I. The progress report was received on November 19 , 2004with following details:

Activities carried out under project:

1. Organizing volunteer group of 20 watching over , recording and encouraging community members
on energy matters
2. Conducting open forum ,community learning centre, study tours, festivity and public relation on
energy
3. Launching seminars on energy conservation,

Immediate Results:

1. Emergence of the followings:
- 33 ?member volunteer group
- monthly report for the villages
- three reports on impact of energy use
- 10 folk songs on project activities
2. 50 high-efficiency stoves for use in community
3. Seven community members practicing organic farming ? reducing energy, ceasing field burning


II. On October 14, 2005, the NC took a trip to the project to attend the participation evaluation upon completion. The finding and observation were as follows:

An open area amid the cultural forest of Baan (village) Khorkrabue was turned into the open forum and exhibition ground of project products. The forum was planned to be a joint evaluation with another co-financing project focusing on capacity building in toxic materials at household level, supported by the Community Organization Development Institute (CODI), whose evaluating team were present and participated in the event for the entire day. The estimate number of participating stakeholders was 170.

The morning session began with the traditional shows & tells of students from two community schools, reflecting the community livelihood and its effort to adapt to the changing world, followed by opening of the forum by the village chief. Prominent project members and stakeholders comprising the CEO of community school, the chief of District Health Office, the chief of District Community Development Office, members of the Tambol Administrative Organization were then invited to express their views on the project and holistic community development. Questions and answer session was also conducted. There were two issues , among others, worth considering. On energy efficiency issue, it was confirmed that the activity on trading old light bulbs for new , energy saving bulbs resulted in 20 % saving of electricity bill, when the cost of electricity per unit was Baht: 2 or so. Since the price of electricity was increased to Baht: 3 or so per unit, the saving became zero but not negative. On youth education issue, it was strongly suggested that community schools ought to stress on teaching the students how to learn , and not just on teaching the students to learn. For example, encouraging a student to grab a spade contributed a lot to building skill for living. The CEO of this school stipulated that 30 % of the 200- school day in a year would be allotted for ?teaching how to learn.?

The afternoon session began with the bestowal of awards to model community members for best practice on energy conservation, non-chemical agricultural practices and household products. The evaluation team then held a general discussion with project leaders for about one hour. In addition to discussion and experience sharing, the NC was asked to brief participants on the built-up of carbondioxide , global warming , climate change and how each community and individual would contribute to stabilizing such a built-up.

It was noted that there were 28 households out of 128 in the village as leaders. The project may have to have a sound strategic plan and work harder to ensure optimum result, even though, comparatively eager participation was witnessed in the event.

Note: The grantee is preparing the completion reports to submit to GEF/SGP before approval of the final payment.

III. The completion reports were received on 31 October 2005 summarizing following outputs/results:

1. New member of volunteers being added into the group with monthly report on the village
2. At least 288 audience using the services with at least 300 cases of knowledge on energy
3. Two compiled reports on study tour with future plan on energy
4. Emergence of new 400 trees with 13 charcoal-producing kilns and 50 high efficiency stoves
5. 132 energy-saving bulbs being used in place of old ones
6. Emergence of 20 farmers practicing conservation farming and being demonstration plots

Note: The most troublesome activity was the trial on biodiesel which was produced by the project. Even witnessing the machine in real operation with the fuel , community members were still apprehensive about a long-term effect upon the engine (erosion/corrosion of cylinders , etc) . The was the biogas use. The inadequate or mis- planned participation was quoted as a cause of de-efficiency.


Participatory Evaluation: 13 ? 14 October 2005
Participants: 128 persons comprising project leaders and members, youth groups, teachers, and
representatives from TAO / government agencies, GEF/SGP NC, representatives
from Thailand Research Fund and Community Organization Development Institute
Methods: Open forum to share experience followed by group discussion
Impact: 1. Trading new energy-saving bulbs for old ones proven to raise awareness of
community members since electricity bills was reduced.
2. Some impact but not much on livelihood security was evinced through activities
on charcoal producing kiln
3. Some activities attached surrounding ,non-project communities to come and visit
the project and eventually led to awareness and acceptance of government officers.

Future Plan: The are three plans for the future as follows:

1. Building capacity of youth groups in schools on ?Paddy Watch? aiming to reduce
chemical use in the fields and households
2. Promoting educational process on ? Real Way of Lives ? enabling students to
effectively apply what are learnt in every day life
3. Keeping on with awareness raising on community energy use and organic farming