Evaluative work: Sustainability Hub and Accelerator - Innovate to Adapt

Overview

Globalfields’ contract with Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership (CISL) and the European Regional Development Fund’s (ERDF)“Sustainability Hub Accelerator – Innovate to Adapt” project underscores our commitment to fostering innovation and resilience in the face of global challenges. Tasked with delivering a comprehensive summative assessment, we evaluated the project’s performance and effectiveness, gathered and analysed relevant quantitative and qualitative impact data, and captured key lessons. Our aim for the summative assessment was to provide conclusions and recommendations to evaluate the success of the interventions (in this case, over the success of the building in terms of sustainability and access; and the support offered to start-ups and other Small and Medium-sized Enterprises or SMEs), while also providing knowledge to inform potential changes to the offering.

The Project

The Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership’s innovative project boldly responds to the urgent need for businesses to innovate faster and more extensively – in particular, adapting to economic, environmental and market changes. Further, this project addresses the needs of  SMEs to innovate, as well as stimulating the creation of new businesses and business models seeking to address the global sustainability challenges. This project is comprised of two core components: 1) A sustainability accelerator/incubator to empower SMEs, and 2) focussing on the Entopia Building– a low-energy and carbon retrofit that serves as a hub for collaboration between corporates, SMEs and researchers. Despite the delay in completing the retrofit due to COVID-19 disruptions, the CISL transformed their challenges into new virtual opportunities for collaboration.

The project aimed to empower SMEs to tackle global sustainability issues while simultaneously responding to shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit.

Globalfield’s Contribution

Globalfields’ summative assessment was conducted through a holistic approach looking at both quantitative and qualitative methodologies, generated through a survey of participants and interviews. Our analysis of the project impact addressed two separate issues: i) physical space, and ii)capacity-strengthening support.

To gain a comprehensive understanding of the project, we reviewed the existing documentation and conducted 12 interviews with key stakeholders (including internal CISL staff members, business owners and supporters, and relevant building contacts). This allowed us to assess the relevance and consistency of the projects despite economic disruptions and shifting policies.

We evaluated the project outcomes by utilising the ERDF indicator framework. This made it possible to understand in quantifiable terms how the project delivered on its targets and on the ERDF’s wider objectives, while also enabling us to compare it to other, similar ERDF projects. We analysed the project’s performance against contractual targets, which included identifying areas of over- and under-performance and understanding the ripple effects on stakeholders. 

Lastly, Globalfields benchmarked this project against similar initiatives to ensure the best value for money. Through our analysis, we highlighted key lessons learnt.

Conclusion

Globalfields’ technical expertise in sustainability and research analysis ensured that the CISL and ERDF project’s outcomes were effectively measured, alongside providing critical insights to enhance the success of future programmes. We continuously endeavour to support businesses in turning their bold ambitions and innovative ideas into tangible and sustainable impacts.

‍