In April 2015, an international group of independent researchers, coordinated by Rosamel Millaman and Charles R. Hale, embarked on a comprehensive study whose guiding theme was the situation of Mapuche comunities in the region of La Araucania in relation to forestry companies in Chile. The intention of this study is to provide a document that could form a basis for renewed and improved dialogue about the way these companies conduct their forestry operations in the lands that are historically claimed by these Mapuche communities. 

Luego de permanecer durante casi dos décadas en el Congreso Nacional, el Estado de Chile ratificó el Convenio 169 de la Organización Internacional del Trabajo (OIT) sobre Pueblos Indígenas y Tribales en Países Independientes el 15 de septiembre de 2008. Conforme a su artículo 38, dicho Convenio adquirió plena vigencias el 15 de septiembre de 2009, doce meses después de su registro ante la oficina del Director General de la OIT.

This report presents the first global analysis of funding pathways in support of Indigenous Peoples’ and Local Communities’ (IPs' & LCs') tenure and forest guardianship, a project spurred by the IP & LC Forest Tenure Pledge made by 22 donors in 2021. This study, commissioned by the Ford Foundation, aims to provide practical guidance and strategic insights for Pledge donors to incorporate in the remaining years of implementation.

This project’s main objectives are to generate:

This case study details the work of the Samshana Institute. 

This second Forest Tenure Funders Group (FTFG) annual report analyzes progress against the five-year, $1.7 billion commitment to the tenure rights and forest guardianship of Indigenous Peoples and local communities (IPs and LCs) in tropical forest countries announced at COP26.

“Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) is the first line of defense when investors and government officials seek to develop projects that may affect Indigenous communities, lands, territories, and resources. For this reason, Indigenous Peoples must be prepared to engage with FPIC from a fully informed, proactive stance. Indigenous Peoples must have their FPIC protocols ready, and be ready to lead engagement around FPIC on their terms.” –Securing Indigenous Peoples' Right to Self-Determination: A Guide on Free, Prior and Informed Consent

This case study highlights the vulnerability of women in Fiaferana, who are disadvantaged, first, by their gender and indigenous heritage, and second, by their lack of tenure security in the midst of climate change. However, the women of Fiaferana have met these overlapping  challenges head-on through innovative and empowering strategies, including sustainable land use management.

Indigenous territories cover more than one-fourth of the world’s land surface, overlap with distinct ecological areas, and harbour significant cultural and biological diversity; their stewardship provides critical contributions to livelihood, food security, conservation, and climate action. How these territories are accessed, used, and managed is an important question for owner communities, state governments, development agencies, and researchers alike.

The Land Portal Foundation's 2023 Annual Report presents a comprehensive overview of our efforts and accomplishments in transforming land data governance worldwide. 

Our report highlights three fundamental pillars that have guided our work: Inform, Open, and Debate. Through these pillars, we've expanded our global database of land and property rights programs, enhanced land governance data management, supported data literacy and advocacy, and facilitated critical debates on land governance issues.

Countries face severe local and global climate risks with grave social, economic, and environmental costs. Given a significant portion of global emissions are a result of agriculture, forestry, and other land-based investments, governments can mitigate climate risks by ensuring these investments contribute to, rather than undermine, national and global climate goals.

This document shares emerging ideas, principles, and good practices to socialize the concept of Community Monitoring among companies and investors in land-based sectors, as well as outline steps they can take to meaningfully engage with Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and Afro-descendant Peoples to monitor and respond to the potential environmental and human rights impacts of their operations, supply chains, or investments.

The policy brief, one of four briefs on the agrarian transition in the Mekong region, explores initiatives and pathways forward to recognise customary tenure arrangements and rights over forest areas in the region. More than 70 million people in the region depend on forest areas but lack formal legal rights to use, manage, and benefit from them. Forest landscapes represent just under half of the region’s total land. Yet, over the past two decades, the region has lost a significant amount of forest due to the expansion of commercial agriculture.