Skip to content
FACE Ireland

Research and evidence

Findings you can trace back to their source

Rural Footprint follows a consistent process from question to publication, so that anyone reading a figure can see how it was produced.
Irish upland bog and moorland stretching to distant hills under a wide grey sky

The process

Four stages, applied to every published finding

  1. 01

    Research questions are defined

    Before any information is gathered, we set out precisely what the research is trying to establish and why it matters.

  2. 02

    Evidence is gathered and sources recorded

    Survey responses and supporting material are collected, and the origin of each piece of evidence is recorded alongside it.

  3. 03

    Findings are reviewed and verified

    Results are checked for consistency and plausibility, and anything that cannot be supported is not carried forward.

  4. 04

    Approved aggregated results are published

    Only reviewed, aggregated findings are published, together with the methodology and sources behind them.

Methodology

How the survey evidence is collected

The Rural Footprint survey asks people directly about their own involvement: what they do, at what scale, and what it costs or supports. Respondents choose the pathway that matches their role, so each person answers a questionnaire relevant to them rather than a single generic form.

Where responses are self-reported, that is stated. Where figures come from published material, the publication is identified. The methodology is described in plain language so that a reader can judge the evidence for themselves.

Principles

How the work is conducted

Independence
Every survey is structured to gather evidence, not to advocate. Questions are non-leading. Methodology is open to scrutiny.
Traceability
Every figure published through Rural Footprint can be traced back to its source — whether a survey response, a published study, or an association-supplied statistic.
Proportion
We report what the data shows, including limitations. We do not overstate findings or suppress inconvenient results.
Privacy
All survey responses are fully anonymous. No respondent's name or identifying information is collected or published. Data is aggregated before release.
The aim is a clear, evidence-based picture of what rural Ireland contributes — giving FACE Ireland the facts it needs to make that case effectively.

Respondent privacy

Research responses and contact details held apart

Research responses do not ask for your name or contact details. If you choose to provide contact details for follow-up, they will be stored separately from your research responses. Findings are published only in aggregate — as totals and patterns — never as individual responses.
Take the Rural Footprint Survey