(CLOSED) Request for Proposal – Study on Environmental impacts, and risks, in the global Natural Rubber value chains

Background

The Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR) brings together companies, smallholders, academia, and civil society to transform the natural rubber supply chain into one that is sustainable, equitable, and fair.

Since its launch in 2018, GPSNR has grown into a truly global platform, now representing over half of the world’s natural rubber demand. Over the years, the platform has moved from building alignment and collaboration to establishing the systems that make collective impact possible.

2025 marks a pivotal shift in GPSNR’s journey.
This is the year in which the platform redefined what impact means, moving from engagement and small-scale contributions to systemic change through:

• the approval and launch of an industry-wide sustainability assurance system

   

• the mobilisation of funding through the Shared Investment Mechanism (SIM)

   

• and a strategic focus on scaling impact in emerging markets 

The 2025 Annual Report will tell this story of growing ambition of a platform that has moved decisively into an era of assured, financed, and delivered impact.

 

Scope

GPSNR is seeking a creative consultancy or production partner to develop:

1. A short-form Annual Report video (5 minutes)

    

2. An accompanying Annual Report that can be published online and downloaded as a PDF

The video and report should work together as a cohesive storytelling package, communicating GPSNR’s strategic evolution and impact to members, partners, donors, policymakers, and the wider sustainability community.

All core content, messaging, and data will be provided by the GPSNR Secretariat. The consultant will be responsible for shaping this content into compelling visual narratives across both formats.

Core tasks

Working closely with the GPSNR secretariat, the consultant will: 

• Propose 2–3 creative concepts for the overall narrative and visual direction of the Annual Report (video + PDF) for the GPSNR team to choose from 
• The consultant will be responsible for scriptwriting and storyboarding, content production, video editing and post-production, and final delivery of a complete video package suitable for digital, event, and member communications.
• Liaise with GPSNR’s Communications Manager to ensure the draft cuts are feasible. 

Terms 

• The engagement will take place for a period of six weeks, from 26 January to 9 March. Interim dates for and approvals will be mutually agreed upon after confirmation. 

Necessary Competencies:

• Proven experience producing annual reports or impact communications in video and digital formats
• Strong capabilities in visual storytelling and narrative development
• Experience working with:
  • sustainability, ESG, or multi-stakeholder initiatives
  • complex technical content and policy-related themes
• High-level design and production skills, including:
  • motion graphics and video editing
  • layout and publication design
• Ability to manage iterative feedback processes with multiple stakeholders
• Strong attention to detail and quality control

Submission Guidelines:

The following submission guidelines & requirements apply to this Request for Proposal:

• Proposals will only be accepted from individuals or firms with experience relevant to this project.
• Submissions must include 1) a portfolio of previous work 2) a paragraph describing how the consultant would approach such a project 3) a financial proposal with a breakdown of how much each work would cost.
• Proposals must be signed by a representative that is authorised to commit to the bidder’s company.
• Proposals must be received by 19 January 2025 to be considered. Proposals should be submitted to bani.bains@gpsnr.org for consideration.
  
• To receive a copy of the draft content, applicants can email bani.bains@gpsnr.org

RFP and Project Timelines

Submission of Proposal	19/01/2026
Selection of top bidders and further conversations	21/01/2026
Contract award/notification to unsuccessful bidders	22/01/2026
Work commences no later than	26/01/2026

Budget

The Platform anticipates that a total budget of no more than 4,000 Singapore Dollars (SGD) will be allocated to this engagement.

    

Payment terms shall be:

20% at the signing of the contract

30% at the midpoint date to be agreed upon and memorialised in the contract based on the submitted work plan

50% on delivery of the final report

 

Evaluation Factors

GPSNR will rate proposals based on the following factors:

• Responsiveness to the requirements outlined in this Request for Proposals
• Relevant past performance/experience and / or any samples of past work
• Cost, including an assessment of the total cost of ownership.
• Technical expertise/experience of the bidder and the bidder’s staff

GPSNR reserves the right to award to the bidder that presents the best value to GPSNR as determined solely by GPSNR in its absolute discretion.

 

View RFP Document here

Introduction & Background

 
 The Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR) is an international, multi-stakeholder, voluntary membership initiative seeking to lead improvements in the socioeconomic and environmental performance of the natural rubber value chain.
Development of GPSNR was initiated by the CEOS of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) Tire Industry Project (TIP) in 2018. Members of the platform include tire manufacturers, rubber suppliers and processors, vehicle makers and NGOs. Representatives from each of these stakeholder groups have contributed to the development of the Singapore-based platform and the wide-reaching set of priorities that will define strategy and objectives.

 

Thailand is the largest producer of natural rubber (NR) worldwide, contributing 36% to
total global production. Majority of the NR production in Thailand is conducted
by smallholder farmers owning land of 2-4 hectares. The NR value chain in Thailand has historically been supported by various governmental bodies, now functioning under the umbrella of the Rubber Authority of Thailand (RAOT). This has led to exceptional performance by rubber farms, with an average yield exceeding 1.6 tons per hectare in 2019. However, the NR value chain in Thailand remains highly labour-intensive and currently
faces oversupply and low prices.

Thailand rubber has some specific particularities. It is grown in 4 main regions with different growing conditions: Traditional areas are in the South (the historical planting) and the East (Rayong and Chanthaburi provinces) while more recent developments were established in less climatically favourable areas: North and North-East (Esan). It has the particularity to be produced almost exclusively by smallholders, using higher tapping frequencies than other countries even in the neighbourhood, and to exploit rather low size farms (1.5ha or less). Share cropping among farmers and tappers is a common practice, beside family farming. Consequence of this is that although a good land productivity (kg/ha), labour productivity remains very low to date.

GPSNR, through the Smallholders Representative and Capacity Building Working Group (SCB WG) – Thailand National Subgroup, is currently inviting proposals for the dissemination of coaching materials and implementation of coaching on Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) for smallholders in two regions (North and North-East) of Thailand, with a focus on one province per region.

 

The proposed coaching programs should be implemented in accordance with the
GPSNR’s environmental and social commitments and values, as outlined in the GPSNR
Policy Framework[1], and in compliance with the relevant Thai Agricultural Standard: Good Agricultural Practices issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives
of Thailand.

[1]
https://sustainablenaturalrubber.org/policy-framework/

Objectives

 

The overall objectives of the GAP coaching programmes are to ensure the long-term sustainability of rubber livelihoods and ecosystems by increasing smallholders’ productivity, yields, and socio-economic resilience, whilst safeguarding nature and the environment. 

 

Expected Deliverables

 

Brief Justifications

The objective of the project is to update and disseminate the best Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) recommendations to farmers in Thailand. This aims to ensure that planters have access to relevant knowledge and resources to enhance their productivity,
motivation, and income, leading to an improved livelihood.

The proposal should implement GPSNR’s proposed strategy for capacity building in
Thailand and provide brief justifications on the most suitable approach to
conduct coaching for smallholders in two regions (North and North-East) of
Thailand, with a focus on one province per region.

The GPSNR SCB WG – Thailand National Subgroup may prioritize funding for coaching in
regions based on relative productivity, coverage of existing coaching services,
socio-economic needs, recommendations of RAOT, or other considerations.

Proposed Coaching Approach

Possible approaches for consideration include (non-exhaustive): mobile coaching at local
community centres; building physical training centres; on-farm coaching; hybrid
coaching approaches. The proposal should consider which approach represents the
best fit for community needs and dynamics.

The proposed coaching approach should consider, but is not limited to, the
following priorities:

a.    Coaching based on the train-the-trainers (ToT) model

b.   Female and other minority inclusion and representation

c.    Field coaching (or other approach) implementation plans

d.   Integration of technology for data capture and ongoing engagement, and progress tracking (i.e. immediate and longer-term monitoring and evaluation)

e.   Others (i.e. nuanced approaches to meet geographic/other needs; ongoing farmer community connectivity and interactions; engagement with local or regional officials

Service providers are to adapt the provided GPSNR GAP coaching approaches. The GPSNR GAPs are created to serve as general best practices and principles for global usage and are periodically reviewed and updated to reflect the sector’s latest understandings.

The service provider is expected to work with GPSNR to adapt the general GAPs to align with local situations in Thailand and comply with the relevant Thai Agricultural Standard: Good Agricultural Practices issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives of Thailand. This will build trust with smallholders and optimize the coaching outcomes, particularly in terms of language, technical specificities, and local needs.

Service providers should also translate the relevant Thai Agricultural Standard: Good Agricultural Practices issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives of Thailand from Thai to English.

The GPSNR GAPs consist of the following four modules:

1.     Rubber Plant Material

2. Establishment and Maintenance of Plantations

3.    Latex Harvesting

4.   Diseases and Pests

Service providers are also expected to operate in line with principles and values set forth in the GPSNR Policy Framework such as commitment to environmental protection and sustainability, zero deforestation, community engagement and FPIC etc.

The selected service provider may also be expected to work closely with the GPSNR SCB WG – Thailand National Subgroup to fine-tuned or further augment the provided coaching materials. 

 

Key Metrics

To prevent risk of false correlations, it is essential to collect baseline data on participating smallholders before the GAP coaching begins. The impact assessment should compare the participating smallholders’ data after the GAP coaching to accurately measure their improvement.

It is also important to collect control group date of smallholders who did not participate in the GAP coaching programmes to ensure any changes observed are due to the GAP coaching and not other factors. Additionally, being aware of external factors such as weather and market prices can help to better assess the results.

 The proposal should elaborate on how the following key metrics can be achieved and measured:

1.      Total number of smallholders coached

2.     Total number of trainers or coaches coached

3.     Year-by-year increase in smallholder productivity and smallholders engaged

4.    Inclusivity across gender, youth, geographic regions, and ethnicity (e.g., indigenous, or other minority communities)

5.     Monitoring and evaluation of coaching progress and outcomes

 The proposal should also identify other key metrics of importance not listed above and describe how they will be achieved and measured.

 

Submission Guidelines & Requirements

 

The following submission guidelines & requirements apply to
this Request for Proposal:

1.     Proposals will only be accepted
from individuals or firms with experience relevant to this project.

2.    A technical proposal must be provided that is not more than 4 pages. This technical proposal must provide:

•      A workplan that outlines all key activities of the deliverables
(refers to Expected Deliverables above)

•      Timeline and key stages of operations (refers to Project
Timelines below)

•      Budget, including detailed breakdown of expected manpower,
logistics, and costs expected to run coaching programmes for an initial three
years, beginning in 2023 (refers to Budget below)

•      Description of past work and technical expertise that is relevant
to this RFP

•      A list of project team members with their roles in the project and
associated qualifications

•      Proposals must be signed by a representative that is authorized to
commit bidder’s company.

3.    Proposals must be received prior to the 30 June 2023 to be considered. Proposals should be submitted to cheewei@gpsnr.org for consideration.

GPSNR reserves the right to amend the scope and budget of this RFP to get the most suitable consultant for each topic.

 

Project Timelines

 

RFP Publication	4 May 2023
Submission deadline for proposals	30 June 2023
Evaluation of proposals and follow up	21 July 2023
Contract Award	July 2023
Preparations and Implementation for 1st year	August 2023 – July 2024
First Full Review	August 2024
Preparations and Implementation for 2nd year	August 2024 – July 2025
Second Full Review	August 2025
Preparations and Implementation for 3rd year	August 2025 – July 2026
Third Full Review	August 2026

Service provider will also provide fortnightly or monthly progress updates to the GPSNR SCB WG, or on an as-needed basis.

Budget

 

The Platform is anticipating that a total budget of no more than 216,000 USD be allocated to this engagement, depending on the proposed coaching approach.

Payment terms shall be:
• 20% at the signing of the contract
• 20% at the first round of coaching conducted
• 20% upon First Full Review (August 2024)
• 20% upon Second Full Review (August 2025)
• 20% upon Third Full Review (August 2026)

Evaluation Factors

GPSNR will rate proposals based on the following factors:

1. Responsiveness to the requirements set forth in this Request for Proposal
2. Relevant past performance/ experience
3. Samples of work
4. Cost per farmer, and other aspects of the proposed coaching approach of programme
5. Technical expertise/experience of bidder and bidder’s staff
6. Proposed timeline of operations

GPSNR reserves the right to award to the bidder that presents the best value to GPSNR as determined solely by GPSNR in its absolute discretion.

gulation consolidated text 20-12-22

 

View RFP Document here