Changes to land use such as the removal of natural vegetation and expansion of urban areas can result in degradation of the landscape and an increase in hydro-meteorological risk. This has led to higher interest by decision-makers and scientists in the future consequences of these drivers. Scenario development can be a useful tool for addressing the high uncertainty regarding modeling future land use changes. Scenarios are not exact forecasts, but images of plausible futures.

This paper synthesizes and extends the results of urban land market studies carried out in three Brazilian cities – Brasília, Curitiba and Recife. The purpose of the studies is to empirically assess the performance of urban land markets in different cities and to gauge the feasibility of applying the Land Market Assessment methodology in Brazil.

Large-scale agricultural land acquisitions have been covered substantially in recent literature. Despite the wealth of theoretical and empirical studies on this subject, there is no study that has reviewed existing literature in light of concerns over sustainable and equitable management. This chapter fills the gap by analyzing and synthesizing available literature to put some structure on existing knowledge. The paper has a threefold contribution to the literature. First, it takes stock of what we know so far about the determinants of land grab.

This paper quantifies the misallocation of manufacturing output and factors of production between establishments across Indian districts during 1989-2010. It first distills a number of stylized facts about misallocation in India, and demonstrates the validity of misallocation metrics by connecting them to regulatory changes in India that affected real property. With this background, the study next quantifies the implications and determinants of factor and output misallocation.

Novas intervenções na cadeia de fornecimento no setor de carne bovina no Brasil oferecem a promessa de reduzir o desmatamento vindo da expansão da agricultura comercial, à medida que multinacionais tem concordado em desistir de comprar de fazendas com desmatamento recente. Analisamos os acordos de desmatamento zero assinados pelos principais frigoríficos no Estado do Pará, na Amazônia Brasileira, usando dados de propriedades componentes das cadeias de fornecimento de carne bovina.

This Guidance Note provides advice about what is expected in good practice social impact assessment (SIA) and social impact management processes, especially in relation to project development. It is intended for private sector actors, government agencies, development banks and agencies, civil society organisations, and service providers. It provides guidance to help reduce companies' risk exposure and assist them in being compliant with international standards and/or good practice as they evolve over time by addressing significant human rights issues associated with a project.

The Committee was briefed by the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform (DRDLR) on its Annual Performance Plan for 2015/16, with the Minister and Deputy Minister in attendance. Due to the complexity of the agrarian transformation space, the DRDLR had developed a rural economy transformation model which would be implemented through the Agrarian Transformation System.

In September 2015, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are to be adopted in the context of the Post-2015 Agenda. In what way do the SDGs differ from the Millennium Development Goals? What does the community of states expect from their introduction? Our authors describe the background of the process and the latest developments in the debate.

The demand to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger has been the centrepiece of the Millennium Development Goals; the first MDG stands for the inextricable link between poverty and people’s ability to access safe, nutritious and sufficient food. How will the objective of achieving global food and nutrition security be embedded in the SDGs? Will the SDGs be a further step towards this target?

The sustainable management of soils is crucial to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. This is evidenced by the analysis of the role soils play across the proposed agenda. However, some key aspects have not been sufficiently considered so far. Moreover, the SDGs will place increased demand on soils. Further advocacy is therefore needed to ensure that important soil and land related issues remain in the final declaration of the post-2015 agenda.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) will amount to little unless backed by reliable indicators. Only with good metrics can the agenda be implemented and progress measured. Just like the SDGs themselves, the indicators are still in the discussion phase, with the Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) one of the many players in this process. They outline their recommendations in the following article, using rural development as an example to describe them.

The Sustainable Development Goals differ radically from the current Millennium Development Goals in many aspects. Our author demonstrates the challenges that departing from a donor-oriented development framework poses – particularly for the North, and also with a view to its own development.