Consultant for Evaluation of the Blue Speeds for Shipping Campaign

TERMS OF REFERENCE (ToR)

End-of-Intervention Evaluation of the Blue Speeds for Shipping Campaign (2022–2026)

Location: Europe

IFAW is seeking a consultant – this is not an employee role

1.     Background

The Blue Speeds for Shipping Campaign is a flagship initiative of the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) designed to address the growing environmental pressures associated with commercial maritime traffic. Grounded in emerging scientific evidence and IFAW’s longstanding commitment to marine conservation, the campaign promotes the reduction of commercial vessel speeds to 75% of their maximum design speed. This operational measure, often referred to as “Blue Speeds,” has been shown to deliver simultaneous multi-benefit outcomes for marine ecosystems: it can reduce underwater radiated noise (URN) by as much as 40%, lower the risk of fatal ship strikes involving cetaceans by approximately 50%, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions by roughly 13%. These combined gains position Blue Speeds as one of the most readily actionable and cost-effective strategies for mitigating shipping impacts in the immediate term.

Since its launch in January 2022, the campaign has advanced through three mutually reinforcing strategies. The first focuses on public awareness and engagement, mobilizing widespread support through petition drives, media outreach, influencer partnerships, production of visual communication assets, and high-visibility events across Europe. These efforts, documented in IFAW’s 2023 and 2024 interim reports, have contributed to a rapidly growing base of public endorsement for regulatory action on underwater noise and ship strikes. The second strategy centers on shipping industry outreach, involving sustained dialogue with key actors such as shipping companies, shipowner associations, and port authorities. Through a series of bilateral meetings and multistakeholder roundtables including convenings in Bilbao in 2023 and Geneva in 2024 the campaign has sought to build a coalition of maritime stakeholders willing to formally commit to Blue Speeds principles. The third strategy emphasises policy advocacy, targeting the European Commission, EU Member States, and technical bodies within the International Maritime Organization (IMO). This policy work has contributed to the development of EU thresholds on underwater noise, has influenced the outcomes of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) evaluation and the EC preparation of the MSFD revision, while also supporting emerging discussions with some Member States on the application of Article 15 of the MSFD as a legal pathway for ship-speed regulation. It has also resulted in the inclusion of underwater noise pollution among the criminal offences covered under the revised EU Environmental Crime Directive.

A mid-term evaluation conducted in 2024 by Territorial Strategies confirmed the strong strategic relevance of the initiative and its alignment with both international marine policy agendas and stakeholder expectations. The evaluation also highlighted areas where greater emphasis would strengthen the campaign’s overall impact, including more robust documentation of results, clearer articulation of key performance indicators, deeper economic analysis of shipping behaviour, and stronger pathways for securing long-term industry commitments.

With the project now entering its final phase, IFAW seeks to commission an external evaluation to examine the overall performance of the campaign, the results achieved to date, and the extent to which its strategies have produced sustainable and transferable outcomes. The findings will provide critical insights for concluding this campaign funding cycle and shaping future EU and global efforts to reduce underwater noise, ship strikes, and emissions from commercial shipping.

2.     Purpose of the evaluation

The general objective of the evaluation is to assess the overall performance and results of the Blue Speeds Campaign from 2022–2026 and generate evidence-based insights to inform future EU and global scaling and IFAW’s broader marine conservation strategy. Specifically, the evaluation will seek to

1. evaluate the effectiveness of the Blue Speeds Campaign in achieving its intended outcomes, including policy influence, commitments from the shipping industry, and mobilisation of public support.
2. assess the extent to which the campaign contributed to environmental, behavioural, and institutional change, with a focus on reduced underwater noise, ship-strike risk, and strengthened governance pathways.
3. analyse the efficiency and overall performance of campaign strategies and implementation, examining management approaches, stakeholder engagement, and use of financial, human and technical resources.
4. identify key lessons, innovations, best practices and strategic recommendations that can support the future refinement and global scaling of Blue Speeds and contribute to IFAW’s wider marine strategy.

3.     Scope of the evaluation

The evaluation covers the full project period across all geographies where activities occurred. It should examine:

• Public outreach campaigns (visuals, influencers, petition drives, events)
• Shipping industry engagement (meetings, pledges, roundtables, coalition formation)
• Policy advocacy (EU Commission and Parliament, MSFD processes/ policy advocacy efforts, IMO engagement)
• Communication and digital strategy
• Project governance and MEL practices
• Financial execution and resource allocation
• Cross-partner collaborations (NPL, Prince Albert II Foundation)

4.     Key evaluation questions

OECD/ DAC Criteria

Evaluation question

Relevance

·        To what extent did the campaign respond to critical marine conservation needs documented in the project description?

·        How relevant were strategies in relation to stakeholder motivations, industry behaviour, and policy windows?

Coherence

·        How well did internal teams collaborate (shipping, policy, digital, fundraising)?

·        How coherent was the campaign with regional and global marine policy processes?

Effectiveness 

·        Did outreach translate to stakeholder commitment and influence?

·        How effective were the roundtables in shifting industry perceptions?

Efficiency 

·        Were financial and human resources optimally used?

·        How did adaptive management decisions (e.g., hiring Political Officer instead of Project Coordinator) affect performance?

Impact 

·        What change can be attributed to Blue Speeds in policy, industry discourse, public engagement?

·        What pathways to environmental outcomes (noise reduction, strike risk reduction) are observable?

Sustainability

·        What is the likelihood Blue Speeds will be institutionalized by governments or industry?

·        Are advocacy platforms (petition base, industry pledges, TG Noise presence) sustainable?

Learning 

·        What replicable lessons emerge for the continuation of IFAW policy work in the EU and similar global ocean-noise mitigation interventions?

Recommendations

·        What recommendations can be drawn from the lessons learned during Blue Speeds to inform future programming, policy development, or partnership approaches?

5.     Methodology

The evaluation will be expected to employ a rigorous mixed-methods approaches, combining qualitative and quantitative techniques to ensure a comprehensive and credible assessment of the Blue Speeds Campaign. Interested consultants are expected to propose a robust methodology capable of capturing the complexity of the intervention, triangulating evidence across multiple data sources and stakeholder perspectives.

6.     Expected deliverables

·        Inception report with approved data collection tools

·        Draft evaluation report

·        Final evaluation report (max 25 pages excl. annexes)

·        Presentation to IFAW & Donors

7.     Qualifications of the consultant/ firm

• Proven track record in evaluating environmental advocacy, policy influence or marine conservation programmes
• At least 10 years of evaluation experience using OECD-DAC criteria
• Expertise in environmental policy (EU preferred), maritime governance, or ocean noise science
• Strong qualitative and mixed-methods research capabilities
• Experience evaluating multi-stakeholder campaigns and communication strategies
• Ability to work in English and engage EU stakeholders

8.     Management and coordination

The evaluation will be commissioned by IFAW’s Marine Conservation Program. Day-to-day coordination will be through the Project Manager, with access to all relevant documents and stakeholders. The successful consultant will work very closely with the project manager on administrative and technical issues but also with the Director Impact Evaluation & Learning (IEL) on quality assurance and control.

9.     Timeline

Contracting - 13 April 2026

Inception Report - 24 April 2026

Data Collection - 24 April–25 May 2026

Draft Report - 5 June 2026

Validation Workshop - 12 June 2026

Final Report - 17 June 2026

10. Budget

Interested applicants should propose a detailed budget covering all anticipated costs related to delivering the assignment including professional fees, travel (if any), transcription, analysis tools etc.

11. Submission requirements

Proposal must include:

• Technical proposal including a proposed budget. This should be a maximum of 10 pages.
• CVs of all proposed team members specifying their roles for this assignment. Each must not exceed 3 pages.
• One example of similar past evaluations conducted in the last 3 years in the same sector.
• Contact details for 3 references in the last 3 years.

Closing date for receipt of applications: 07 April 2026

To apply, please submit materials to AMorin@ifaw.org