 6_1_P01 HUC HRW AT Further amendments to bring plan up to date regarding website, plus minor typos

A

CKNOWLEDGEMENT

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D

ISCLAIMER

This document reflects only the authors’ views and not those of the European Community. This work may rely on data from sources external to the FLOODsite project Consortium. Members of the Consortium do not accept liability for loss or damage suffered by any third party as a result of errors or inaccuracies in such data. The information in this document is provided “as is” and no guarantee or warranty is given that the information is fit for any particular purpose. The user thereof uses the information at its sole risk and neither the European Community nor any member of the FLOODsite Consortium is liable for any use that may be made of the information.

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S

UMMARY

Most researchers in FLOODsite are very familiar with reporting and publishing their results in technical reports, conference proceedings and scientific papers. However, these forms of dissemination are not sufficient; as an integrated project at the service of the European citizen, FLOODsite must communicate and disseminate to a much wider audience than those with access to and the technical competency to understand these traditional means of dissemination.

The successful communication and dissemination of project outputs is a requirement for every project partner and a primary responsibility of each Task Leader. This Communication and Dissemination Plan has been prepared to assist the Task Leaders in this activity.

This Communication and Dissemination plan:

• Sets out the vision, principles and philosophy for Communication and Dissemination for the FLOODsite project.

• Identifies actions that will form part of the co-ordinated Communication and Dissemination activities for the project, recognising that these actions will be refined and co-ordinated more fully as the project progresses.

• Provides guidance to Task Leaders regarding how actions should be planned and undertaken. How should Task Leaders use this C&D Plan?

All Task Leaders are required to read this plan in detail.

Chapter 2 will familiarise you with the vision and the ten guiding principles for Communication and Dissemination for the FLOODsite project. These principles should be applied to all deliverables produced by every task.

Chapter 3 will help you to understand the definitions and objectives of dissemination, communication, uptake and implementation within the context of the FLOODsite project. A clear understanding of these terms is needed to interpret the remainder of the report effectively.

The first page of Chapter 4 lists the main stakeholder groups and types of activity. You need to understand which stakeholder groups you are targeting with each deliverable.

In Appendix D you will find a list of identified Communication and Dissemination actions for each task. These should not be considered as definitive, but should be expanded and/or rationalised as appropriate. Chapter 5 provides a step by step guide to planning Communication and Dissemination actions to assist with this. It should be noted that these actions are only those identified to date during the preparation of this plan and it remains the responsibility of Task Leaders to identify additional actions as appropriate.

What’s new in this third edition?

The Communication and Dissemination Plan has been updated to reflect the current status of Communication and Dissemination actions being undertaken by Tasks and to provide consistency with the August 2007 revision of report T28-05-01 “Guidance and Procedure for Publication”. This has resulted in the following changes:

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2. Timings or timing issues for actions have been updated (in main report and in Appendix D), based on information provided by Tasks.

3. There are slight modifications to actions (in main report and in Appendix D), based on new understanding of task activities. (No new actions have been identified since the second edition of this plan.)

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C

ONTENTS Document Information ii Document History ii Acknowledgement ii Disclaimer iii Summary v Contents vii 1. Introduction ... 1

1.1 Why is a Communication and Dissemination Plan needed?... 1

1.2 Why do we need to plan now? ... 1

1.3 Who is our audience?... 1

1.4 Who should communicate?... 1

1.5 Purpose of this Communication and Dissemination Plan ... 2

1.6 Structure of this Document ... 2

1.6.1 Main Report... 2

1.6.2 Appendices ... 2

2. Vision and Principles of the Communication and Dissemination Plan ... 3

2.1 The FLOODsite vision for Communication and Dissemination... 3

2.2 Guiding Principles of Communication and Dissemination... 3

2.3 Guidance on the Principles ... 4

3. Four Stages to Implementation... 6

3.1 Definitions... 6

3.1.1 Dissemination ... 6

3.1.2 Communication ... 7

3.1.3 Uptake... 7

3.1.4 Implementation... 8

3.2 Maximising Uptake and Implementation... 8

4. Identified Actions ... 9

4.1 Project Reports... 11

4.2 Journal Papers ... 12

4.3 Conferences... 14

4.4 Website and Email ... 16

4.5 Pilot Studies ... 17

4.6 Teaching Material and Courses... 20

4.7 Public Media ... 21

5. Future Planning of Actions... 22

5.1 The Co-ordinator... 22

5.2 Steps in Planning Actions ... 22

5.2.1 Identify the target audiences... 22

5.2.2 Determine the actions ... 22

5.2.3 Design the message ... 23

5.2.4 Select suitable dissemination/communication channels ... 23

5.2.5 Establish time-frame, resources, quality control and budget... 23

5.2.6 Prioritise actions and expected effectiveness ... 24

5.2.7 Decide on the combination of actions to be carried out ... 25

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5.2.9 Measure the results ... 25

5.2.10 Modify, adapt or change remaining actions, if required... 25

6. Public Area of the Website ... 26

7. References and bibliography ... 28

Appendix A Communication and Dissemination Activities (Table 1)... 30

Appendix B Supply Chains for Activities ... 34

Appendix C Stakeholder Contacts ... 39

Appendix D Communication and Dissemination Actions listed by Task ... 40

Tables

Table 1 Communication and Dissemination Activities 31

Figures

Figure 1 Four stages to implementation 6

Figure 2 How not to communicate 7

Figure 3 Matrix of interaction between pilot studies and scientific tasks 19

Figure 4 Supply Chain for Project Reports 35

Figure 5 Supply Chain for Journal Papers 35

Figure 6 Supply Chain for Conferences 36

Figure 7 Supply Chain for Website and Emails 36

Figure 8 Supply Chain for Pilot Studies 37

Figure 9 Supply Chain for Teaching Material and Courses 37

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1. Introduction

1.1 Why is a Communication and Dissemination Plan needed?

At the media event on 11-12 May 2004, there were several references by the European Commission (EC) officers involved that each Sixth Framework Programme Integrated Project or Network of Excellence will need to communicate their results outside the normal dissemination routes of research and development (R&D) reports, journal papers, etc. Some speakers commented that because the EC research is public money there is an obligation to tell the public what their money has produced. In any case communication is now a contractual requirement.

There is a difference between Communication and Dissemination for this project. Dissemination covers the traditional routes of putting our research results into the public domain, and particularly in front of the professional and research communities who can benefit from our advances. Communication of our results, however, is a much broader activity. We must be active in stimulating broad, popular interest in what we have done, emphasising its importance as a scientific advance and for potential application to the benefit of all citizens of Europe. Communication is much more active than just establishing the project website as a window to the world on the project. Communication requires a partnership with professionals in the communication media – newspapers, magazines, specialist press, TV, radio, internet news, etc. The EC contract places upon us the necessity to engage the public and especially the young in what we do. This of course may require us to acquire new skills in popularising our science and technology.

More detailed descriptions of Communication and Dissemination are provided in Section 3.1. 1.2 Why do we need to plan now?

We should not wait until the latter stages of the project before we consider what issues should be communicated publicly. We need to plan our communication from the outset of the project. Potential topics for a communication activity are:

• completion of a milestone; • publication of significant result;

• opening of a scheme in a Pilot application site; and

• a field measurement programme using video of the measurement. 1.3 Who is our audience?

We will not have a single audience, but many. We need to identify the audience for a particular message and tailor our results to the profile (public, professional, academic etc.) of the recipients. We need also to identify what we want to communicate, the intended outcome of the communication process and the motivation for the recipient to partake in the process. If, for example, the communication is intended to raise public awareness of our work, we may need to compete with other uses of their leisure time, for example other TV stations apart from the one with our message.

The EC lays particular importance on engaging the next generation of potential scientists in seeing science and technology as a worthwhile and valued occupation.

1.4 Who should communicate?

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All the project partners must be involved in the broader communication of their work, drawing upon the broader context of the project partnership where appropriate. All partners should take the initiative in seeding articles, reports, interviews, etc. in their national media. In addition all partners need to identify what constraints their institution may place upon the Dissemination and Communication of project outcomes.

Communication has the important additional function of building social relations. Those form the corner stone of any successful implementation of integrated flood risk analysis and management methodologies within the European organizations responsible for risk and water management.

1.5 Purpose of this Communication and Dissemination Plan The purpose of this plan is:

• To lay down the vision, principles and philosophy for Communication and Dissemination for FLOODsite project;

• To identify actions that will form part of the co-ordinated Communication and Dissemination activities for the project, recognising that these actions will be scoped and co-ordinated more fully as the project progresses; and

• To provide guidance to Task Leaders regarding how actions should be planned and undertaken.

It has been recognised that some activities are essential for the successful completion of the project. Other activities are aspirational outcomes of the project, which might be undertaken by those beyond the project as part of the adoption of best practices, etc. In general, this project will provide generic guidance and tools regarding these latter activities based on lessons learnt from the pilot studies or collated from other sources, which can be interpreted locally for application as appropriate.

The purpose of this plan is to identify those former activities that are required for the successful completion of the project, recognising that there is limited budget and time.

1.6 Structure of this Document 1.6.1 Main Report

Chapter 2 presents the vision and principles for Communication and Dissemination for the

FLOODsite project.

Chapter 3 discusses the four stages from Dissemination to Implementation and provides

definitions that are used in the remainder of the plan.

Chapter 4 lists the types of Communication and Dissemination activities identified by this plan

and the specific actions identified to date to enable these activities to be undertaken.

Chapter 5 provides guidance on how actions should be scoped and undertaken during the

remainder of the project.

Chapter 6 summarises some of the new pages available via the public area of the website.

1.6.2 Appendices

Appendix A consists of a table (Table 1) that presents a complete picture of the Communication and Dissemination activities listed in Chapter 4.

Appendix B presents a series of supply chain models identifying the main groups that contribute to

or benefit from different Communication and Dissemination activities.

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2. Vision and Principles of the Communication and Dissemination Plan

2.1 The FLOODsite vision for Communication and Dissemination

As a consortium, we will optimise our Dissemination and Communication within and beyond the

FLOODsite project to stimulate uptake and implementation of our outputs.1

2.2 Guiding Principles of Communication and Dissemination

We will use the following guiding principles in all our Dissemination and Communication activities:

The 10 principles of Communication and Dissemination

1. Keep it simple – We will keep our outputs as simple as possible to maximise readability and understanding for the audience.

2. Audience centred – We will design our activities and outputs for the intended audience. 3. Fulfil contract requirements – We will ensure our activities and outputs will deliver our

contractual requirements.

4. Co-ordinated – We will co-ordinate our activities and outputs in a suite of Communication and Dissemination actions defined by the FLOODsite project.

5. Timely – We will communicate our results as early as possible, in accordance with our

Communication and Dissemination Plan, but without jeopardising the successful completion of other parts of the project.

6. Control of quality and content – We will review all outputs as appropriate for quality and content.

7. Disclaimer – All project outputs will include an appropriate disclaimer of liability.

8. Version control – All documents will include a unique reference number and version number. 9. Acknowledgement – All outputs will include appropriate acknowledgements of the project

funder, authors (with name and organisation) and contributors.

10. No plagiarism – We will seek permission to use, with acknowledgement, all material originating from others, whether or not they are participating in the project.

1

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2.3 Guidance on the Principles

Public communication of our work will involve expressing sometimes complex ideas to an audience that is not used to technical terminology. Some potential means of expressing ourselves in an accessible way include the following:

• Translating any jargon;

• Telling the story of why we are doing the research;

• Telling the story of how our measurements or experiments are done;

• Using imaginary scenarios to explain how our results might be used or what impact it will have on people’s lives;

• Engaging with the emotions of the audience;

• Using everyday objects or notions to relate the scale of our work, such as the size of a bus or house or the number of people affected is like the population of Brussels, the length of embankments in Europe could stretch to the moon and back so many times.

2. Audience centred – We will design our activities and outputs for the intended audience. Details of how this will be achieved are provided in Chapter 3 of this plan.

3. Fulfil contract requirements – We will ensure our activities and outputs will deliver our contractual requirements.

References to required deliverables are provided throughout this plan.

Currently identified actions are presented in Chapter 4 of this plan. Chapter 4 also goes some way towards identifying the links between actions. However, it is identified that more detailed co-ordination will be required during the project, as actions are scoped in more detail.

Chapter 4 also goes some way towards identifying the timing of actions. However, more detailed programming of actions will be required during the project, as actions are scoped in more detail. 6. Control of quality and content – We will review all outputs as appropriate for quality and

content.

7. Disclaimer – All project outputs will include an appropriate disclaimer of liability.

8. Version control – All documents will include a unique reference number and version number. 9. Acknowledgement – All outputs will include appropriate acknowledgements of the project

funder, authors (with name and organisation) and contributors.

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3. Four Stages to Implementation

It is important to note the broader context in which Communication and Dissemination are placed. Four stages can be used to illustrate the process of Implementation, as illustrated in the figure below.

Figure 1 Four stages to implementation

The structure and funding of the FLOODsite project permits varying degrees of Dissemination and Communication, but excludes specific Uptake and Implementation activities. However, by recognising these limitations, efforts will be made to ensure that the Dissemination and Communication actions are as effective as possible in promoting Uptake and Implementation.

This limitation upon the FLOODsite project is a natural result of undertaking research at a European Level, where maximum value is obtained through the production of ‘generic’ deliverables that subsequently may be used (via Uptake and Implementation) by many different national organisations. It is likely that the process of national Uptake and Implementation will require a degree of effort to mesh the generic deliverables into specific national frameworks. As indicated in Figure 1, the FLOODsite Application and Implementation Board (AIB) members will help to facilitate uptake and implementation of the research outcomes within the context of their national responsibilities. Further discussion regarding maximising Uptake and Implementation can be found in Section 3.2.

3.1 Definitions

Dissemination, Communication, Uptake and Implementation are very commonly used terms, but are often interpreted in different ways. For the purposes of clarity, the following definitions are used in this C&D Plan:

3.1.1 Dissemination

Definition: Dissemination is the presentation of information to an audience for them to take up as they wish. It is the role of the audience to get hold of the information and there is no subsequent interaction with the originators of the outputs.

FLOODsite objective: The objective of Dissemination for the FLOODsite project is to raise awareness of project activities, project outputs and outcomes, by putting research results and best practice guidance into the public domain.

Examples: Websites, mail shots, reports, scientific papers, brochures, posters, advertising, news Communication

Dissemination Uptake Implementation

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3.1.2 Communication

Definition: Communication (or dialogue) is the act of imparting or exchanging information, which involves direct participation of the audience with the originators of the information and involves the audience offering feedback to demonstrate a level of appreciation or understanding.

FLOODsite objective: The objective of Communication for the FLOODsite project is to enable others to contribute to project activities, influence project outputs, adopt project outputs, be involved in project outcomes, learn from the project, etc. The contract requires us to engage not only the professional community, but also the public including the young in what we are doing. However, this needs to be in a co-ordinated and timely fashion; no activity should be undertaken unless there is a clearly defined objective.

Examples: Training, discussion forums, conferences (question and answer sessions), activities with local groups, links or partnering with other R&D projects and initiatives, etc. In general, face to face activities are likely to be the most successful.

Key issues: Both sides of the communication activity need to adopt approaches that are compatible with each other. The audience is best placed to tell the originators what they need, but the originators need to ask the right people the right questions in the right format in the first place. Therefore, it has to be accepted that there may be a few iterations in this process and this is why communication activities need to be planned out well in advance to be effective. Communication activities will also require facilitating by the project and the use of appropriate language, media, etc. identified by the process described above are essential for successful facilitation.

Figure 2 How not to communicate

3.1.3 Uptake

Definition: Uptake is the result of successful dissemination or communication activities, whereby the audience undertakes an evident change in behaviour by incorporating the knowledge they have gained in methods of working, design processes or similar.

FLOODsite objective: The FLOODsite project excludes specific Uptake activities. However, this does not mean that we will ignore the need to help stimulate uptake, which we will endeavour to encourage through the dissemination and communication activities (see the FLOODsite vision for dissemination and communication).

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3.1.4 Implementation

Definition: Implementation is an extension of uptake, which transforms a willingness on the part of the audience to undertake a change in behaviour into a formal part of working practices.

FLOODsite objective: Again, the FLOODsite project excludes specific Implementation activities. However, this does not mean that we will ignore the need to help stimulate implementation, which we will endeavour to encourage through the dissemination and communication activities (see the FLOODsite vision for dissemination and communication).

Examples: Outputs become formalised in working practices within an organisation, professional institutions accept the outputs as best practice or even demand adoption by organisations.

3.2 Maximising Uptake and Implementation

As introduced above, maximising Uptake and Implementation requires specific effort beyond Dissemination and Communication. This effort may be broken down into a number of stages (as shown below). To achieve Implementation with any particular stakeholder it requires the stakeholder to progress through each of these stages. If Communication ceases at any point during this process, the stakeholder would typically slip back down the stages.

1. Building realistic expectations

2. Clear framework of outcomes and awareness of gaps being filled 3. Uptake champions (with suitable support materials)

4. Provide information in appropriate media 5. Involvement in work (ownership)

6. Involvement in Pilot Sites

7. Lessons learned and before/after comparisons with regard to Pilot Site outcomes

8. Reality workshops solving real (user brought) problems.

As stated earlier, this is best achieved with appropriate facilitation provided by the originators, but direct facilitation is beyond the scope of the FLOODsite project. Therefore, the project will endeavour to “lead the way” by the following means:

• Design Dissemination and Communication activities, which will be undertaken within the project, with Uptake and Implementation in mind;

• Provide examples of Uptake and Implementation through the collaborative work undertaken for the pilot sites (see below); and

• Provide recommendations for future actions or parallel work outside of the FLOODsite project to assist with the facilitation, possibly involving other parties who are better able or placed to guide organisations through the processes of Uptake and Implementation.

Within the FLOODsite Project, Tasks 21-27 relate to seven Pilot Sites covering rivers, estuaries and coasts across a range of countries. The function of these Pilot Site tasks is not only to provide a means to test an apply tools and methodologies being developed by some of the other tasks, but to provide sites where real and effective interaction between the research and development work and industry needs and practice may take place.

Low Level of Communication

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4. Identified Actions

In order to be confident that we have best identified our target audiences, we first need to develop a “world view” and then refine actions to target the most effective areas and appropriate methods. It is unreasonable to expect the project to target everyone and we need to manage people’s expectations. Therefore, it is important to identify who we will and will not target (effectively in the form of a disclaimer), whilst recognising that there will be some “scatter” beyond the target audience (with some activities being better at this than others).

Selection of target audiences needs to be based on identifying the desired outcome in relation to benefiting the project and benefiting the audience. To a certain extent this is achieved by categorising activities into Dissemination or Communication. However, this can be expanded as the actions are developed.

Table 1 in Appendix A undertakes this process, recognising that planning for certain actions or the actions themselves have already started, whilst others have not and although aspirational might yet be excluded from the project. Details of specific actions that have already been planned for are provided in this chapter.

We have identified seven main stakeholder groups within Flood Risk Management (FRM): • Research Team, i.e. the FLOODsite project team

• Research Community, beyond FLOODsite

• Practitioners, including flood defence regulators and operators, emergency planners and services

• Policy makers, who set regulatory, legislative and other decision-making frameworks (and are separate from the FRM professionals who work within these frameworks). Policy makers are likely to be national, regional and local government authorities

• Academic Community, which differs from the Research Community in its (additional) focus on teaching and training

• Local Groups, including Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs), community groups, etc. • General Public, with special attention for the next generation of potential scientists at

secondary schools

There are also seven main “Types of Activity”:

• Project Reports i.e. Major Deliverables as listed in the Description of Work, other technical reports, Annual Activity and Management Reports to the EC, Research Implementation Plan Reports, miscellaneous project guidance.

• Journal Papers i.e. refereed journal articles that form the longer-term set of reference material about the scientific outcomes from the project. Conference papers are considered separately (see conferences).

• Conferences including papers, presentations, posters, leaflets, etc. • Websites and Email

• Pilot Studies

• Teaching Material and Courses

• Public Media including newsletters, articles for television, radio, newspapers, magazines, etc. and posters and leaflets for exhibitions, road shows, etc.

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report T28-05-01 regarding the publication of research theses and dissertations, which are not covered in this plan.

Appendix B provides a series of diagrams (supply chains) that show in summary how the main stakeholder groups interact with each of the main types of activities.

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4.1 Project Reports

Summary of activities from Appendix A

No. Target Audience Type of Activity Form of Media Producer in Project

2c FRM Research

Community

Technical Reports All tasks

3b FRM Practitioners Guidance Documents

Text based material paper based and digital/navigable versions

Task 29

Identified actions

Ref Action Objective Responsibility Timing

1 Review overall goals of

DoW and decide upon format of reports / guidance then provide guidance to theme / task leaders

regarding nature of outputs required i.e. content of “text boxes”

To maximise team efficiency by defining the nature and content of material supplied from tasks / themes to Task 29 for subsequent editing into Reports and Guidance material

Lead Frans Klijn + Task 29 team + close consultation with Task 28 Content agreed, contact with task leaders regarding text boxes by Nov 07 2 Develop facilities on

website for dissemination of material as soon as it becomes available

Open access / dissemination of material as early as possible

Task 28 Mark Morris

System is live

3 Confirm options and

preference for publication of guidance (e.g. Publisher, via EA/Defra, etc.)

[Also see the Flood Risk Management Research Consortium (FRMRC) notes re. potential scope of formats e.g. User focussed briefing sheets – contact P Samuels]

Clear route to publication and quality control

Frans Klijn – Task 29 Team Currently in discussion with possible publisher

4 Review project schedule and

build indicative programme of deliverables

To advise (team and public) what, when and where outputs will be delivered.

Frans Klijn – Task 29 team

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4.2 Journal Papers

2b FRM Research

Community

Papers for Journals Text for journals with

full paper on the website (where copyright remains with the authors) or abstract and link on website (where copyright is with the publisher)

All Tasks + Task 32 review

Identified actions

1 Encourage all team members

to publish and provide framework to do so, including: a) recommended list of journals b) format of acknowledgement and disclaimer

c) process for review and approval

d) process for validation by FLOODsite Management Team

Note: format of papers will probably be set by the publisher.

Targeted and widespread publications to a high standard EM / MWM Task 28 to provide specifications (drawn from boards) Provided in T28-05-01 Guidance and Procedure for Publication

2 Provide facility on web for

storing and access to all FLOODsite papers

Maximise access to papers Mark Morris

Task 28

System is live

3 Monitor / record paper

production

Determine effectiveness of dissemination

[EC reporting requirement]

Jackie Bushell Task 35

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Proposed key outlets for scientific dissemination of the project as a whole Management

domain

Name Website Source

Geography:

Rivers Journal: International

Journal of River Basin Management

http://www.jrbm.net/pages/ Schanze & Hutter Conf.: River Flow

2006, 2008 http://www.riverflow2006.org/ http://www.riverflow2008.org/ Mosselman Coasts and Estuaries Journal: Coastal Engineering http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journalde scription.cws_home/503325/description#des cription Reeve Kortenhaus & Borga Conf.: ICCE 2006, 2008 www.coastal.udel.edu/coastal/icce/cerc.html www.icce2006.com/ http://icce2008.hamburg.baw.de/ Reeve Kortenhaus & Borga

Land Journal: Engineering

Landscape and Urban Planning

Tapsell

Conf.: to be identified

Risk Journal: Natural

Hazards http://www.springer.com/uk/home/geograph y?SGWID=3-40362-70-35533100-0&teaserId=66692&CENTER_ID=135189 Harvey Kortenhaus & Borga Conf.: International Conference on Flood Risk http://www.ima.org.uk/Conferences/flood07 .htm Reeve Journal: Journal of Flood Risk Management http://www.blackwellpublishing.com/submit .asp?ref=1753-318X Andy Tagg Engineering

Rivers Journal of Water

Management

http://www.ice.org.uk/services/services_jour nals.asp

Paul Samuels

Coastal Journal of Maritime

Engineering

http://www.ice.org.uk/services/services_jour nals.asp

Paul Samuels

Rivers Journal of Hydraulic

Engineering

http://pubs.asce.org/journals/hydraulic/defau lt.htm

Paul Samuels

Coastal Journal of Waterway,

Port, Coastal, and Ocean Engineering

http://pubs.asce.org/journals/waterwayetc/ Paul Samuels

Hydraulic Engineerng

Journal of Hydraulic Research

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4.3 Conferences

2d FRM Research

Community

3c FRM Practitioners

Conferences Posters, leaflets,

videos Task 32 and 35 2e FRM Research Community 3d FRM Practitioners Conferences Papers/presentations with copies on website

All Tasks + Task 35 prompt

Identified actions

1 Facilitate FLOODsite

member representation at key conferences – simple

extension of web Meetings and Events (M&E) tool

Maximise representation at conferences and events

Mark Morris Task 28

System is live

to submit papers to conferences and provide framework to do so, including:

a) format of

acknowledgement and disclaimer

b) process for review and approval

c) process for validation by FLOODsite Management Team

Targeted conferences and events EM / MWM Task 28 to provide specifications (drawn from boards) Provided in T28-05-01 Guidance and Procedure for Publication

2 Provide facility on web for

storage and access to all FLOODsite conference papers and presentations, via the M&E tool

Maximise access to papers and presentations

Mark Morris Task 28

System is live

to use the M&E facility for wider, FLOODsite related events. Email / newsletter

Team uptake of M&E tool to promote coordinated approach to conferences

Paul Samuels Task 35

Ongoing

4 Monitor / record conference

attendance and presentations

Determine effectiveness of dissemination

[EC reporting requirement]

Jackie Bushell Task 35

System is live

5 Support the creation of

Young FLOODsite within the FLOODsite project team,

To facilitate team working and links between younger research members

Management Team

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6 Participation in the EC’s annual “Communicating European Research” conferences (see below for details of modes of

participation)

To promote science communication between scientists, communication professionals and journalists and to fulfil contractual obligations to the EC

Coordinator to prompt

As organised by EC

7 Team member may organise

speciality conferences. E.g. “Extreme flooding and erosion events. Are they really increasing?”

Respond to current

concerns; e.g. deal with the growing concern by coastal and river populations that extreme events are

becoming more frequent due to a regional change in climate Probably Task Leader or Theme Leader. As agreed by the project management team.

Communicating European Research

The European Commission's Directorate-General for Research organises annual “Communicating European Research” conferences with the aim to promote science communication. The 2005 conference specified two possible modes of participation:

• Participant's Forum = Organisation of our own event (such as a workshop, a roundtable or a network meeting) within the framework of the meeting;

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4.4 Website and Email

1a News Bulletins Email and website Task 32

1c

Research Team

Individual contacts Email All Tasks

2a FRM Research

Community

3a FRM Practitioners

Public eNews Email with

registration on website Task 32 4a Academic Community Secondary school curriculum

Available on website Task 31

5a Local Groups Guidance notes Website Theme 4 Task 32

6b General Public Information on

specific projects/pilot studies

Website Theme 4 Task 31

Identified actions

1 Maintain and develop

project website To facilitate dissemination, team communication, project management Mark Morris Task 32 Ongoing (Primary Tool)

2 Monitor use of the website

Quarterly reports to the MT

To determine who and how

the website is being used

how may dissemination & communication be

improved?

Mark Morris Task 32

Ongoing

3 Regular team newsletters +

periodic public newsletters

To promote team working and maintain awareness

Ongoing

4 Increase public registration

on website.

Widen direct email links with each of the identified user communities Paul Samuels Task 35 (plus Management Team) Ongoing

5 Review likely outputs from

FLOODsite and identify which products may be suited to online animation / demonstration. Draw up indicative programme (RIP – Task 30)

Maximise value of

interactive / animated web examples of FLOODsite deliverables Dimitri Solomatine Task 30 Indicative programme completed Review is ongoing 6 Develop a web-enabled

interactive platform (WIP) or web-based flood game – develop strategy and programme

To provide interactive examples of knowledge and tools from FLOODsite

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4.5 Pilot Studies

3f FRM Practitioners Partnering with

Research Team (pilot studies)

Face to face Theme 4 + other

Tasks 4b Academic Community Primary and Secondary School Projects

Text material and face to face

Theme 4 + other Tasks

5a Guidance Notes Text material,

leaflets, website

Theme 4 + Task 32 5b

Local Groups

Partnering with Research Team (pilot studies)

Face to face Theme 4 + other

Tasks

6b General Public Local Projects Exhibitions, website,

leaflets, posters

Theme 4 + Task 31

Identified actions

1 Each Pilot leader to review

opportunities within their pilot to communicate, promote and disseminate through their pilot activities (see paragraph below regarding planning).

Initial review coordinated by Leader Theme 4.

Also review by all Task leaders to identify any other opportunities (e.g. Tasks 11/13 may offer specific opportunities)

To maximise the links with various communities offered via Pilot sites. Establish potential and then implement.

Where possible use should be made of the pilot sites as a means for scoping existing C&D practice and for testing any new approaches. JS Leader Theme 4 To be agreed with Theme Leader

2 Produce strategy for

development and trialing of exhibition material [noting that material must be designed for maximum use by all partners, different audiences, etc.]

To a) undertake exhibition, but more importantly b) include monitoring of effectiveness of approach (i.e. use this as an

opportunity to research the effectiveness of this approach to C&D) Marco Borga Task 31 (linking to educational material) Linking to Task 23 To be agreed with Theme Leader

The importance of planning

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learn from the experience of previous projects such as the EC project Floodscape that produced a

Communications Audit.2

Testing approaches to communication and dissemination

Use will be made of the pilot sites as a means for scoping existing communication and dissemination practice and for testing any new approaches. We aim at a strong two-way interaction between the best practice guidance (Task 29) and the tasks of the pilot studies. The following tasks seem suitable for pilot studies on dissemination and communication:

• Task 11 “Risk perception, community behaviour and social resilience”: community surveys in Mulde river basin (Germany) and Adige river basin (Italy) + re-analysis of existing UK survey data. These surveys might include aspects of communication.

• Task 13 “Investigation of integrated strategies considering planning and communicative instruments; Activity 2, Action 3: case study on Adige river (link with Tasks 11 and Task 31).

• Task 22 “Pilot study of the River Tisza”; Part C: Raising public awareness and public participation by risk communication, stakeholder involvement, etc.

End user engagement

The pilot site studies (along with AIB) offer the best routes for active engagement with end users. The quality is assured in the following ways:

• C&D activities should be specified in the RIPs of the pilot site studies, from Year 3 onward. In this way C&D becomes included automatically when evaluating task progress against the RIP.

• The use of the C&D Plan will be monitored in the quarterly progress reports from Year 3 onward through specific questions, to ensure that end user engagement is routinely considered by all task leaders.

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FLOODsite - Integrated Flood Risk Analysis and Management Methodologies

T 22 T 24 T 25 T 26 T 27 Contr. to

Tisza River Thames River Scheldt River Ebro River Delta German Bight Del./

Basin Estuary Estuary Coast Coast Mst.

TaskMethods/Knowledge Mo ld aw a M u ld e L o w l. E lb e C ev en n es A d ig e B es o s A rd en n es

Theme 1 Advancing scientific knowledge … Sub-theme 1.1 Hazard (Risk Sources)

T 1 Hydrological models for extreme flash floods in ungauged basins

X/? X X X

T 2 Models for (statistical)/joint probability analysis of extreme event data

? ? ? X ?

T 3 Techniques for mapping flood hazards ? X X

Sub-th. 1.2 Hazard (Risk Pathways)

T 4 Failure mode analysis ? X X X (X) X

T 5 Model tools for morphological changes at coasts X X

T 6 Improved models for breach initiation and growth X X ? X

T 7 Methodology for reliability analysis ? ? X ? X

T 8 Numercial inundation models X X X X

Sub-th. 1.3 Vulnerability (Receptors, consequences)

T 9 Flood damage evaluation methods X X X X/? X X X X

T 10 Methodologies for GIS-based multi-criteria evaluation of flood damages

X X X X ? ? X X X

T 11 Risk perception, community behaviour and social resilience

X X X

Theme 2 Innovative mitigation … Sub-th. 2.1 Pre-flood measures

T 12 Methodology for ex-post evaluation of pre-flood and flood event measures and instruments (ex-post EFM)

X X X

T 13 Strategies for pre-flood risk management in case studies

X X X

T 14 Scenario development and analysis X X X X

Sub-th. 2.2 Flood event measures

T 15 Theoretical and operational assessment of the SAS efficiency

X X X X X

T 16 Methods for evaluation flash-flood at regional level ? X X T 17 Open system model integrationframework for 2-D

inundation modelling

X X

Theme 3 Framework for Integration

T 18 Developing t specification of a prototype DSS (long-term planning)

X X X

T 19 Developing t specification of a prototype DSS (event management)

X X

T 20 Uncertainty propagation software ? ? X X X

Methods/Knowledge and their site-specific developing and testing in the Pilots

Elbe River T 21 Basin Pilots T 23 Flash flood Basins

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4.6 Teaching Material and Courses

3e FRM Practitioners Commercial training

courses

Text based material and supporting software, face to face

Task 31

4a Secondary School

Curriculum

Text based material and supporting software, website Task 31 4c Academic Community

University Lectures Text based material

and supporting software, face to face

Task 31

Identified actions

1 Produce summary of

material and courses (scheduled under Task 31) for promotion via web.

Dissemination of planned work Marco Borga Task 31 Link Jochen Schanze – FLOODMaster Note 1 2 Provide FLOODsite

partners with an opportunity to feedback on proposed material type / content / availability. Identify interested partners and opportunities for

widespread use of material.

Maximise value of material to all partners and wider users

Marco Borga Task 31

Note 1

3 Produce public education

material (e.g. a summary report or brochure) to be used in schools (probably targeting 16-18 year age range) and for the bachelor degrees at universities, but also suited for educated lay-people

To address the issues around flooding and flood risk management at their level

Frans Klijn Task 29 In close consultation with Task 31 Note 1

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4.7 Public Media

6a General Public News articles TV, Radio,

Newspapers

Task 35 + Task 32

Identified actions

1 Encourage all team

members to work with wider media in promoting

FLOODsite work and monitor

To assess degree of communication via public media to report to EC and revise approach (if necessary)

Ongoing

2 To provide basic publicity

material (printed and web) to support Action 1 above.

Professional material to aid communication

Mark Morris Task 32

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5. Future Planning of Actions

5.1 The Co-ordinator

The Co-ordinator (i.e. Paul Samuels, HR Wallingford) is in a sense the figurehead for the whole team and so must take a prominent (but not exclusive) role in the communication of the project results. Thus the Co-ordinator with assistance from his team (Deputy Co-ordinator Mark Morris and Administrator Jackie Bushell) will undertake the following:

• Lead the definition of the Communication and Dissemination Plan; • Agree the communication strategy with the EC;

• Encourage all partners in their efforts in communication; • Collate the statistics on communication activities;

• Collate central resources on the project website from all partners’ communication events as a library for others to use;

• Collate a library of useful photographs, video, diagrams, etc.;

• Identify useful results as the basis for technical and general articles and other dissemination media;

• Identify appropriate EC activities that could be a venue or vehicle for communicating the project activities – e.g. the annual European Science Week; and

• Issue press releases on behalf of the project team. 5.2 Steps in Planning Actions

A series of steps should be undertaken to plan communication and dissemination actions. The following list is an expansion on the UK Environment Agency R&D Technical Report W5G – 003, (Leggett and Elliott, 2002):

1. Identify the target audiences and the reason for dissemination or communication

2. Determine the actions

3. Design the message

4. Select suitable dissemination/communication channels

5. Establish time-frame, resources, quality control and budget

6. Prioritise actions based on the above and expected effectiveness

7. Decide on the combination of actions to be carried out

8. Undertake the actions

9. Measure the results

10. Modify, adapt or change remaining actions, if required

These steps are described in more detail below. 5.2.1 Identify the target audiences

The target audiences have been identified in general terms in this plan. As each Task Leader plans communication and dissemination actions in more detail, specific audiences should be identified. 5.2.2 Determine the actions

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5.2.3 Design the message

Designing the message should be based around the following principles of communication and dissemination:

2. Audience centred – We will design our activities and outputs for the intended audience. 3. Fulfil contract requirements – We will ensure our activities and outputs will deliver our

contractual requirements.

5.2.4 Select suitable dissemination/communication channels

As discussed in Section 3.1.2, it is important to ensure that appropriate channels are used for dissemination and communication activities. The suitability of different forms of media will depend on the type of message that is to be conveyed and the target audience. When planning actions it may be necessary to undertake some background research into the media proposed where these are not particularly familiar to the project team, for example radio, TV, newspapers, magazines and museums. It should also be borne in mind that appropriate channels of dissemination/communication will change as the relationship with the audience develops (or declines).

5.2.5 Establish time-frame, resources, quality control and budget Timing

As the actions presented in this plan are expanded and scoped more fully, it will be necessary to identify:

• Which project tasks (or sub-tasks) are on the critical path before communication and

dissemination actions can be undertaken?

• How far have some actions already been taken?

• Which actions overlap so that the effectiveness can be maximised for minimum budget?

In particular, pilot studies are likely to be very important for both undertaking communication and dissemination actions, but also to provide feedback to influence subsequent actions.

In identifying a programme of actions, it is also important to take into consideration the target audiences’ availability and the time required to learn about an output.

Resources

There are principally two types of resources to be considered: material that can be used for dissemination and communication activities and the people involved.

Examples of resource materials that will be collated during the project include:

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• Posters, leaflets, CD, video in non-specialist language

• Project website, which is well indexed on Google and other major search engines • Overview information on the project

• Overview information on the problem that we address at the European scale

Many of the project partners are “experts” at writing technical reports, disseminating results via journals and conferences, etc. but less of us have experience of communicating with the public media, school children or the public in general. When resourcing people to particular actions, the following questions should be borne in mind:

• Who will deliver the messages?

• Do the project team members within the relevant task have the appropriate experience? • Can experience from team members from other tasks be used?

• Can actions from different tasks be linked together to reduce resource requirements?

• Which end users should be involved in further development of the communication and dissemination actions?

• Which end users would be interested in being involved? • How long will it take to get involvement?

Task Leaders should consider the possibility of using champions external to the project to promote key messages. For example, in the UK this could be the Environment Agency, Defra, key people within the Joint Programme, etc. The earlier the consideration of such involvement the better, so that sufficient time can be invested in getting this right. Champions should also only be involved in a co-ordinated manner. Therefore, it is essential that all suggested champions are reviewed and agreed with the Management Team and FLOODsite Co-ordinator.

Quality control

Guidance on the quality control of publications is provided in T28-05-01 Guidance and Procedure for Publication.

For other types of actions, it is important to identify which organisations need to approve or at least buy-in to the actions and what are the logistics of getting their involvement. For example, when developing teaching material consideration should be made regarding the involvement of education authorities and examining boards.

Budget

The costs of organising and participating in dissemination and communication activities should not be underestimated. All too often this is overlooked during the early stages of a project and insufficient budget remains at the end to undertake activities. Therefore, budgets must be set aside early on as part of the planning process.

5.2.6 Prioritise actions and expected effectiveness

Prioritisation of generic activities has been undertaken to some extent in this plan, although the majority of activities are a contractual requirement of the project and, therefore, must be done.

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5.2.7 Decide on the combination of actions to be carried out

This step is closely related to the previous step. However, when planning actions it is important to understand how these might link to actions being undertaken by other tasks and these should be undertaken in a co-ordinated manner.

5.2.8 Undertake the actions This step is self-explanatory. 5.2.9 Measure the results

We will report on the effectiveness of the communication and dissemination actions undertaken when preparing the annual report. This report will be based on easily measured parameters, which can be recorded during the year and collated with our periodic reports. These measurements will include:

• Scientific papers produced • Conference presentations made • Interviews given

• Press releases made

• Press generated articles on FLOODsite • Other media presentations of our project

• Use of the project website (number of hits, downloads, etc.)

It is important that we start collecting these statistics now, so that there can be no misunderstanding on whether we have been fulfilling our duty on communication. However, we shall not yet set any targets for communication outcomes or measurements, just record what we do.

It is recognised that the Communication and Dissemination activities within the FLOODsite project also offer an opportunity to research the effectiveness of different approaches to Communication and Dissemination. Hence, where experience or guidance on the effectiveness of a specific approach is limited, but other factors (such as local opportunities, links, enthusiasm, etc.) present an opportunity to undertake a specific Dissemination or Communication activity, then consideration will be given to undertaking the activity, whilst also monitoring its effectiveness to provide guidance on future activities.

Examples of these types of activities might include:

• Creation of an exhibition for a local museum (as proposed for Task 31)

• Monitoring the use of the website in response to specific actions or items (such as newsletters, etc.)

5.2.10 Modify, adapt or change remaining actions, if required

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6. Public Area of the Website

This chapter was included in the second edition of the plan to describe the proposed changes to the public area of the FLOODsite website, in order to make it more user-friendly. However, the content of this chapter has been superseded as the changes have been undertaken and the new version of the website went live on 15 May 2007. The changes included (but were not limited to) the following pages.

Project Overview page http://www.floodsite.net/html/project_overview.htm with links to

Executive Summary Project Vision Project Team

Management Structure

Work Programme & Pilot Studies Dissemination

Innovation & Outcomes Useful Links

EU Floods Directive

Innovation & Outcomes http://www.floodsite.net/html/innovaton_outcomes.asp with links to

The Project Overview

Work Programme Pilot Studies Project Links Publications & Guidance

Project Brochures & Posters Guidance Documents All Documents Tools Modelling Facility Knowledge Map Training

Post Graduate Studies CPD

Frequently Asked Questions http://www.floodsite.net/html/faq.htm

What is flood risk?

Where can I find out about flood risk where I live? What is flood risk analysis?

What is flood risk management? What is flood event management?

What are sources, pathways, receptors and consequences? Where can I find out about other research projects? Where can I get a copy of the project brochure? Where can I find information for schools?

How does FLOODsite support the Floods Directive?

Pilot Study Sites http://www.floodsite.net/html/pilot_studies.htm with summary pages for the pilots

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River Ebro Delta Coast German Bight Coast

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7. References and bibliography

Commission of the European Communities (2006), Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the assessment and management of floods. Brussels, 18.01.2006. Hooijer, A., F. Klijn, J. Kwadijk & B. Pedroli (Eds., 2002), Towards sustainable flood risk management in the Rhine and Meuse river basins; Main results of the research project. IRMA-SPONGE Final Report, NCR-publication 18-2002.

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Figure 4 Supply Chain for Project Reports Scatter of output Target of output Indirect Input Direct Input Project Reports Conferences

Website & Email

Pilot Studies

Teaching Material & Courses

Public Media Research Team Research Community Practitioners Academic Community Local Groups General Public Research Team Research Community Practitioners Academic Community Local Groups General Public (Other teams)

INPUT TYPE OF ACTIVITY OUTPUT

Key:

Journal Papers

Figure 5 Supply Chain for Journal Papers

Scatter of output Target of output Indirect Input Direct Input Project Reports Conferences

Website & Email

Pilot Studies

Key:

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Figure 6 Supply Chain for Conferences

Target of output Scatter of output Indirect Input

Direct Input Key:

Project Reports

Conferences

Website & Email

Pilot Studies

Key:

Journal Papers

Figure 7 Supply Chain for Website and Emails

Project Reports

Conferences

Website & Email

Pilot Studies

Teaching Material & Courses Research Team Research Community Practitioners Academic Community Local Groups General Public Research Team Research Community Practitioners Academic Community Local Groups General Public (Other teams)

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Figure 8 Supply Chain for Pilot Studies

Direct Input Key:

Project Reports

Conferences

Website & Email

Pilot Studies

Key:

Journal Papers

Figure 9 Supply Chain for Teaching Material and Courses

Direct Input Key:

Project Reports

Conferences

Website & Email

Pilot Studies

Key:

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Figure 10 Supply Chain for Public Media

Direct Input Key:

Project Reports

Conferences

Website & Email

Pilot Studies

Key:

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Appendix C

Stakeholder Contacts

The following contacts have been established with stakeholder organisations.

Mr Craig Elliott Environment Agency UK

Dr Chrissy Mitchell Environment Agency UK

Dr Jule Harries DEFRA UK

Mr Ludolph Wentholt STOWA Netherlands

Mr Maaike Ritzen HIS,Rijkswaterstaat Netherlands

AIB members also have a key role to play in ensuring that FLOODsite outputs meet the needs of industry and to aid uptake and implementation of the research outcomes within the context of their national responsibilities. AIB members include:

Mr J-M Tanguy SCHAPI France

Mr Stephen Biddle Environment Agency UK

Mr Árpád Szentiványi OKTVF Hungary

Mr Roberto Dinale Hydrology Dept., Prov. Bolzano / Bozen Italy

Mr Gerard Blom RWS-RIZA The Netherlands

Mr José Luis Colomer i Alberich, ICC Spain

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Tasks 1 to 20 (Themes 1 to 3) Target Audience3 Ref Action R es ea rc h T ea m R es ea rc h C o m m u n it y P ra ct it io n er s P o li cy M ak er s A ca d em ic C o m m u n it y L o ca l G ro u p s G en er al P u b li c Timing or timing issues Completed dd/mm/yy

1 Quarterly Online Progress Reports X Quarterly

2 Annual EC Activity Reports X 01 March

each year See annual guidance

3 Maintain and develop individual

contacts within the Research Team via Email, phone calls and face to face meetings/workshops

X As required

and at key milestones

4 Produce project reports (text based

material for both paper and digital/navigable versions) - refer to report T28-05-01 for procedure for publication

X See project

programme

5 5 to 15-page task executive summary

report

X X X X X Following on

from project report

6 Produce papers for journals

disseminating latest science

- see Section 4.2 for proposed outlets - refer to report T28-05-01 for procedure for publication

X X X X Match timing

of publications with key milestones

7 Provide papers/presentations for

conferences to enable review of latest science by peers and to enable feedback

- copies to be provided on the website - refer to report T28-05-01 for procedure for publication

X X Identify key

conferences

8 Organise speciality conferences in

response to current concerns (in consultation with Theme Leader)

X X X As agreed by

the MT

9 Provide text based material on request

to Task 29 for the Best Practice Guide

X X X X To be agreed

with Task 29

10 Provide model animations and software

on request to Task 30 for development of the Modelling Facility in the

E-X X X Final delivery

to be agreed with Task 30

3

This is who you are aiming at with the material, but all groups might actually access the material (assuming the material is designated for public access).

4

The main identified contributions are in the form of: