International development, finance and environment

Cargo bikes are a leading alternative to petrol and diesel vans, with emerging evidence that they can reduce congestion, improve business efficiency, and support the  development of more liveable and healthier cities. 

Bikes for Business is an innovative programme promoting cargo bikes as a mainstream solution for business freight in London Bridge and north Southwark. 

This report presents evaluation findings and learnings for future cargo bike promotion.

This analysis compares the social, environmental and economic impacts of diesel and electric vans with e-cargo bikes. It finds that diesel vans are 67 times more environmentally damaging when air, water and noise pollution as well as climate change are taken into consideration. When these environmental costs are combined with social costs, the report finds that the hidden costs associated with diesel van deliveries are £2.46 billion annually in London alone. 

Yet e-cargobikes are more expensive than vans on a like-for-like basis, incentivising consumers and businesses towards the least sustainable option. The research, commissioned by Team London Bridge and funded by Impact on Urban Health, explores the reasons for this and provides an estimate of fair pricing were a level playing field to exist between e-cargobikes and diesel vans. 

Microsoft India commissioned Just Economics to conduct a social impact study of the Microsoft Philanthropies India (MPI) portfolio for 2019-20. The study had two principal objectives:

• Assess the overall performance of the portfolio
• Develop a measurement framework that improves partner selection and enables impact to be demonstrated robustly.

The study was guided by the OECD/DAC evaluation criteria with research undertaken between April 2020 and July 2020.

Growing the circular economy is an attractive way to create jobs and support livelihoods, whilst reducing our impact on the planet. This working paper - compiled by Just Economics - aims to estimate the level and pattern of current investment in the circualar economy relative to the linear economy. 

FMO invests in over 85 countries to support jobs and income generation in order to improve people’s lives. This evaluation, led by Stephen Spratt for Itad, assessed FMO’s achievement of its strategic objectives of development impact, additionality and mobilisation of capital, as well as its management of environmental and social issues, from 2014 to 2018

Commissioned by the OECD, this paper presents findings from research on how blended finance actors use and define different key concepts, and what implications these understandings have for evaluators. 

This economic analysis of salmon farming reveals that the industry has produced negative externalities worth in the region of USD$47 billion since 2013. 

Since 2013, there is evidence that Kellogg's has been removing key mirconutrients from its breakfast cereals in Mexico. This report makes an economic assessment of the savings to Kelloggs and compares this to the cost to the health, well-being and development of Mexican society. It estimates that Kellogg’s saved $85 million USD over five years from this practice, whilst the minimum cumulative social cost to Mexico for the removal of just three key nutrients will be $250 million USD over five years. This means for every dollar that Kellogg’s saves by de-fortifying cereals it destroys at least three dollars in value to Mexican consumers. The report discusses the implications of this for Mexican society.

YouthSpark is a flagship programme of Microsoft Philanthropies that aims to enable young people around the world to learn digital and computer science skills. Just Economics was commissioned to evaluate the extent to which YouthSpark is achieving its mission and objectives. Using qualitative methods, over 100 stakeholders were engaged and site visits were conducted in the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Asia. The evaluation was commissioned to feed into Microsoft's strategic planning process and to inform its future strategy for YouthSpark. 

The Nordic Development Fund (NDF) is the joint development finance institution of the five Nordic countries. NDF is mandated to facilitate climate change investments primarily in low-income countries.  Just Economics, in partnership with Particip GmbH, has been commissioned to  assess whether the NDF's activities are consistent with its mandate and evaluate the extent to which its investments are having positive impacts. The evaluation will conclude in Spring 2019.

How can investors be encouraged to consider more than purely commercial and short-term gains? Various sets of investment principles have emerged in recent years to guide socially responsible investment. In this review for IIED, Just Economics takes a first step in assessing the content, take-up, implementation and impact of the four main sets of principles for socially-responsible investment.

As part of the DfID-funded Gender & Adolescence: Global Evidence (GAGE) project, Just Economics was commissioned to review the use of value for money (VfM) analyses in projects aimed at adolescent girls in developing countries. This included a review of relevant literatures and theoretical approaches and a series of principles for carrying out such analyses in the future.

Technology for Good supports NGOs worldwide to increase their reach by providing subsidised software, funding and technical support. In 2017, Just Economics worked with Microsoft Philanthropies in Asia to assess the impact of the programme. The evaluation included extensive fieldwork in Asia.

Just Economics supported BT to measure the impact of its investments in health and education projects in Sub-Saharan Africa. As part of this, Just Economics was commissioned by BT to carry out a social impact analysis of the Electronic Medical Record (EMR) systems installed in seven medical centres run by the international children’s charity SOS Children’s Villages (and funded by BT) in sub-Saharan Africa.