IMET is a Protected Area Management Effectiveness (PAME) tool that allows an in-depth assessment of marine and terrestrial protected areas, regardless of their management categories and governance type. It is also a decision support tool that helps protected area managers take analysis-based management decisions for improved conservation outcomes.
IMET is a PAME tool – but also much more:
- As a PAME tool, IMET identifies management strengths, constraints, and weaknesses of a protected area management.
- IMET considers the key values of the protected area throughout the assessment to ensure that the overall scope of management is results-oriented. In this way, it supports the identification of the urgency and conservation priorities.
- IMET embeds an inherent dimension of capacity building on protected area planning, monitoring, and evaluation to serve outcome-oriented management.
- IMET exercise also supports the application of the protected area to the Green List.
IMET unique characteristics
- IMET is a software that can be downloaded free of charge on a PC, that does not require an internet connection.
- IMET combines the analysis of the protected area surrounding environment with the internal management assessment to obtain a clearer understanding of the management context and challenges.
- IMET encourages participatory assessment and decision-making process, building a collective understanding of how the management functions. It is helpful to develop or renew a work plan or a management plan.
- IMET includes data visualization that facilitates the analysis and presentation of results at soon as the assessment is completed.
- IMET provides an automatic management analysis report that can be easily shared to protected area authorities and partners, the IMET (PAME) Analysis Report.
- IMET stores the information in a database allowing processing and visualisation for more detailed analysis at site or system level.
- IMET specialists (coaches) are available to support the IMET assessment, and result analysis. They form a supportive community to leverage capacity for planning, management, and even policy-making.
Key features of the IMET 2.10 version
This new IMET version (IMET 2.8, June 2022) includes several new features. The main ones are:
- Two additional languages: Spanish, and Portuguese, in addition to English and French.
- A third module, the IMET Analysis Report, which is automatically generated, editable, and printable for PAME reporting.
- Possibility to work on any protected area, including those not featured in the WDPA.
- Self-updating: no need to download any future version anymore!
- Export/import functionality which allows sharing assessments in JSON format.
- Possibility to generate a new IMET pre-filled with data from previous ones.
- Merge conflicting or duplicates assessments (same PA and same year).
- More user-friendly and ergonomic: visually attractive, a printing function, automatic information transfer, and more straightforward navigation between modules.
- Increased software quality: self-updating, maintainability, stability.
The IMET 2.10 Technical Note provides the detailed list of all the additional functions with regards to the previous versions.
