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MERIT User Guide V3
Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting and Improvement Tool
USER GUIDE
FOR NRM FUNDING RECIPIENTS
AND THE PUBLIC
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MERIT User Guide V3
Acknowledgement of Traditional Owners and Country
The Department acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their
continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay our respects to them and their
cultures and to their elders both past and present.
© Copyright Commonwealth of Australia, 2016.
The Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting and Improvement Tool user guide for NRM funding recipients and the public is licensed by the Commonwealth of Australia for use under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence with the exception of the Coat of Arms of the Commonwealth of Australia, the logo of the agency responsible for publishing the report, content supplied by third parties, and any images depicting people. For licence conditions see: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
This document should be attributed as ‘Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting and Improvement Tool user guide for NRM funding recipients and the public, version 3, Commonwealth of Australia 2016’.The Commonwealth of Australia has made all reasonable efforts to identify content supplied by third parties using the following format ‘© Copyright, [name of third party] ’.
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MERIT User Guide V3
CONTENTSINTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................................... 5
ABOUT THIS GUIDE................................................................................................................................ 6
A note on MERIT user roles.................................................................................................................. 6
TOOLS TO HELP..................................................................................................................................... 7
1. PUBLIC DATA: SEARCHING FOR PROJECT INFORMATION IN MERIT........................................8
1.1 Using the ‘Search’ tool................................................................................................................... 9
1.2 Filter your results in Project Explorer...........................................................................................10
2. NEW USERS: REGISTER AND LOG IN..........................................................................................12
2.1 Register with ALA......................................................................................................................... 12
2.2 Edit your ALA profile.................................................................................................................... 13
2.3 Log in to MERIT........................................................................................................................... 14
2.4 Access your projects.................................................................................................................... 15
2.5 Forgotten password..................................................................................................................... 15
3. ADD A USER TO A PROJECT.........................................................................................................16
4. CHANGE USER ROLES................................................................................................................... 17
5. CREATE / EDIT A PROJECT MERI PLAN.......................................................................................18
5.1 Create or edit your Project MERI plan..........................................................................................18
5.2 Activities....................................................................................................................................... 20
5.2a Add a new activity..................................................................................................................20
5.2b Manage your activities list......................................................................................................21
5.2c Review the planned activities list.............................................................................................22
5.3 View or edit the total project output targets..................................................................................23
5.4 Add or edit project risks and threats.............................................................................................23
6. SUBMIT A PROJECT MERI PLAN FOR APPROVAL......................................................................25
7. ADD A SITE TO A PROJECT...........................................................................................................26
7.1 Create a site................................................................................................................................. 26
7.1a Add a new site........................................................................................................................27
7.1b Upload sites from shapefile....................................................................................................30
7.2 Download sites as shapefiles.......................................................................................................31
7.3 Manage your sites........................................................................................................................32
7.3a Edit a site............................................................................................................................... 32
7.3b View a site.............................................................................................................................. 32
7.3c Delete a site from a project.....................................................................................................33
7.4 Add a site to an activity................................................................................................................33
7.5 Change / delete a site from an activity.........................................................................................34
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MERIT User Guide V3
8. ADD POINTS OF INTEREST TO A SITE..........................................................................................35
8.1 Add a POI: sites tab.................................................................................................................... 35
8.2 Add a POI: activity form...............................................................................................................36
9. PROJECT REPORTING....................................................................................................................38
9.1 Add data to an activity form..........................................................................................................38
9.2 Create a list – ‘nested table’.........................................................................................................39
9.2a Add a row............................................................................................................................... 39
9.2b Upload data for a table...........................................................................................................40
9.3 Add a photopoint image...............................................................................................................41
9.4 Defer or cancel an activity............................................................................................................42
10. UPLOADING DOCUMENTS AND MEDIA......................................................................................43
10.1 Upload a document to MERIT....................................................................................................43
10.2 Embed a video on the Overview page.......................................................................................45
11. SUBMIT A REPORT FOR APPROVAL..........................................................................................46
11.1 Submit a report for approval.......................................................................................................46
11.2 Generate a project summary......................................................................................................47
12. CREATE OR EDIT PROJECT BLOG..............................................................................................48
13. CREATE OR EDIT PROJECT ANNOUNCEMENTS.......................................................................51
14. CREATE & MANAGE AN ORGANISATION PAGE........................................................................52
14.1 Create an organisation...............................................................................................................52
14.2 View an organisation.................................................................................................................. 52
14.3 Edit an organisation...................................................................................................................54
14.3a Edit organisation details and content....................................................................................54
14.3b Edit announcements in bulk.................................................................................................54
14.4 Add a user to all projects............................................................................................................55
WANT MORE INFORMATION?.............................................................................................................57
GLOSSARY OF TERMS........................................................................................................................58
APPENDIX A: MERIT WORKFLOW......................................................................................................61
APPENDIX B: OVERVIEW OF PROJECT SHELLS..............................................................................62
APPENDIX C: MERI PLAN TEMPLATE DESCRIPTIONS...................................................................64
APPENDIX D: PROGRAM LOGIC........................................................................................................66
APPENDIX E: KEYS TO A GOOD PROJECT IN MERIT......................................................................68
Project MERI Plan............................................................................................................................... 68
Project Report..................................................................................................................................... 68
APPENDIX F: GUIDELINES FOR TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS..............................................................69
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MERIT User Guide V3
INTRODUCTION
Organisations and individuals who receive funding from Australian Government Natural
Resource Management (NRM) programs are required to report regularly to the Department on
the progress of their projects. Reports are submitted using the Monitoring, Evaluation,
Reporting and Improvement Tool (MERIT). MERIT is an online reporting system that simplifies
and streamlines reporting across Australian Government NRM programs.
For the Australian Government, MERIT allows greater transparency, increased efficiencies
and the ability to use project data to directly report on programs and high-level strategies such
as Australia’s Biodiversity Conservation Strategy and the State of the Environment Report.
MERIT also aligns with the Australian Government Declaration of Open Government by better
enabling public access to government held data on NRM investments. MERIT information
available to the public includes:
MERIT homepage
Project Explorer page, including the Map, Projects and Dashboard tabs
Overview and Documents tabs for individual projects
MERI Plan for National Landcare Programme Regional Funding projects.
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Editors do not have access to this function
Admin users have access to this function
MERIT User Guide V3
ABOUT THIS GUIDE
This guide is designed to help NRM funding recipients with the day-to-day use of MERIT. The
layout of the document allows a logical progression through the MERIT workflow, from
creation of a user account to submitting a report to the Department (refer to Appendix A:
MERIT workflow). There are also instructions on the optional features of MERIT, such as how
to create a blog or record announcements.
From chapter 3 onwards, the steps in this user guide assume that you are logged in and have navigated to your project (see 2. New users: register and log in).
Members of the public may also refer to this guide for instructions on searching for projects and data in MERIT (see 1. Public data: searching for project information in MERIT).
This guide and chapters, available as individual information sheets, can be found here: http://www.nrm.gov.au/my-project/monitoring-evaluation-reporting-and-improvement-tool-merit/user-guides. These documents will be updated as required.
A note on MERIT user roles
There are 4 user roles in MERIT: Administrator, Editor, Grant Manager (departmental officers) and public. The role type determines which functions of MERIT are available to the user.
View project overview
information
Input and edit activity data
Input and edit project plan
data
Access Admin tab
Submit project data
and reporting
Assign / edit user roles
Approve submitted plans and
reports
Public Editor Administrator Grant Manager (departmental officers only)
A table at the start of each chapter indicates the user role required for the functions outlined in the chapter.
3. ADD A USER TO A PROJECTAccess Level
ADMIN EDITOR
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MERIT User Guide V3
TOOLS TO HELP
Resource Description Location
MERIT Demonstrator Project
This project has been set up in the test
environment so that users can explore the range
of activity forms currently available. Special log in
details for this project are noted on the
demonstrator project overview page.
https://fieldcapture-
test.ala.org.au
click the link to the
sample project via the
MERIT Help menu.
MERIT Schema Word document that contains every field
description, data use and type for each activity
form. It also lists the outputs that are currently
used for reporting.
MERIT Help menu
MERIT resources on the
National Landcare
Programme (NLP)
website:
www.nrm.gov.au
Application Programming Interface (API)
The API is for those interested in the technical
details behind MERIT, or those wishing to
interoperate their local systems with MERIT.
http://
ecodata.ala.org.au/
documentation/index
MERIT Ready Reckoner
A table summarising each activity, minimum data
requirement (mandatory fields), target measures
(outputs) plus more.
MERIT Help menu
MERIT resources on the
NLP website:
www.nrm.gov.au
Activity family tree
A table demonstrating the temporal relationship
between activities.
MERIT Help menu
MERIT resources on the
NLP website.
MERIT FAQs and User Guides
Comprehensive guidance on how to use MERIT. MERIT Help menu
MERIT resources on the
NLP website:
www.nrm.gov.au
MERIT Inbox Funding recipients should contact their
departmental grant manager in the first instance.
Contact the MERIT team for further technical
support or to provide feedback on MERIT.
au
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Project explorer Search tool
MERIT User Guide V3
1. PUBLIC DATA: SEARCHING FOR PROJECT INFORMATION IN MERITAccess Level ADMIN EDITOR PUBLIC
The MERIT Project Explorer contains a map, a list of all projects in MERIT and a program
dashboard. You don’t have to be a MERIT user to view and search this information. Refer to
1.1 Using the ‘Search’ tool below for guidance on searching.
Project explorer: Overview
Map – displays the location of projects.
Projects – lists the projects, starting with the project most recently updated.
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OutputFilter results
Dashboard
Projects
Map
MERIT User Guide V3
Dashboard – displays graphs and figures of aggregated output data across multiple
projects and programs. The example below displays the biodiversity management outputs
for Biodiversity Fund projects in the South Australian Murray Darling Basin management
area. The dashboards only display data from approved reports.
1.1 Using the ‘Search’ tool
1. Type your search term into the search tool. Hint: add double
quotation marks to narrow your search to an exact phrase, e.g. “Recovery Plan”.
2. Click Search. The search results will show all activities, project titles, descriptions and organisations that contain the search term.
3. Click on Project, under ‘Type’ in the filter results columns. This refines the search results to only projects that contain the search term.
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Filter type Project link
Projects
Project Explorer
MERIT User Guide V3
4. Click on the project link to go to the project page.
1.2 Filter your results in Project Explorer
1. Click the Project Explorer link on the menu bar. Maximise the Projects box from the list
by clicking .
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Filter tick box
Filter ‘Sub Program’
Filter link
Refine button
Projects
MERIT User Guide V3
2. Click the filters you wish to search in the ‘Filter Results’ column then click Refine.
3. Your search results can be viewed by project name, on a map or via the program level
dashboard if you click the relevant button.
Below is an example of search results in Project Explorer.
Sample search results in project explorer.
You wish to look up projects funded under Biodiversity Fund Round One and delivered by Port Philip Westernport Catchment Management Authority.
1. Scroll to the ‘Program’ filter and click the ‘Biodiversity Fund’ link. The list of projects is automatically refined to those funded by the Biodiversity Fund program.
2. Scroll to the ‘Sub Program’ filter and click the ‘Round 1’ link.
3. Scroll to the ‘Organisation’ filter and click ‘Port Phillip and Westernport CMA’. You will need to click the ‘choose more’ link to open the full list of organisations. The list can be sorted alphabetically.
4. To select more than one filter at a time, click the relevant tick-boxes and click the button at the top of the ‘Filter Results’ box.
Your search results in Project Explorer will look something like this:
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Log in
Sign up now
MERIT User Guide V3
2. NEW USERS: REGISTER AND LOG INAccess Level ADMIN EDITOR GRANT MANAGER
BROWSER: MERIT achieves best performance with recent versions of web browsers such as Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox. Internet Explorer and older versions of web browsers do not support efficient use of MERIT.
2.1 Register with ALA
People who are required to use MERIT must first register with the Atlas of Living Australia
(ALA).
1. Go to MERIT at fieldcapture.ala.org.au
2. Click Log in.
3. Click Sign up now at the bottom of the screen. The Create your account page opens.
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My Profile
User settings
MERIT User Guide V3
4. Complete the information requested. Your password must be at least 8 characters. In the primary and secondary usage fields you could enter ‘Australian Government funding recipient’, ‘grant management requirements’.
5. Click the Create account button at the bottom of the page. An email will be sent to your email inbox from the Atlas of Living Australia.
Tip: Check your junk email folder if you haven’t received an email within 24 hours. Contact the MERIT team at [email protected] if you are having difficulties.
6. To activate your account, click on the link in the email and follow the instructions provided. You are now registered with ALA.
7. Advise the relevant contact (see below) that you have registered with ALA and they will add you to the project in MERIT:
If you require Admin access, contact another person in your organisation who already has Admin access to the project or your departmental grant manager.
If you require Editor access, contact the Administrator for the project (within your organisation).
2.2 Edit your ALA profile
Follow these instructions to update your ALA profile (e.g. username, password, email).
1. Go to MERIT fieldcapture.ala.org.au. Click Log in.
2. Click User settings then My profile located at the top right hand corner of the page.
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Reset password
Update profile
Log in
MERIT User Guide V3
3. Enter the email address and password you used to register with ALA.
4. Click Log in. Your ALA Profile Home Page will open.
5. Click the Update your profile link. This page displays the information you used to register with ALA.
6. Edit the information as necessary and click Update account.
7. Click Reset my password if you wish to change your password.
2.3 Log in to MERIT
Once you have registered and have access to your project/s, you can log in and start using MERIT. There are three ways to access MERIT:
a. Visit https://fieldcapture.ala.org.au/
b. Via ‘ALA Apps’ on the ALA website https://ala.org.au
c. Click on the link to the MERIT home page via the NLP website http://www.nrm.gov.au/my-project/monitoring-and-reporting-plan/merit.
1. Click Log in on the MERIT home page. The ALA login page will open.
2. Enter the email address and password you used to register with ALA. Click Log in.
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Forgot?
MERIT User Guide V3
2.4 Access your projects
1. After logging in, click My projects to view projects you have access to.
2. Select the project you wish to view and refer to the remainder of these guidelines for assistance as required. A brief description of each project tab is available in Appendix B: Overview of project shells.
If you can’t see your project/s on the My Projects list, it means you have not been added to the project/s. Contact your project administrator or departmental grant manager as outlined in 2.1 Register with ALA (step 7). Refer to 3. Add a user to a project for further instructions.
2.5 Forgotten password
If you have forgotten your ALA password:
1. Click the Forgot? link on the ALA login page (refer to 2.3 Log in to MERIT).
2. Follow the instructions provided. A password reset email will be sent to your email inbox. Remember to check your junk email folder if necessary.
If you have issues logging in, please contact your departmental grant manager or [email protected].
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My projects
Admin
User’s email
User role
Project access
MERIT User Guide V3
3. ADD A USER TO A PROJECTAccess Level ADMIN EDITOR GRANT MANAGER
Administrators are able to provide colleagues with access (either administrator or editor roles) to projects in MERIT. See below for instructions on adding users to individual projects, or refer to 14.4 Add a user to all projects to add users to all of an organisation’s projects.
Editor and Administrator user roles in MERIT have different levels of access, as shown below:
View project information
Input and edit activity data
Input and edit plan data
Access Admin tab
Submit project data
and reporting
Assign / edit access
permissions
Administrator Editor
People who are required to use MERIT must first register with the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) before they can access projects (refer to 2. New users: register and log in).
1. Click the Admin tab on your project page.
2. Click the Project Access sub-tab on the left of the screen. A list of MERIT users who already have access to the project will be displayed.
3. Enter the user’s email address.
4. From the drop down menu, choose the user role you wish to give them (editor or administrator).
5. Click Submit. The user will be added to the bottom of the list of project members.
If you receive a message that the email address did not match a registered user, follow the prompts to either correct the email address entered or ask your colleague to register to use MERIT (refer to 2. New users: register and log in.)
6. Advise the user they have access to the project. The project will appear on the list when they click My Projects on the MERIT home page.
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Delete
Edit
MERIT User Guide V3
4. CHANGE USER ROLESAccess Level ADMIN EDITOR GRANT MANAGER
As the administrator, you can change or revoke the user roles of people with access to your project/s in MERIT.
1. Click the Admin tab on your project’s home page.
2. Click the Project Access sub-tab on the left of the screen. A list of users with access to the project in MERIT will be displayed.
3. To change the user role for an existing user, click the edit button next to their name. This displays a drop down menu under the ‘Role’ column.
4. From the drop down menu, choose the user role you wish to give them (editor or admin). Refer to A note on MERIT user roles (page 6) for different functions available to each role.
5. Advise the person that you have changed their user role. When they next log in to MERIT, their access to the project will reflect the role you have assigned them.
6. To delete a project member, click the X in the last column.
If your changes are not displaying straight away, refresh your browser (e.g. F5 key for Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox).
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Admin
Phase
MERIT User Guide V3
5. CREATE / EDIT A PROJECT MERI PLANPhase
Access Level ADMIN EDITOR
Planned Activities List Output Targets Project Risks and Threats
The project MERI plan is a living document that should be updated at least annually through consultation between a funding recipient and departmental grant manager. Guidance on developing project MERI plans is available at http://nrm.gov.au/my-project/monitoring-and-reporting .
IMPORTANT
Before editing your project MERI plan, check the phase for your project. The MERI plan, activities and total project outputs can only be edited if the project MERI plan is in the “not yet approved” (orange) phase, as illustrated in the below image. If you need to edit a submitted or approved plan (blue or green phase), an administrator for the project will need to contact the departmental grant manager and discuss what changes need to be made. Once the grant manager is satisfied with the proposed changes, they will unlock the plan to enable editing.
After you have finished editing your MERI plan, activities list or project outputs, an administrator for the project will need to submit the plan to the grant manager for approval. Refer to 6. Submit a project MERI plan for approval for instructions.
5.1 Create or edit your Project MERI plan
1. Click the Admin tab on your project’s home page.
2. Click the MERI Plan sub-tab on the left of the screen, as shown in the image below.
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Admin tab
MERI plan sub-tab
Generate PDF
MERIT User Guide V3
3. Complete the MERI Plan template. The template contains descriptions of the information required in each field. The descriptions can be viewed by hovering your mouse cursor over the
icon. They are also available at Appendix C: MERI Plan template descriptions. Note: the MERI plan template is not visible in MERIT for all programs (e.g. Green Army and Biodiversity Fund).
4. Click the hovering save changes button at the bottom of the screen. If you attempt to leave the screen without saving, a pop up message will prompt you to save changes or cancel. After you click save, the information in the template is displayed on the MERI Plan tab and can be viewed by all project members.
Save your changes regularly. Loss of internet connection can lead to loss of data if it hasn’t been saved.
5. If you wish to print or save the MERI Plan in another location, click the Generate PDF button on the Admin / MERI plan sub-tab.
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MERI Plan tab
Site
Activities tab
Add new activityStatus
MERIT User Guide V3
5.2 Activities
Activities are ordered into stages which relate to the reporting obligations for the grant. For most grants, there are two stages per financial year: July-December and January-June.
The project MERI plan must be in the “not yet approved” (orange) phase before you can change your activity list. Refer to the important note at the beginning of this chapter (5. Create / Edit a MERI Plan).
5.2a Add a new activity
1. Click the Activities tab on your project page. The list of planned activities will appear.
The list of planned activities may be pre-populated from an online application form, be pre-existing (previously approved and requiring editing), or the list may need to be wholly created within MERIT (new projects).
Planned activities are listed in order of start date (‘From’), then end date (‘To’). Changing the ‘From’ or ‘To’ date will change an activity’s position in the list. If it doesn’t, refresh your browser (F5). The stage for the activity is determined by the end date.
2. Click the Add new activity button at the top of the list of planned activities. A blank activity
form will appear.
3. Complete the form using the drop down lists and free text boxes. Use the MERIT reference material (schema, ready reckoner, family tree) to help you decide the most appropriate type of activity to add.
The site for the activity can be added now (if it has already been created), or after the project MERI plan has been approved. Refer to 7. Add a site to a project.
4. Click save changes. Your new activity has been added to the list. If it’s not visible in your
activities list, try refreshing your browser (F5 key).
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Planned activities
Activities
Project summary
Actions
MERIT User Guide V3
5.2b Manage your activities list
There are 4 actions for an activity.
Edit View Print (blank template) Delete
1. Click the Activities tab on your project page.
2. Click the relevant icon in the ‘Actions’ column next to the activity you wish to edit, view, print or delete.
3. If you are editing an activity, make the necessary changes and click Save changes.
Important: If you change the activity type for an activity that already contains data, that data will be lost.
4. If you wish to print the data within an activity form, click view , then use the print options on your browser’s menu bar to complete the action. If you wish to print all activities, click the project summary button (see 11.2 Generate a project summary).
5. The print function produces a blank template of the form for use in the field. The activity form will be opened as a .html document in your browser. Use the print options on your browser’s menu bar to complete the print action.
5.2c Review the planned activities list
1. Click the Activities tab on your project page.
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Gantt chart
Activities
MERIT User Guide V3
2. Click the Gantt Chart tab to view the activity list according to the planned dates for each activity. This view may help you assess whether or not the proposed timing for each activity follows a logical progression. The colour of the activity corresponds to its status.
3. When creating or reviewing your project’s list of planned activities, ask yourself the following questions:
Will the list of activities deliver the outcomes detailed in the MERI Plan?
Is the list of activities complete?
What is the logical progression/order for the activities?
Are there any activities that capture baseline data, site preparation, monitoring and
maintenance information?
Use the MERIT reference material (schema, ready reckoner, family tree) to help you.
There are a few instances where you may need to choose between two or more forms for the activity you plan to undertake. For example:
Fencing
If your fencing aims to reduce the impact of pest animals on environmental values or agricultural production, choose the Pest Management activity form.
If your fencing aims to protect an NRM asset from public access, choose the Public Access and Infrastructure activity form.
If your fencing protects an NRM resource (e.g. revegetation), choose the Fencing activity form.
Weed Treatment
If your weed treatment is related to site preparation (e.g. for revegetation), choose the Site Preparation activity form.
For all other weed treatment, choose the Weed Treatment activity form.
4. Ensure that a Progress, Outcomes & Learnings activity is included in each stage, and that an Outcomes, Evaluation and Learnings activity is included in the final stage. These two activity forms must be included in your activities list. Refer to the MERIT Schema for more information on these activity forms.
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Total output targets
Outcome statement/description
MERIT User Guide V3
Data entered into the Progress, Outcomes & Learnings and Outcomes, Evaluation & Learnings activity forms appear in the Stage Summary and Project Summary documents (refer to 11. Submit a report for approval ). If these activity forms are incomplete or missing, the summaries will not populate correctly.
5.3 View or edit the total project output targets
The output target table must be populated in order for your project MERI plan to be approved. The list of output targets is generated automatically according to the planned
activities list. Not all fields in MERIT activity forms have related targets.
The project dashboard is automatically generated from the data in activity forms, including from unapproved reports, and total output targets. The project dashboard (located next to the sites tab) will not work correctly until the output target values are populated.
1. Click the Activities tab on your project page. The list of output targets appears below the list of planned activities.
2. Add an output statement/description and target value for each output type.
5.4 Add or edit project risks and threats
This table details the risks and threats to the project and the mitigation strategies being used to address them. Risks identified should be those that the project team consider to be within their remit to anticipate and manage.
Project risks and threats can be preloaded into MERIT from application forms or they can be manually entered into MERIT. The risks and threats should be reviewed and updated each reporting period. Not all projects in MERIT will have access to the project risks and threats table.
Project risks and threats can be edited at any time, regardless of the phase of the project.
1. Click the Activities tab on your project page. The list of project risks and threats appears below the list of output targets.
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DeleteSave risks & threats
Add row
MERIT User Guide V3
2. Complete each column in the table using the drop down lists and free text boxes. Every
field in the project threats and risks table must be completed, as denoted by a red asterisk *. A description of each field is below.
Field OptionType of risk/threat Choose the best option from the drop down listDescription Describe the threat/risk, its sources and impactsLikelihood Select from: almost certain, likely, possible, unlikely, remoteConsequence Select from: insignificant, minor, moderate, major, extremeRisk rating Automatically generated according to the likelihood and
consequence of the riskCurrent control/contingency strategy
Describe what you will do to mitigate the threat/risk, source or impact to an acceptable level.
Residual Risk Level of risk after application of the control / contingency. Consider whether further management strategies are needed.
Overall project risk profile Select the value that reflects the highest combination of the most likely risk and the most severe consequence. Choose from: High, Significant, Medium or Low.
3. Click Add a row if you have more than one risk/threat.
4. Click on the ‘X’ (at the right hand side of the row) if you need to delete a risk/threat.
5. Once the table is complete, click the Save risks & threats button at the bottom of the page. If you try to navigate away from the page before saving changes you will be prompted to go back and click ‘save’ or ‘cancel’.
The information in the table is now displayed on the MERI Plan and Activities tabs and can be viewed by all project members. The project risks & threats are also included in the stage summary and project summary documents (refer to 11. Submit a report for approval for information on stage and project summaries).
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Submit for approval
Phase
Admin
MERI Plan sub-tab
Phase
MERIT User Guide V3
6. SUBMIT A PROJECT MERI PLAN FOR APPROVALPhase
Access Level ADMIN EDITOR
After reviewing your project MERI plan, you will need to submit it to your departmental grant manager for approval. See Appendix E: Keys to a good project in MERIT for things to consider before your click submit.
1. Click the Admin / MERI Plan sub-tab on your project page.
2. Click Submit for approval (located at the top and bottom of the MERI plan. The phase has now changed to ‘This plan has been submitted for approval’.
Submitting a MERI plan for approval automatically sends an email to the project’s departmental grant manager/s advising that the plan is ready for assessment.
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Sites attached to project
Add new
Sites tab
MERIT User Guide V3
7. ADD A SITE TO A PROJECTPhase
Access Level ADMIN EDITOR
Adding site information to a project gives spatial reference to the data contained in MERIT. Spatially accurate data is more useful for analysis and informing both management and investment decisions.
Sites and points of interest (POIs) are created at the project level and then added to individual activities. Sites can be created and/or added to an activity at any time.
Sites created with the mapping tool in your NRM funding application form are automatically imported into MERIT. Use the instructions in this section to add new or modify your existing sites in MERIT.
7.1 Create a site
Currently, only one site can be assigned to an activity form.
1. Click the Sites tab on your project page. Sites already added to the project are on the left of the screen. They are also indicated on the map.
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‘Define extent’ options
MERIT User Guide V3
There are 2 ways you can add a site to a project:
a) add a new site: use MERIT’s GIS tool to create a new site (refer to 7.1a Add a new site)
b) upload sites from shapefile: upload a shapefile created in other GIS software (refer to 7.1b Upload sites from shapefile).
7.1a Add a new site
1. Click the +New button.
2. Complete the free text fields and drop down lists. There are 3 ways to define the extent of the site: draw a shape, known shape, or point.
Define extent: draw a shape
1. On the map of Australia, zoom in to the area where your site is located.
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Vertex
Drawing toolsVertex midpoint
Auto-populated data (green)
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2. Choose a tool and draw your shape. Only one shape can be drawn per site.
Tool Description
Circle tool: the circle drawn will radiate out from the first click.
Square tool: the square drawn will radiate out from the first click.
Polygon tool: this tool allows a multi-sided shape (polygon) to be drawn. Click any number of times to add the vertices of your shape. Double click the last vertex to close the shape. Wait a few seconds for the shape to close.
If you need to refine the shape of the polygon, click on the button. Then click and drag a vertex (or vertex midpoint) to refine the shape. Click on the arrow to undo the last move.
Pointer tool: click and drag on the map to move. Double click on map to zoom in.
Delete: this tool will delete the shape drawn.
Expand: zoom and centre map on Australia.
Extent: zoom and centre map on extent of drawn shape.
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Multiple POIs
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If you have an activity form that aggregates data across multiple field sites, draw one polygon that encompasses all of the sites. Add points of interest (POIs) to represent the location of each field site (see 8. Add points of interest to a site)
3. Click Save changes. The site will be added to the project’s list of sites and the map.
Define extent: known shape
Try to avoid using ‘known shapes’ as sites. Choosing an entire NRM region as a site, for example, does not allow a precise indication of activity location.
1. Choose a layer from the drop down list: NRM, IBRA 7 Region, IBRA 7 Subregion, Australian State or Local Government Area.
2. Choose a shape from the drop down list.
3. The data highlighted in green will be automatically populated according to the layer and shape chosen. The map will zoom to show the extent of the shape.
4. Click Save changes.
5. The site will be added to the project’s list of sites and map.
Define extent: point
1. If you know the latitude and longitude of your site (in decimal degrees), enter them into the respective text boxes. Don’t forget to include the minus (-) with the latitude. If you don’t know the latitude and longitude, enter -35 latitude and 150. This will add a point to your map.
2. Click on the map. The data highlighted in green will be automatically populated according to the location of the point. The map will zoom to show the point, which is indicated with a red locator icon.
3. Use the zoom function (bottom right of map) and click/drag the locator icon to refine the position of the point. Your mouse cursor will change to a hand symbol, allowing you to click and drag.
4. Click Save changes. The site will be added to the project’s list of sites and the map.
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7.1b Upload sites from shapefile
You can add a site to a project by uploading a shapefile generated with GIS software. A site may have multiple polygons or POIs if these are uploaded as a shapefile document. Note that MERIT only recognises points or polygons, not lines.
Shapefiles
MERIT recognises shapefiles in a range of formats (coordinate reference systems).
A complete shapefile consists of a .shp file and a set of component files (e.g. .sbx, .pjr, .dbf etc). The software used to create the shapefile determines the number and type of component files.
MERIT requires the complete shapefile, including all component files, to be uploaded in order for it to display properly. To do this, zip the complete shapefile (the .shp plus all of the component files) into a single file and upload into MERIT.
A site shapefile can comprise multiple polygons or points, each representing a site in the field. This may be useful if your activity form aggregates data across multiple field sites. Select the appropriate saving method in your GIS software depending on whether you want the upload to MERIT to consist of one site comprising many polygons (Option A in the diagram below) or multiple unique sites (Option B).
It is a good idea to name (label) each feature prior to uploading into MERIT. Otherwise, MERIT will display the shapefile as multiple unidentified polygons/points.
1. Click the Sites tab on your project page.
2. Click the Upload button.
3. Click the Browse button and navigate to the file location.
4. Select the zipped shapefile, then click Open (all component files in zip format – see above).
5. Click Upload Shapefile.
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8
7
9
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If your shapefile consists of single or multiple polygons representing one site (Option A in the diagram on the previous page), it will be added to the project’s list of sites and map.
If your shapefile consists of multiple polygons that are to be uploaded as multiple unique sites (Option B in the diagram on the previous page), the following screen will be opened.
Steps 6 to 9 are indicated in the above diagram.
6. Choose the attribute you wish to use as the site name, site description and site ID from the relevant drop down lists (if already defined when the shapefile was created in your GIS software).
7. Alternatively, type a site name, description and ID into the text boxes for each site.
8. De-select any sites you do not wish to upload by un-ticking the box next to the relevant site.
9. Click Create sites. The shapefile you chose will be added as multiple unique sites to the project’s list of sites and map.
7.2 Download sites as shapefiles.
You can download all your sites from MERIT as a shapefile to use with your GIS software.
1. Click the Sites tab on your project page.
2. Click the Download button.
3. The shapefile downloads as a zip file and can be saved and opened on your computer as
required.
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Actions
Sites tab
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7.3 Manage your sites
There are 3 actions for a site attached to a project:
Edit View Delete
Sites can be viewed, edited or deleted from a project during any phase.
1. Click the relevant action icon next to the site you wish to edit, view or delete.
7.3a Edit a site
1. To edit a site associated with a project, click Edit .
2. Make the necessary changes and click Save changes. Refer to 7.1a Add a new site for instructions on how to refine the location or shape of your site.
7.3b View a site
1. To explore a site associated with a project, click View.
This displays the site information, plus the projects, points of interest (POIs) and activities associated with the site. See 8. Add points of interest to a site for more information on POIs.
Location data for the site can be downloaded as a shapefile by clicking Download Shapefile under the map and following the instructions.
The shapefile can also be viewed using the Atlas of Living Australia’s spatial portal by clicking View in Spatial Portal under the map. This feature enables users to consider the site in relation to hundreds of different spatial layers contained in the ALA portal.
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ALA Spatial Portal
Download site shapefile
Click to return to project
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2. To return to your project page, click the project’s name in the list under Projects associated with this site.
7.3c Delete a site from a project
Deleting a site from a project breaks the association between it and any activities to which it is attached. The site, and any associated photopoint data/images, will be removed from the relevant activity/ies.
1. To delete a site associated with a project, click Delete .
2. To delete multiple sites, tick the boxes for the sites you wish to remove and click Delete.
7.4 Add a site to an activity
A site can be added to an activity during the planning or reporting phase of the project:
1. Click the Activities tab on your project page.
2. When creating or editing an activity, select the appropriate site from the drop down list in the activity form. Refer to 5.2 Activities for how to add or edit activities.
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Choose a site
Choose a site
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3. Click save changes when you have finished.
7.5 Change / delete a site from an activity
Deleting or changing an activity’s site will also remove any photopoint images that may have been added to the activity. Deleting a site from one activity does not delete it from other activities to which it may be attached.
A site can be changed or deleted from an activity during the planning or reporting phase of the
project:
1. Click the Activities tab on your project page.
2. Click Edit for the activity you want to change, and choose an alternate site from the drop down list in the activity form.
3. Click save changes when you have finished.
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Edit Sites attached to project
Sites tab
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8. ADD POINTS OF INTEREST TO A SITEPhase
Access Level ADMIN EDITOR
Points of Interest (POIs) can be added to sites and are most commonly used to record the location of photo points. Photo points can provide a visual representation of vegetation change over time.
Refer to Appendix F: Guidelines for taking photographs for more information on photopoint photos.
There are two ways to add a POI to a site:
8.1 Add a POI: sites tab
1. Click the Sites tab on your project page.
2. Either click Edit for an existing site or +New for a new site (refer to 7.1a Add a new site).
3. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click Add a POI in the Points of Interest box.
4. Fill in the free text boxes and choose photopoint from the point type drop down list.
5. Enter the latitude and longitude for the photopoint (in decimal degrees).
6. Enter the bearing (degrees) for the direction the photo is taken.
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Locator icon
Drop down list
POI box
Add POISave changes
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7. Click Add a POI again if you have more than one POI to add. Delete POIs by clicking ‘remove’.
8. Click Save changes at the bottom of the page.
POIs cannot be uploaded from an existing shapefile or spreadsheet.
8.2 Add a POI: activity form
You can only add a POI to a site via an activity form if your project is in reporting phase (i.e. the project MERI plan has been approved). An explanation of the different reporting phases is at the beginning of 5. Create / Edit a project MERI plan of this guide and is illustrated in Appendix A: MERIT workflow.
Not all activity forms can have photopoint photos added. Refer to the Ready Reckoner for information on which activities can have photos attached.
1. Click the Activities tab on your project page.
2. Click Edit for the activity in which you wish to add the POI.
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Site assigned to activity
POI details
Submit
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3. Ensure a site has been assigned to the activity.
4. Scroll to the bottom of the activity form. POIs already added to the project will appear in the Photo Points section.
5. There are two ways to add a new POI from within an activity:
a) click + New photo point.
b) click + New photo point using GPS information from a photo, then open the photo you wish to upload. This option obtains latitude and longitude details from the photo. Note: your camera or phone needs to have location settings enabled for latitude and longitude data to be recorded when taking photos.
6. In the pop-up box that appears, enter the name, description and bearing for the POI. Review or enter the latitude and longitude and move the yellow POI icon as necessary.
7. Click ‘submit’. Note that even if you click submit and cancel out of the activity, the POI will still be added to the site. POIs can be edited or deleted via the sites tab (see 8.1 Add a POI: sites tab).
8. Click Save changes.
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9. PROJECT REPORTINGPhase
Access Level ADMIN EDITOR
Once your plan has been submitted and approved, you can record data in the activity forms. You are now in the reporting phase.
If you notice that the mandatory fields in an activity form are not relevant to the data you have collected in the field, it is likely the wrong activity form has been chosen when creating the project plan. Contact your departmental grant manager to discuss modifying your plan.
9.1 Add data to an activity form
The status of an activity can be:
Status Description
a scheduled activity that has not yet commenced and has no data added.
a scheduled activity that has commenced and has data added.
a scheduled activity that has all mandatory fields completed and has been marked as finished.
an activity that has been deferred to a later stage. A reason for deferring the activity will need to be entered in the pop-up box. A new form will need to be manually added to a later stage. Contact your departmental grant manager to discuss how to arrange this.
an activity that will no longer be undertaken as part of the project. A reason for cancelling the activity will need to be entered in the pop-up box.
1. Click the Activities tab and scroll to the Planned Activities section. The current reporting
period will be indicated by the tag in the ‘stage’ column. Activities that do not contain data will have a status of ‘planned’.
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Planned
Started
Finished
Deferred
Cancelled
StatusCurrent stage
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2. Click Edit for the planned activity in which you wish to record data. If you need to add data to an activity that has a status of ‘finished’, either click Edit or change the status to ‘started’.
3. Record your data in the activity form and save regularly.
4. Once you have completed the activity form, tick the Mark this activity as finished box at the bottom of the page. All mandatory fields (marked with a red asterisk*) must be completed before the activity can be marked as finished.
5. Click Save Changes at the bottom of the screen when all mandatory data has been recorded in the activity form.
The status of your activity has changed from ‘planned’ to ‘started’ (or finished, if the ‘mark this activity as finished’ box was ticked).
9.2 Create a list – ‘nested table’
Many activity forms allow users to add multiple rows to data tables. This functionality is referred to as a ‘nested table’. There are two ways you can add data to a nested table:
1) add a row, or
2) upload data from a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet template.
9.2a Add a row
1. When recording your data, scroll to the section of the form that contains the nested table. The table will initially consist of one row.
2. To add another row, click Add a row at the bottom of the nested table. You may continue adding rows until your table is complete.
3. To delete a row, click on the X in the last column of the row you want to delete.
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MERIT demonstrator project
DeleteAdd a row
Upload data for this table
Download template
Cell A2 Drop-down list
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9.2b Upload data for a table
MERIT users can also use an Excel spreadsheet, downloaded from MERIT, to populate nested tables.
1. When recording your data, scroll to the section of the activity form that contains the nested table. Click Upload data for this table.
2. Click Step 1 - Download template. Excel will open in another window.
3. Complete the table (one species/record per row). The minimum data requirement for the template is column A. You can also populate the other columns (from B onwards).
4. Save the template as you normally would for an Excel document.
5. Navigate back to MERIT. If you want to replace the data currently in the table with data in the template, un-tick the Append uploaded data to table box. If you want to keep the data currently in the table, leave the Append uploaded data to table box ticked.
6. Click Step 2 - Upload populated template. Navigate to the template document you saved in Step 4. Click Open.
7. The table within MERIT should now be populated with the data you entered into the Excel template. If you haven’t done so, populate the remaining mandatory fields in the table.
Troubleshooting: If the template won’t upload, ensure you haven’t: changed a heading in the spreadsheet; deleted a column; inserted a blank data row in your data set; or included a formula in a cell. Any of these will prevent the spreadsheet upload to MERIT. If you have checked for these errors and still experience difficulties uploading a spreadsheet, contact [email protected].
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Unmatched species name
Attach photo
+New photo point using GPS info
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For species lists - only valid exact scientific names will be matched and populated from the
ALA database (indicated by ). Unmatched species will load, but will be indicated by . These need to be corrected manually in order for the respective data to be allocated to the right species.
9.3 Add a photopoint image
Photos can only be added to activities that have been assigned a site that contains at least one point of interest (POI). Refer to 7. Add a site to a project and 8. Add points of interest to a site for assistance with sites and POIs.
Not all activity forms can have photopoint photos added. Refer to the Ready Reckoner for information on which activities can have photos attached.
1. Ensure a site has been selected for the activity in which you are recording data.
2. Scroll to the Photo Points section of the activity form. The photo points section will display any points of interest associated with the site. If no POIs exist, refer to 8.2 Add a POI: activity form for instructions on adding POIs from within an activity form.
3. To add a photo, click Attach Photo. Photos can also be added by clicking +New photo point using GPS information from a photo (refer to 8.2 Add a POI: activity form).
4. Navigate to where your picture is stored. Click Open. The image will be added to the table.
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Remove photo
Attach additional photo
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5. To add more images to that POI, click + Attach photo, navigate to where you picture is
stored and click open. To delete an image, click Remove.
6. Edit the title, date taken and attribution (person who took the photo) if necessary. Add
comments in the Notes field.
7. Repeat Steps 3-6 as necessary.
9.4 Defer or cancel an activity
Sometimes an activity will be postponed to a later stage (deferred) or will no longer be undertaken as part of the project (cancelled).
1. Navigate to the Activities tab and scroll to the Planned Activities section.
2. Click the status drop down box for the activity you want to defer or cancel. Select ‘defer’ or ‘cancel’ from the drop-down list.
3. A reason for cancelling or deferring an activity must be entered into the pop-up window. Click Save reason. The reason you provide will be included in any project summaries generated that include the deferred or cancelled activity. It will also be included in the auto-generated stage summary upon submission of a stage report. See 11. Submit a report for approval for information about these summaries.
4. If your activity is to be deferred, add a new activity form to the relevant stage to capture data. Refer to 5.2 Activities for instructions on how to add a new activity form.
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Admin
Documents
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10. UPLOADING DOCUMENTS AND MEDIAPhase
Access Level ADMIN EDITOR
You may wish to submit supplementary documentation to support the information entered into an activity form. Examples include management plans, flyers, photos, videos and sound bytes.
Photo point images should be uploaded within the relevant activity form (refer to section 9.3 Add a photopoint image ).
All document formats are accepted for uploading into MERIT.
Please note that large files should be zipped before uploading.
Program Logic documents can be uploaded using the instructions in section 10.1 below. Refer to Appendix C: Program Logic for further information.
10.1 Upload a document to MERIT
1. Click the Admin tab on the Project home page.
2. Click the Documents sub-tab on the left of the screen.
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Make document public
Privacy declaration
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3. Click the Attach Document button and complete the fields in the pop-up window. An explanation of each field is in the table below:
Field DescriptionTitle Type a title for the document.Attribution The person who created the document or took the photo.Document type Choose from the drop down list.
Information – document will appear on the Documents tab.Embedded video – will appear on Documents tabProgramme logic – document will appear on the MERI Plan tab.
Associate to Stage Select the relevant stage for the document (mandatory).License Entity who owns the document e.g. a regional body or government
department.Settings Tick this box if you want your document to be visible to the public on the
project documents page. This box cannot be ticked if you chose ‘programme logic’ as the document type.
Image settings Tick this box if you are uploading a photo and want it to be one of the main project images on the Overview tab.
4. Click + Attach file. Navigate to where your document is stored and click Open.
If you ticked the ‘make this document public on the project documents tab’ checkbox and the file you are uploading has a graphic file format (e.g. .jpeg, .gif, etc), a privacy declaration statement appears in the pop-up window. This declaration must be agreed (ticked) in order to save/upload the file. Refer to your funding agreement for the documentation required.
5. Click Save.
6. The document will be added to the list on the Admin/Documents sub-tab. It will also appear
on the MERI Plan tab (program logic only) or Documents tab (all other documents).
7. To delete a document, or edit the document details, navigate to the list of project
documents on the Admin/Documents sub-tab and click either Edit or Delete.
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10.2 Embed a video on the Overview page
Videos relevant to your project that are hosted on YouTube, Vimeo, TED and Wistia can be
embedded on the Overview tab of your project.
1. Navigate to the website hosting the video you wish to embed on the overview tab.
2. Click the ‘share’ or ‘embed’ button and copy the code associated with the video. For
example, code for the MERIT workflow video on YouTube looks like this:
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/LB2mtec7Uwo"
frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
3. Follow steps 1-3 in section 9.1 above, choose ‘Embedded video’ from the ‘Document type’
drop down list, and paste in the code for the video.
4. Complete the remaining details in the pop-up window and click Save.
5. The video will appear as a thumbnail on the Documents tab and will appear on the
Overview tab if you selected the ‘make this document public’ option from the pop-up window.
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Project summary
Status options
Submit report button
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11. SUBMIT A REPORT FOR APPROVALPhase
Access Level ADMIN EDITOR
The Submit report button automatically appears in the Stage column of
the project’s activities list the day after the current stage ends. For most
projects, this is 1 July and 1 January. The status for each activity in the stage must be
‘finished’, ‘deferred’ or ‘cancelled’ before the report can be submitted.
11.1 Submit a report for approval
1. Click the Activities tab on the Project home page.
2. Scroll to the stage in the activities list that you want to report on.
3. Note that the tag has been replaced by a tag, followed
by a button.
If the Submit report button is not active, the likely cause is that there are ‘planned’ or ‘started’
activities remaining in the stage, or you are an ‘editor’. You can change the status of an activity
by clicking the drop down list in the status column.
4. Review the data entered into each of the activities for the current stage. This can be done by generating a project summary (see 11.2 Generate a project summary) for the relevant
stage, or by viewing each activity individually. Is the data correct? Is it complete? Edit
the activities if required. Refer to Appendix E: Keys to a good project in MERIT for things to consider prior to submitting your report.
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Project summary
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If you need to amend data in an activity that has a status of ‘finished’, click Edit for the activity, make your changes and click save changes.
5. Once you are satisfied that all the data within each activity is accurate, click the Submit Report button in the Stage column.
Submitting a report for approval does 3 things:
1. Automatically sends an email to the departmental grant manager advising the stage report is ready to be reviewed.
2. ‘Locks’ the report for that stage so that no further data changes can be made by the Administrator/s or Editor/s.
3. Generates a Stage Summary document in PDF format that is automatically saved to the list of project documents on the Documents tab. The document can only be viewed by users with access to the project.
11.2 Generate a project summary
The project summary collates activities and outputs for the current or past stages into one
document. You may wish to generate a summary prior to submitting a stage report to allow
you to check that your stage data is complete, comprehensive and accurate. Some
organisations may want to use the project summary as an internal ‘sign-off’ document prior to
submitting the report to the Department.
1. Navigate to your project’s Activities tab and click the ‘Project Summary’ button.
2. From the pop up box that appears, choose the stage/s and content you wish the summary
to display.
3. Click ‘Generate Report’. Your project summary will be opened in another tab on your web
browser. Save or print your project summary as required.
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Project blog
Overview tab
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12. CREATE OR EDIT PROJECT BLOG Phase
Access Level ADMIN EDITOR
The Project Blog feature on the Overview tab enables funding recipients to publish news and
events, project stories and photos that they may want to share with the general public.
Example project stories include summaries of progress reports and project outcomes to date.
The Project Blog can be accessed via the project’s Overview or Admin tab.
12.1 Overview tab: edit or add a new blog
1. On the project Overview tab, scroll to the Project Blog section and click either New Entry or Edit.
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Create
Edit with Markdown Editor
Blog entry types
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2. Select the type of blog entry you wish to create (News and Events, Project Stories or Photos) and complete the required information.
3. You can format your text in the ‘Content’ box by clicking ‘Edit with Markdown Editor’. A pop-up box will appear.
4. Type your text into the blog content box and click ‘done’.
MERIT uses Markdown Syntax for formatting plain text. It is a simple HTML text editor for basic formatting and is different to Microsoft Word. Rather than typing out a passage then adding formatting afterwards with mouse clicks and formatting tools like buttons and dropdowns, Markdown allows a writer to use a very simple set of symbols to denote the
desired format of the text. Click the for examples or search for further Markdown Syntax guidance online.
5. Click Create when you are happy with what you have entered into the blog. Your entry will
appear on the Overview tab.
12.2 Admin tab: edit or add a new blog
1. Click the Admin tab then ‘Edit Project Blog’. Click ‘New Entry’ or ‘Edit/Delete’.
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Admin tab
Edit project blogEdit/Delete
New entry
Additional sub-tabs
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2. Complete or edit your blog entry as per section 12.1 (steps 2-5).
Note: projects that had content in News and Events or Project Stories prior to introduction of the blog feature (December 2015) will have access to additional sub-tabs on the project Admin tab.
These projects may add new or edit their blog information using the steps outlined in 12.1 or 12.2 above. The ‘News and Events’ or ‘Project stories’ sub-tabs can be used to edit existing content but you cannot add new blog items this way.
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Add a row
Project announcements
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13. CREATE OR EDIT PROJECT ANNOUNCEMENTS Phase
Access Level ADMIN EDITOR
MERIT allows funding recipients to outline key forward, planned announcements and invite the
Australian Government to participate in related launches, communication and media
opportunities. Project announcements can only be made if a project MERI Plan has been
approved by the grant manager. Announcements are only viewable by project administrators
and grant managers.
Refer to 14.3b Edit announcements in bulk for how to add or edit announcements in bulk via
the organisation page.
1. Click the Admin tab then the Project Announcements sub-tab.
2. To add a new announcement for a project, click + Add a row. Enter the details of your
announcement.
3. Edit existing announcements by selecting a table cell then making the necessary changes.
4. To delete an existing announcement for a project, use the X button in the last column.
5. Click save changes when you are finished.
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Admin tab
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14. CREATE & MANAGE AN ORGANISATION PAGEPhase
Access Level ADMIN EDITOR (read only)
Organisations may request an ‘organisation page’ in MERIT. This page allows organisation
members to view all Commonwealth funded NRM projects, sites and a dashboard associated
with the organisation. Through this page, administrators can also edit organisation details,
create bulk announcements for all projects and manage user roles across all of their projects.
The Department will add an ‘organisation administrator’ when an organisation page is created. The organisation administrator will be able to view and edit the organisation page. The organisation administrator can also nominate other project members to view and/or edit all of an organisation’s projects. See section 14.3 Add a user to all projects for additional information.
14.1 Create an organisation
Project administrators can request the creation of an organisation page. Please send the
request to the MERIT inbox: [email protected]. The Department will add an
organisation administrator to the newly created organisation page.
14.2 View an organisation
1. Click at the top of the screen.
2. If you have admin or editor access for an organisation page, your organisation will appear
on the drop down list. Select your organisation to continue.
3. If your drop down list is empty, click the find an organisation here link to open the full list
of organisations currently available.
4. Search for an organisation by entering its name in the organisation search tool
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Organisation tabs
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Alternatively, scroll to the bottom of the page and click the arrow buttons to search through the
full list.
5. Open the organisation page. The following tabs will be displayed: About, Reporting, Projects, Sites, Dashboard and Admin. Only ‘organisation admin’ users will be able to see
the Admin tab.
Tab DescriptionAbout Information about the organisation. Minimum information required is
organisation name and description. Can also include an acronym, website URL, link to social media, organisation logo and feature graphic.
Reporting Only NRM regions have this tab. Performance management framework self assessments are completed via this tab.
Projects A list of all projects the organisation is responsible for in MERIT. Also includes a total funding amount for the organisation.
Sites Displays all project sites on a map.Dashboard Displays data from project reports submitted by the organisation and
approved by the Department. Also displays announcements (viewable by organisation administrators only). The dashboard will only display if more than one project exists for the organisation.
Admin Only visible to organisation administrators. Organisation administrators can edit the organisation details, create bulk announcements for all projects managed by the organisation, add MERIT users to all projects managed by the organisation (and change user role).
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Add permissions
Edit announcements
Edit details and content
Admin tab
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14.3 Edit an organisation
Only organisation administrators can edit their organisation’s page.
14.3a Edit organisation details and content
1. Click the organisation Admin tab.
2. Under Administrator actions, click the Edit button.
3. Enter information about your organisation as required.
14.3b Edit announcements in bulk
Use this function to view, add or edit announcements in bulk for all of your organisation’s
projects. Project announcements can only be made if a MERI Plan has been approved by the
grant manager.
1. Click on the organisation’s admin tab.
2. Click the Edit announcements button.
3. Edit existing announcements by selecting a table cell.
4. To add a new announcement for a project, use the + button in the last column.
5. To delete an existing announcement for a project, use the X button in the last column.
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Upload data for this table Save
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A blank row has been included for each project that does not currently have announcements. This is for editing convenience only. There is no need to delete the blank row.
6. To upload announcements from an Excel spreadsheet, click Upload data for this table.
a. Click Step 1 - Download template. Excel is opened in another window.
b. Complete the table, entering one announcement per row.
c. Save the template as you normally would for an Excel document.
d. Navigate back to MERIT.
e. Click Step 2 - Upload populated template. Navigate to the template document you saved in Step C and click open.
f. The table within MERIT should now be populated with the data you entered into the Excel template.
7. Click save.
All project announcements will appear on the organisation dashboard tab, under the ‘report’ drop down list. Project announcements will also appear on the Admin tab of the relevant projects (refer to 13. Create or edit project announcements for more information on announcements at the project level).
14.4 Add a user to all projects
Organisation administrators can add, remove or edit MERIT users for all projects managed by
their organisation.
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2. Enter the MERIT user’s email address and the required permission level then click Submit.
Edit user roles or delete users as necessary.
3. Advise the MERIT user that they have been added or had their user role changed or
deleted.
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WANT MORE INFORMATION?
Click the Help link on the MERIT menu bar to read answers to frequently asked questions.
Click the About link on the MERIT menu bar to read recent news and information on enhancements and fixes.
Important news is also sometimes included in a pop-up box that appears when you log in to MERIT.
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GLOSSARY OF TERMS
Activity: an action that is undertaken to achieve project outputs and outcomes. Refer to the
Activity Ready Reckoner for the list of activities and definitions.
Administrator: is a level of access in MERIT. It enables you to view all information for your
project, input, edit and submit project data and reports to the Department; and assign user
roles to other people (e.g. project managers, sub-contractors).
Department: is the Australian Government Department administering the NRM funding.
Description (activity): is the description of an activity that you identified in the activity
schedule of your MERI plan. The activity description appears in the ‘description’ column of the
‘Activities’ tab of your project page in MERIT.
Description (project): is the description of your project, which you provided in your project
application. The project description appears on the ‘overview’ tab of a project page in MERIT.
Editor: is a level of access in MERIT. It enables you to view all information for a project, as
well as input and edit activity data. It does not allow you to submit reports to the Department or
assign user roles to other people.
Funding recipient (grant recipient): is an individual or organisation that has received funding
for a project through an Australian Government NRM program.
Grant manager: is a departmental officer who manages projects funded by Australian
Government NRM programmes in cooperation with the funding recipient.
MERI: Simple concepts that, when applied, help us understand what is being achieved and
help identify possible improvements, for projects and programmes:
Monitoring: the collection of data and information.
Evaluation: analysing the monitoring data and assessing what it means. Based on this,
informed judgements can be made about the success of a project or programme and
improvements can be identified.
Reporting: communicating what we have found out through monitoring and evaluation. It
is about sharing information, including about achievements and lessons learnt.
Improvement: using this information to improve the way things are done.
NRM program: refers to Australian Government funded NRM programs, such as National
Landcare Programme.
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Outcomes: are the tangible and measurable changes resulting from maintenance of and/or
improvement in NRM assets (e.g. vegetation condition change, recovery of threatened
species). These may be immediate, intermediate or longer-term outcomes.
Outputs: are the tangible (measurable and practical), immediate and intended results to be
produced through NRM investment (e.g. area (ha) of revegetation completed).
Output Targets: are the total project outputs that a project has committed to achieve. These
are captured from your MERI plan and displayed at the bottom of the ‘Activities’ tab of a
project page in MERIT.
Phase: there are three phases for project MERI plans (displayed on the Admin/MERI plan
sub-tab): not yet approved, submitted but not approved, and approved. The phase determines
the actions that can be undertaken:
Phase Edit Project Plan? Record Activity Data?
Yes No
The project plan has been submitted but not yet approved by the Departmental grant manager
No No
No Yes
Point of Interest: is a marker for a specific geographic location which can be added through
the ‘sites’ tab of a project page in MERIT or via an activity form (for photo points). Funding
recipients can use this to mark a range of features which will be useful to them such as the
location of specific plantings within a larger site or the location of threatened species.
Project member: a MERIT user (editor, admin or grant manager) who has been given access
to a particular project in MERIT.
Project MERI plan: is a document prepared by funding recipients to clearly set out the project
activities to be undertaken, and the intended outputs and outcomes of the project.
Site: is a defined geographic location relevant to a project. Sites can be defined using the
mapping tools available in the ‘sites’ tab of a project page in MERIT. Funding recipients can
create sites at their discretion which allow them to represent their project. In some instances, it
may be preferable to identify a site as a whole project area, or alternatively as a number of
more specific smaller areas.
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Stage: is a six-monthly time period which is used in MERI plans and MERIT to delineate
activities for reporting purposes. Stages are identified in the left column of the activity schedule
of MERI plans or in the left column of the ‘Activities’ tab of a project page in MERIT. In MERIT
an activity is assigned to a stage based on the timeframe during which it is scheduled to occur.
Stage Summary: a document that summarises key information on the activities and
achievements within a stage. This summary is automatically generated and saved to the
documents tab when a report is submitted to the Department.
Themes: program- specific priorities for investment which are defined in the relevant
programme guidelines.
Acronyms
ALA: Atlas of Living Australia
MERI: Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting and Improvement
MERIT: online Monitoring, Evaluation, Reporting and Improvement tool
NRM: Natural Resource Management
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APPENDIX A: MERIT WORKFLOW
There are two main phases for reporting in MERIT: planning and reporting. The diagram below demonstrates the MERIT workflow from creation of a project shell to final approval. The steps relevant to funding recipients are covered in these guidelines.
If an approved project MERI plan requires amending, contact the Grant Manager to enable modification of the project MERI Plan. Edit the plan and resubmit for approval. If a submitted report is rejected because the project MERI plan requires editing (e.g. an activity form has been omitted), the Grant Manager will enable modification of the MERI Plan. Edit the plan and resubmit for approval. Once the plan is approved, add/amend activity data and resubmit the report for approval.
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APPENDIX B: OVERVIEW OF PROJECT SHELLS
Each project shell in MERIT consists of the following tabs:
Tab FunctionOverview This tab can be viewed by anyone who visits MERIT without logging in.
It displays project information sourced from the Department’s grant
management system and the funding application form. Funding
recipients can also add a project blog (including news and events,
project stories and photos), sound bytes and videos (see 10. Uploading
documents and media and 12. Create or edit project blog).
Documents Documents can be made public or viewable only by project members.
Refer to 10. Uploading documents and media.
MERI Plan The public can view this tab for all National Landcare Programme
Regional Funding projects. Administrators can edit the MERI Plan (see
5. Create / edit a project MERI plan).
Activities This tab displays a list of planned project activities based on the project
MERI plan and/or grant application form. Total project output targets
and risks & threats for the project are also listed (5. Create / edit a
project MERI plan).
Sites Users can create, view, edit sites and points of interest for their project.
See 7. Add a site to a project and 8. Add points of interest to a site for
guidance.
Dashboard This is a visual representation of data using graphs and tables to show the
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(project) number of outputs the project will deliver and the progress the project has
made toward these outputs (see 5. Create / edit a project MERI plan).
Admin For administrators only. Clicking this tab reveals several sub-tabs, listed
below.
Sub-tab Function (administrators):MERI Plan add and update information appearing in the MERI Plan tab.
Project
announcements
provide details on key upcoming events and announcements, and invite
the Australian Government to participate in launches, communication
and media opportunities related to the project. Project announcements
can only be made if a MERI Plan has been approved by the grant
manager.
Edit project
blog
edit news and events, project stories and photos. The project blog is
displayed on the Overview tab. Editing is most efficient on the Overview
tab.
Project access add, remove or edit project members for a project.
Species of
interest
create a species list for a project. This function aims to reduce the list of
candidate species, in the species look-up function on forms, to only those that
are applicable to the project.
Documents attach documents (Word, Excel, PDFs), sound bytes, videos and photos
to a project. Administrators can nominate if the document/photo is
publicly available on the Project Overview page. Photos nominated as
the “main project image” will display more prominently on the Overview
Page.
NB: Photos containing sensitive information (e.g. people) must not be made publicly available unless you have permission to do so.
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APPENDIX C: MERI PLAN TEMPLATE DESCRIPTIONS
Project Outcomes
Enter the outcomes sought by the project. This should be expressed as a 'SMART' statement (Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic and Time-bound) and deliver against the programme. A project may have more than 1 outcome.
Suggested Length: The outcome should be no more than 2 sentences.
Assets addressed
These are the high level natural / cultural assets being addressed by the project outcome. An outcome may deliver against more than one asset.
Suggested Length: For each outcome, select the relevant asset/s from the list available. Selecting the asset allows the Department to more efficiently evaluate programme performance. ‘Not applicable’ should be used as a last resort.
Monitoring indicator
List the indicators of project success to be monitored. These may be things such as increased community participation, increased abundance of a threatened species, maintenance of vegetation condition etc.
Suggested Length: The indicator should be approximately 1 to 2 sentences. The indicator being monitored should be easily identifiable on review of the text. Add a new row for each indicator.
Monitoring approach
How will this indicator be monitored? Briefly describe the method to be used to monitor the indicator.
Suggested Length: The section should provide sufficient detail so that a grants manager can easily understand the methods being used and when the monitoring will take place. Broad definitions are sufficient, e.g. vegetation condition monitoring using Bushland Condition Monitoring method. There is no requirement to outline that this involves transects, plots etc.
National and regional priorities
List the name of the National, Regional or local plan the project is addressing, what section (target/outcomes/objective etc) of the plan is being addressed, and in what way will the project deliver against this section?
Suggested Length: 1 to 2 sentences on the strategic alignment of the project to the document is sufficient as long as it clearly outlines how the project aligns with national and regional priorities, plans and strategies.
Project implementation / delivery mechanism
How is the project to be delivered? Briefly describe the high-level method/s to be used, e.g. the types and rates of herbicide to use are not required. The delivery mechanism/s should provide sufficient detail to understand how the project's outcomes will be achieved.
Suggested Length: 5000 character limit. Length will vary from project to project because of the variation in projects complexity and the range of outcomes being delivered. Succinctly describe the delivery mechanisms.
Project partnerships
Provide the name of project partners. Project partners are those partners actively involved in planning or delivering the project. Very briefly indicate how the partner is contributing to the project and select the most appropriate partner type from the list provided.
Suggested Length: Nature of partnership should be able to be described in 2 to 3 sentences. Please list all partners actively involved in the planning and delivery of the project. The type of organisation allows the Department to more efficiently evaluate programme performance.
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Key evaluation question
Please list the Key Evaluation Questions for your project. Evaluation questions should cover the effectiveness of the project and whether it delivered what was intended; the impact of the project; the efficiency of the delivery mechanism/s, and the appropriateness of the methodology. These need to be answerable within the resources and time available to the project.
Suggested Length: Provide as many KEQs as necessary to ensure your grant manager has sufficient evidence that appropriate project evaluation processes are in place to ensure project outcomes are met.
Project Announcements **Can be edited at any time**
This section provides funding recipients a place to provide key forward (planned) announcables and invite the Australian Government to participate in related launches, communication and media opportunities. This includes opportunities to announce recipients of small projects and related activities. Dates provided can be indicative only, grant managers can clarify actual dates closer to the timing of the events or as required.
Suggested Length: Nominate a category for each event and include details as applicable on type, date, announcement dates, value of funding and further information.
Project Budget
Include the planned budget expenditure against each programme objective. For NLP regional delivery projects please provide 3 rows per objective. One to indicate the amount directed toward engaging the community, the second to indicate the amount directed toward indigenous engagement and the third indicating all other expenditure against the objective.
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APPENDIX D: PROGRAM LOGIC
Developing a program logic diagram can be useful in helping demonstrate how your project aligns with the NRM program objectives and help ensure that the approach, and steps needed to achieve the project outputs and outcomes, are clear. A program logic is usually represented as a diagram or matrix that shows a series of expected consequences, not just a sequence of events. It expresses how change is expected to occur. A program logic diagram can be attached to your project in MERIT and should reflect, and be consistent with, the important detail captured elsewhere in the project plan. A program logic diagram can also be a useful tool for communicating the project to others. The diagram below depicts the basic structure and levels of a program logic diagram.
Refer to Developing and using program logic in natural resource management: user guide on the MERI page of the www.nrm.gov.au website. Your departmental grant manager will also be able to assist.
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MERI plan tab
Program logic
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Refer to 10. Uploading documents and media for instructions on how to attach a program logic document in MERIT. The program logic document can be accessed from the bottom of the project’s MERI Plan tab, as shown below.
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APPENDIX E: KEYS TO A GOOD PROJECT IN MERIT
The value of MERIT is intrinsically linked to the quality (not necessarily quantity) of data it
holds. Incorrect or incomplete project information compromises subsequent reports and
narratives.
Project MERI Plan
1. The list of planned activities must make sense, occur in a logical order, capture the output
targets committed to in the application form and paint the whole picture (baseline data
collection, preparation, maintenance, post-impact data collection).
2. Ensure you have selected the activity form that best represents what you are delivering. The
MERIT Ready Reckoner, Activity Family Tree and MERIT Schema documents will help you
decide which activity form to add to your list of planned activities. You can aggregate multiple
activities of the same type into one form where appropriate, and enter specific details into the
activity description.
3. Does the list of activities include implementation or ‘doing’ activities? These are actions that
deliver the project outputs (e.g. area of revegetation completed) and outcomes (e.g.
improvement in vegetation condition). This data is compared to the funding agreement (output
targets) to justify payments and provides an audit trail of compliance. Look at the Output
Targets table at the bottom of the activities list – if there are no output targets, there are no
‘doing’ activities in the list.
Project Report
1. Ensure that the data entered into the activity form adequately records achievement against
any targets.
2. Ensure that a site has been assigned to each ‘doing’ activity (implementation actions,
assessment/monitoring actions and training actions). Data that has spatial and textual
accuracy is more useful for analysis and informing both management and investment
decisions.
3. Ensure that you provide evidence that targets have been achieved. This could be as simple
as a comprehensively completed activity form and inclusion of photopoint photos showing
before and after comparisons. Evidence may also be in the form of before and after survey
information or monitoring activities.
4. If you are attaching a supplementary document to your project as part of your stage report,
consider whether the information could be captured in an activity form. Information captured in
attachments does not contribute to your overall project outputs (dashboard).
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APPENDIX F: GUIDELINES FOR TAKING PHOTOGRAPHS
Photo point
Setting up and using a photo point to obtain a time-series of photographs of the same feature
is an effective way of keeping a photographic record of change. A photo point is a fixed point
on the ground from which photographs are taken along a fixed bearing. In this case the photo
point is located 5 metres from the start of the transect, and is the only fixed position from
which plot images will be taken. The reference marker (located at the start of the transect)
and the alignment marker (located 20 m along the transect) will act as ‘sighter’ posts for
taking the fixed image (see below image). These posts should be in the centre of the frame so
the image captures equal areas of the left and right sectors of the plot (i.e. the photo is aligned
directly along the transect bearing).
The fixed photo can be oriented in landscape or portrait. A rule of thumb is to use landscape
where you can adequately capture the overstorey canopy, otherwise use portrait (normally for
taller forest and woodland types). Future photos taken from the photo point will always use the
same orientation as the initial photo. Orientation and transect bearing will be recorded on the
pro forma in the Standard and Abridged Field Guides. Always stand (do not sit) when taking
the plot photo, so that images are always taken at eye level.
If a shrub or some other feature is obstructing the line of site along the transect, then ignore it
and take the image anyway. Obstructions come and go over time. The important thing is that
photographs provide a visual record of vegetation change.
Disturbance to the site should be minimised for taking photographs. For example, do not
physically remove objects to create a better line of sight, and minimise the level of trampling
between the photo point and the sighter posts. It is best to record the fixed image immediately
after delineating the plot, rather than after completion of field survey.
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Opportunistic photographs
Taking field images of interest in addition to the fixed photograph is encouraged. These may
include photographs of:
- native plants and animals,
- habitat features (e.g. hollow-bearing trees, bird nests, coarse woody debris),
- weed infestation before and after intervention,
- disturbance incidents (e.g. wind throw, floods),
- ‘typical’ stands of the vegetation type in and around the plot, and
- the surrounding landscape.
The position of the photographer in relation to the transect (i.e. transect distance and
perpendicular distance right or left) and the photo bearing should be recorded on the pro forma
so that the feature can be revisited updated images possible recorded during future
monitoring.
Image nomenclature
The image taken at the photo point should be named after the Project and Plot ID, with a prefix
for the year in which it was undertaken, and a ‘P’ to indicate it is the standard plot photo.
For example: CFOC0208_Plot01_2012_P
Additional images taken at other points in the plot, or perpendicular to the plot transect, should
use the same nomenclature, but with a trailing number to show that it is an opportunistic rather
than the standard image.
For example: CFOC0208_Plot01_2012_1; CFOC0208_Plot01_2012_2;
CFOC0208_Plot01_2012_3 etc.
Intervention-specific images taken at other photo points should use a similar naming
convention so that images can be conveniently associated with the project ID, the intervention,
and the year of sampling.
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