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Effective Governance

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OUR WORK

Guiding Informed and Deliberate Crisis Response

Communities across the United States are increasingly seeking to reimagine their emergency response approaches. Indeed, individuals with serious or moderate mental illness, those with substance use disorders, and individuals experiencing homelessness are disproportionately exposed to police, incarceration, or other emergency services. This is not only costly to society, it often causes more harm than help to the individual in need.

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So what emergency response reforms have been undertaken across the United States? What has been proven to work? And in what circumstances? These questions faced an astounding lack of evidence and comprehensive assessments—leaving jurisdictions with no evidence to support potential reforms. Abt sought to fill this gap with a systematic review of more than 50 programs led by first responders across the country within the past 10 years.

Through our research, we identified three overarching program models: 1) outreach and prevention; 2) intervention at 911 call; and 3) intervention by first responders at the scene of a crisis. For each program model, an approach spectrum was identified from specialized (targeted training) to integrated (multidisciplinary teams). We then derived measurable outcomes that each type of program model can track to ensure focus on desired end results and clarity in decision making.

Community-based programs, such as crisis hotlines, crisis centers, and restoration centers, are also important resources to support diversion of vulnerable people from the criminal justice system. Diversion can not only improve outcomes for vulnerable people, it can also save local jurisdictions a significant amount of money and enable police and fire personnel to focus their resources more strategically.

Deploying COVID-19 Assistance to Those Who Need It Most

“KOMPAK” is an ambitious initiative funded by the Australian Government that seeks to facilitate economic growth in Indonesia through better governance. Abt leads this effort, working in seven provinces across the vast Indonesian archipelago with the goal of helping low-income and vulnerable people benefit from improved delivery of basic services and economic opportunities.

In 2020, KOMPAK’s already complex mission took on particular urgency as COVID-19 spread throughout the world’s fourth most populous nation. As elsewhere, low-income and marginalized people were hit hardest by the virus—then hit again by the resulting economic downturn. The Indonesian government mobilized a massive response to expand social protection with an investment of more than AUD 63 billion. This required local governments to implement rapidly evolving regulations and to identify populations in particular need of help.

KOMPAK moved quickly to support the response. The team’s deep knowledge of national and local political dynamics contributed to increased protection for the most vulnerable people. KOMPAK also helped deliver clear national policies, guidelines, training, and technical assistance to effectively administer cash assistance from local village funds known as BLT-Dana Desa. District governments across Indonesia were able to use planning and budgeting tools developed by KOMPAK to apply the guidelines. Sub-district governments took a greater role—particularly through village governance facilitators—in helping villages plan and implement their response.

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Throughout these efforts, KOMPAK employed the principle of intersectionality coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw—or the interconnection and mutual amplification of various sources of vulnerability—to inform the Indonesian government’s response. By calling attention to the risks faced by highly vulnerable groups that fell outside the formal definition of vulnerability—which focused on economic hardship—KOMPAK successfully advocated for the government to adopt a more inclusive approach to its identification of populations in need. This has enabled national and local agencies to better serve female-headed households, persons without legal identity documents, people with disabilities, and the elderly.

Additionally, KOMPAK played a crucial role in connecting government services to communities in the seven provinces through effective and secure data-management systems. It supported localities in the development and implementation of SID, an information system operated by village governments, and enabled the district and sub-district governments to have access to local data. KOMPAK used SID to help identify eligible recipients of cash assistance as well as people who fell short of eligibility due to lack of legal identity documents. With this information, KOMPAK supported villages in the deployment of civil registration and vital statistics facilitators to help vulnerable people get the required legal documents to access critically needed social assistance programs. KOMPAK’s strong local ties and emphasis on data collection led to rapid deployment of COVID-19 assistance to those who needed it most.

UN Sustainable Development Goals

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UN Global Compact Principles

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Impact

RESULTS WE GENERATED
  • Facilitated adoption of a more inclusive approach to identifying populations in need, expanding “vulnerability” to include social identity to better target distribution of social assistance

  • Between April–December 2020:

    55% of villages had a Civil Registration and Vital Statistics facilitator trained to identify vulnerable individuals

    >20,000 people assisted to obtain birth certificates

    90% of villages had Village Information Systems implemented

    95% of villages established an inclusive COVID-19 Task Force

    >95% of villages held special village forums to confirm beneficiaries for social assistance

    310 villages received social assistance cash transfers, benefiting over 70,000 people

Client & Project

  • Australia Department for Foreign Assistance and Trade (DFAT)

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    KOMPAK facility (program) site

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OUR PEOPLE AND OPERATIONS

Ethics, Transparency, and Inclusion

At Abt, respect for human rights, dedication to ethics, and reverence for the natural environment aren’t just policy stances—they are principles that shape how we govern our organization and carry out our work worldwide.

We are a proud signatory of the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC). We work to integrate the UNGC’s Ten Principles covering labor relations, human rights, environmental protection, and anti-corruption into our daily business practices. We also understand that as a global professional services firm, the alignment of our suppliers and partners to the Compact’s high business standards is an important way to deepen our impact. To complement this, we developed a global Supplier Code of Conduct that enables us to systematize and scale our commitments to human rights, the environment, health and safety, and business ethics across our network of partners worldwide.

Prioritizing Safety and Inclusion

In January 2020, Abt launched a new initiative to deepen our commitment to safety and inclusion across the globe: the Peer Advocate Network. The Network aims to ensure an inclusive environment for staff that is free from harassment, exploitation, and abuse. Acting in a regional capacity, Peer Advocates model workplace behaviors, assist mediation, and offer guidance on such matters as how to report incidents. In January 2021, the Network expanded to cover 14 site project offices in 11 countries: Benin, Colombia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia.

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UN Sustainable Development Goals

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UN Global Compact Principles

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Impact

  • 74 policies added and/or updated FY21

Global Reporting Initiative Index

Our Board of Directors

Our Board of Directors is an inspiring group of people who bring a wealth of expertise and insights from a variety of disciplines, all with an eye to maximizing Abt’s ability to deliver on its mission around the world.

The Board is made up of 12 Directors, including separate seats held by the Chairman of the Board and Abt's CEO, with all but the CEO independent of Abt. The Board has four committees: Finance and Audit, Nominating and Governance, Human and Reputational Capital, and Compensation. With expertise ranging from diplomacy and healthcare policy to global economic development and finance, this team of luminaries sets the company’s strategic direction and accountability in addressing the most challenging economic, social, and environmental issues of our time. 

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UN Sustainable Development Goals

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UN Global Compact Principles

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Impact

  • 12 board members
  • 33% female

  • 25% self-identify as non-white

Global Reporting Initiative Index

OUR COMMUNITIES

Enhancing Non-profit Impact

Abt staff apply the depth and breadth of their expertise to not only their work but also to advancing the well-being of our communities.

For example, several staff participated in a fellowship with Washington, D.C.-based Service Never Sleeps. Fellows provided 10 hours of skilled service per month to help expand and enhance the impact of non-profits in the area. The fellowship operated remotely due to COVID-19, but our employees’ drive to make an impact was undeterred. Fellows focused on evaluating the disruptive impact of COVID-19 on high schoolers’ mental health and graduation rates; on providing life skills, job training, and housing to women experiencing homelessness; and on providing job placement and lifestyle training for women recently released from incarceration.

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Service Never Sleeps and Calvary Women’s Services allowed me to feel deeply connected to my community at a time when we were all physically distanced because of COVID-19. The women at Calvary taught me many lessons over the course of the year, including the importance of adaptability in community service work and that centering joy is a necessary and vital component of the work.

—ANNA GARNER, SCIENCE AND RESEARCH ASSISTANT

UN Sustainable Development Goals

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Advancing Our Fields of Practice

Outside the workday, many of our staff contribute valuable expertise to collaboratives and associations focused on deepening their field of practice by serving on boards or advisory committees.

For example, three employees took on such roles in key organizations:

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CAROLINE QUIJADA

PrincipaL Associate | International Development

Caroline, a principal associate in International Development, was appointed to the board of the Partnership for Maternal & Newborn Child Health (PMNCH), the world’s largest alliance for women’s, children’s, and adolescents’ health. PMNCH brings together more than 1,100 partner organizations from 192 countries. Quijada will represent the perspective of private sector partners in reproductive, maternal, and newborn health. She also serves on the board of the World Bank’s Global Financing Facility’s Investors Group.

Read more about Caroline on AbtAssociates.com

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Ricki Jarmon

VICE PRESIDENT | DATA SCIENCE, SURVEYS AND ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES

Ricki is a vice president in Data Science, Surveys and Enabling Technologies and was elected Councilor-at-Large on the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) Executive Council. AAPOR is the leading association of public opinion and survey research professionals, spanning disciplines including election polling and market research, health-related data collection, and education.

Read more about Ricki on AbtAssociates.com

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Laura R. Peck

PRINCIPAL SCIENTIST | SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC POLICY

Laura, a principal scientist in Social and Economic Policy, was elected secretary of the Association for Public Policy, Analysis & Management (APPAM), the preeminent organization dedicated to improving public policy and management by fostering excellence in research, analysis, and education.

Read more about Laura on AbtAssociates.com

UN Sustainable Development Goals

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