Administrative Contracts Service Center (3803R), Environmental Protection Agency, Ronald Reagan Building -- 7th Floor, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20460

R -- SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT FOR OPPE'S URBAN AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DIVISION SOL PR-DC-97-03131 DUE 092997 POC R. Steven Frate (202) 564-4786 The Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Policy, Planning, and Evaluation (OPPE) has been tasked to work with the President's Council on Sustainable Development (PCSD) to help influence and encourage adoption of the PCSD's recommendations and make sustainable development a more commonly understood and utilized concept. As such, OPPE has a requirement to identify which groups will be most interested in changing to sustainable practices; to identify the best means for getting information to those groups; and develop an overall communication strategy. The period of performance for this effort will run from award of the order through September 1998. The Government is estimating a total of 1,285 hours for this effort. The Government intends to award this order to the firm that will provide the best value to the Government. Simplified acquisition procedures will be used for this procurement. Hand-delivered proposals or proposals delivered by courier must be delivered to the following address by 1:00 p.m. est. on September 29, 1997: United States Environmental Protection Agency, Bid/Proposal Room, 6th Floor, Attn: R. Steven Frate (Mail Code 3803R), 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC, 20004. Proposals delivered through the U.S. Mail only must be delivered by 1:00 p.m. est. on September 29, 1997 to: United States Environmental Protection Agency, Bid/Proposal Room (Mail Code 3803R), 401 M Street, SW, Washington, DC, 20460. The statement of work for this effort and the criteria that the Government will utilize in evaluating proposals for best value may be found below: ***STATEMENT OF WORK *** Purpose and Background *** The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been an active member of the President's Council on Sustainable Development (PCSD) since the Council's inception 3 years ago. The Council's consensus recommendations, published in February 1996, include many actions that have significant environmental quality benefits. Recommendations are aimed at a number of different entities, each of which could create significant benefits for the environment. For instance, local governments are encouraged to adopt more environmentally friendly development patterns, citizens are invited to participate in community visioning on environmental improvements, and corporations are advised to adopt pollution prevention product designs. OPPE's Urban and Economic Development Division has been tasked to work with the PCSD to influence adoption of the PCSD's recommendations and make sustainable development a more commonly understood and utilized concept. A national conference will be a focal point for this effort with additional pre- and post-conference activities to deliver the "sustainable development message." Ultimately, the "message" is one of behavior change. If you are a product manufacturer, sustainable development may mean a change in manufacturing process. If you're a single occupancy vehicle commuter, sustainable development may suggest an alternative mode of transportation, or working at home one day a week. Clearly, many types of behavior change may be sought from many groups. The questions that this contract seeks to answer are: 1) which groups will be most interested in changing to sustainable practices; 2) what are the factors that make change attractive to them; 3) what is the best way to provide them with information to influence change; 4) what are their perceived barriers to changing to more sustainable activities; 5) what non-profit organizations, businesses, and other organizations will have an interest in breaking down these barriers and promoting more sustainable practices; and 6) looking at the results of 1 through 5 comprehensively, how should these different audiences be approached and messages delivered in a way that will maximize coverage and effectiveness at minimum expense. ***Personnel and Background Requirements: The contractor must have experience working with the federal government, non-profit organizations and businesses. The contractor must have an extensive track record and history of success in creating changes in behavior to achieve environmental and health goals. Contractor personnel must have knowledge of, and experience in, the field of social marketing. The contractor must have experience doing audience based research to identify motivation for and barriers to changing behavior. The contractor must have experience researching attitudes toward environmental, health and sustainability issues. The contractor must have experience with focus group research and primary data collection. The contractor must have an extensive database on attitudes toward environmental, health and sustainability issues. ***Work Statement: Tasks and Deliverables: The WAM will review all deliverables in draft form and provide revisions and/or comments in writing to the contractor. The contractor shall prepare the final deliverables incorporating the WAM's comments. Contractor personnel shall at all times identify themselves as Contractor employees and shall not present themselves as EPA employees. Furthermore, they shall not represent the views of the U.S. Government, EPA, or its employees. In addition, the Contractor shall not engage in inherently governmental activities, including, but not limited to, actual determination of EPA policy and preparation of documents on EPA letterhead. **Task 1 -- Identifying focus groups The contractor shall conduct nine focus groups to identify: 1) which groups will be most interested in changing to sustainable practices; 2) what are the factors or motivations that make change attractive to them; and 3) what are their perceived barriers to changing to more sustainable activities. *** In compiling this information, the contractor shall build on any existing relevant data that it may possess. The contractor shall ensure that different geographic regions of the country are represented in the focus groups. The contractor shall ensure that the focus groups are diverse and roughly representative of the adult population. The contractor shall gather background information on focus group participants including demographic, core values, work and leisure information. If the contractor has a good reason to do so, the groups can, upon EPA approval, be more focused in nature. **Task 1 Deliverables and Schedule The contractor shall deliver a 40 page focus group report. This report shall provide a summary of focus group responses. The report shall include analysis of focus group responses identifying key perceptions and values relating to sustainable development, including participants' core values and their perception of sustainable development. The report shall be delivered to EPA for comment within 180 days of awarding the order. Upon receipt of EPA's comments, the contractor shall have 21 days to make changes and submit a final report. The contractor shall deliver the final report on disc in WordPerfect 6.1 and in hardcopy. **Task 2- Information Delivery The contractor shall analyze the results of the focus groups to determine, based on their self-interests, beliefs and values, the best way to provide them with information to influence change (meaning identifying both the actual descriptions they respond to as well as the types of media outlets that will reach them). The contractor shall develop different "sustainability" messages and actions/behavior changes for each sub-group identified in the analysis of the focus groups. Each group should have a tailored message such as fiscal benefits of a particular sustainable development action for local governments, or increasing neighborhood safety for community activists. **Task 2 Deliverables and Schedule The contractor shall deliver a 10 page report. The report shall identify key groups that will be inclined to support sustainable development and are prepared to change to more sustainable actions. The report shall identify specific ways of describing sustainable development that will be relevant and understandable to each group or audience. The report shall identify for each of the identified groups the benefits they perceive will be gained by switching to more sustainable lifestyles. It shall also identify groups' perceived barriers to making these changes. Finally, the report shall identify appropriate media and other routes of communication to reach each of the target groups. The report shall be delivered to EPA for comment within 180 days of awarding the order. Upon receipt of EPA' s comments the contractor shall have 21 days to make changes and submit a final report. The contractor shall deliver the final report on disc in WordPerfect 6.1 and in hardcopy. **Task 3- Identifying Partners Based on the contractor's experience working with non-profit, federal, and for-profit organizations, the contractor shall develop a list of potential partners who may be interested in promoting sustainable development or some sub-issue of sustainable development. The contractor shall meet with EPA and other participants in the PCSD to discuss and refine this list. The list should include a brief description of why the organization is a likely partner, and what aspect of sustainability is appealing to it. **Task 3 Deliverables and Schedule The contractor shall deliver a 25 page report with a minimum of thirty potential partner organizations identified. The report shall group the organizations according to the aspect of sustainability that will appeal to them. For instance, one grouping might be sustainable transportation, and another might be environmental education. Each organization shall be described in a half to a full page including information about the organization's mission, goals, strengths, weaknesses and their interest in sustainable development. The report shall be delivered to EPA for comment within 240 days of awarding the order. Upon receipt of EPA's comments the contractor shall have 21 days to make changes and submit a final report. The contractor shall deliver the final report on disc in WordPerfect 6.1 and in hardcopy. **Task 4- Communications Strategy The contractor shalldevelop a communication strategy. The strategy shall identify specific media outlets for delivering the "sustainable development" message to the audiences identified in tasks one through three. The contractor shall conduct test outreach to select media to identify reaction and refine the media approach. The contractor shall track the results of these test outreach efforts. Based on these outcomes the contractor shall make recommendations for expanding communication of the "sustainable development" message. **Task 4- Deliverables and Schedule The contractor shall deliver a two page report with recommendations for additional points of communication. In addition, the contractor shall deliver clippings of any coverage resulting from the test outreach. The report shall be delivered to EPA for comment within 330 days of awarding the order. Upon receipt of EPA"s comments the contractor shall have 21 days to make changes and submit a final report. The contractor shall deliver the final report on disc in WordPerfect 6.1 and in hardcopy. ***PROPOSAL EVALUATION CRITERIA*** Proposals shall be judged on the basis of the following criteria: 1) contractor's approach -- the degree to which the proposal accomplishes the goals and objectives specified in the statement of work; 2) contractor experience and expertise -- factors used to judge the contractor's experience and expertise include but are not limited to: a) history of working with private, public and not-for-profit entities; b) history of work in creating behavior change for health and environmental reasons; c) experience doing audience-based research to identify motivations and barriers to change; d) history of researching public attitudes and opinions towards environmental, health and sustainability issues; e) experience with focus group research, and primary data collection; and f) the amount and relevance of existing data and research possessed by the contractor. 3) contractor's proposed price -- the contractor's proposed price will by evaluated relative to the promised product and other offerors' bids. 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