Maps are instrumental in the commodification of land and its exchange in markets. The critical cartog- raphy literature emphasizes the ‘‘power of maps” to (re)define property relations through their descrip- tive and prescriptive attributes. But how do maps work to achieve these outcomes? This paper examines the notion of maps as ‘‘inscription devices” that turn land into a commodity that can be bought and sold by investors. It is based on the analysis of a land reform project in the Southern African country of Lesotho.

This DPhil dissertation  explores the logic, methods, and outcomes of a U.S. government- sponsored land reform in Lesotho, Southern Africa. The reform was part of a $363 million grant from the Millennium Challenge Corporation to the Kingdom of Lesotho that funded a sweeping change. Instead of local chiefs administering and allocating land, the power shifted to bureaucrats and landholders, who received leasehold titles to their land.

More precise explanations are needed to better understand why public green spaces are diminishing in cities, leading to the loss of ecosystem services that humans receive from natural systems. This paper is devoted to the incremental change of green spaces—a fate that is largely undetectable by urban residents. The paper elucidates a set of drivers resulting in the subtle loss of urban green spaces and elaborates on the consequences of this for resilience planning of ecosystem services.

The paper aims to explore the process of land conversion for tourism development in Vietnam, under the present ambiguous and insecure property rights system. Four case studies in different geographical areas were selected to analyse land conversion and land compensation for tourism projects before and after the implementation of the new land law in 2013.

New town development as a form of large-scale development is not a new phenomenon, particularly in developing countries. This development mainly takes place in peri-urban areas due to the high pressure caused by the growing population and the lack of facilities and infrastructure in city centres. As an effect, local communities who originally occupied the land often lose their rights over the property their livelihood might have relied on. Property rights can be grouped differently, classified according to different bundles: appropriation, ownership, and formality of rights.

To investigate the rural labor transfer effects of China’s Collective Forestland Tenure Reform (CFTR), we employ binary probit models by using survey data of 694 households from China’s northern collective forest areas. The results reveal that the improved property rights, including rights for forestland use, disposition and beneficiaries, and refined tenure security under the CFTR generally have caused an increase in rural household labor transfer to the nonfarm sector.

Characterized as divinely ordained, the Islamic law of inheritance defines women’s rights to property of the deceased with specific roles and responsibilities for each individual. Obviously, the Islamic law of inheritance is a major contribution to the legal system of the world, compared to the customary laws in the pre‐Islamic Arab society that denied any proprietary right by way of inheritance to female relatives including daughters.

The historical progress of Hagia Sophia encompasses four different periods. Dating back to 360 AD, this unique structure was the largest church built in Istanbul during the Roman Period. In the second period, Fatih Sultan Mehmet conquered Istanbul in 1453 and personally dedicated Hagia Sophia to his foundation as a mosque. In the third period, upon the founding of the modern Republic of Turkey, Hagia Sophia was transformed into the Museum in 1934. Finally, in 2020, the structure was converted once again to a mosque by a court decision.

ABSTRACTED FROM EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: On December 30, 2018, Bangladesh held national elections. The election was not deemed fair by observers, and from the point of filing nomination papers to election campaigning, the opposition faced severe political obstacles. Their cadres were arrested, and rallies and campaign were attacked by the ruling party’s supporters. The government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wazed, which has been in power since 2009, employed the police as a political tool during the period under review.

The primary goal of the "Voluntary Guidelines for the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests within the Scope of National Food Security" is to achieve food security for all and to support the progressive realization of the right to adequate food within the scope of national food security.

This brief draws from USAID’s experience supporting systematic land documentation in Zambia to further advance awareness and knowledge about the relationship between gender-based violence (GBV) and the access, use, and control of land and property. It aims to inform current and future design and implementation of programs that promote land-based investment and land rights (particularly women’s land rights) by civil society organizations, other donors, and the private sector.

Background 

The reform of collective land ownership in post-socialist contexts offers a useful window into how changes in property rights shape and structure the dynamics of territorial transformation. Focusing on China's rural revitalization campaign, this paper demonstrates how the state, as creator and regulator of land rights and property titles, facilitates landscape change by relaxing regulations over the lease of rural land and creating market institutions that favour land transfers to organized capital, in this case tourism companies and property developers.