This policy brief serves to aid policy for land management especially in Cross River State, Nigeria. Following incessant conflicts between communities and investors (individuals, companies, multinational etc.) within the rainforest communities in Nigeria, and Cross River state in particular, Environmental Right Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FOEN) conducted a study anchored on bottom-up accountability and governance: securing community tenure rights to land in impacted communities in Betem, Akpet, Idoma and Akamkpa in Cross River State Nigeria.

This report summarizes the implementation activities, “policy intersections” and the subsequent production of a draft model Land Use Bill (LUB, 2018) for Nigeria. This study broadly focused on land use intersections to determine appropriate policy for countering the problem of land rush/land concentration within the context of the previous Land Use Act (LUA, 1978).

A severe outbreak of Côte d’Ivoire lethal yellowing disease (CILY) has been wreaking havoc throughout coconut farms since 2013. This study provides an analysis of crop-specific land use change, applying a multinomial probit model based on a theoretical land use model to predict the spatial distribution of land use within the department of Grand-Lahou in Côte d’Ivoire where coconut plantations have been devastated by CILY disease.

The study explores the relationship between decentralization and conflict, comparing two case studies in Cambodia and the Philippines. It addresses to what degree and in what ways decentralization influences conflicts that are related to natural resources management (NRM), especially where local institutions are often unrepresentative of, and unaccountable to local communities. In developing countries, the research indicates that sufficient time is an essential component for bringing about genuine and effective local governance, as well as being a means for averting conflict.

This detailed report summarises key findings from an extensive Regional Diagnostic Study (RDS) for South Asia. Despite intense analytical efforts at the sub-regional level, reliable downscaled data may not be available with current models. As well, the spatial scale of available downscaled climate products (Regional Climate Models) may preclude their use in local decision-making. Often, locally significant drivers such as land use-land cover change overwhelm the influence of climatic drivers.

From forest clearing to landslides, then private claims to ownership, and with diversion of streams causing new landslides, a progression of environmental crises is tracked over time. The paper provides a timeline of 23 major events affecting the health of Rupa Lake and its wetlands (1952-2005). By 1986 government efforts were launched to control flooding and landslides, building check dams and planting trees. A Community Forestry Program to support local ownership and control of forests was begun.

This in-depth study quantifies the spatio-temporal long-term land use/land cover change (LUCC) in the Mula Pravara river basin, and uncovers major drivers of these changes. The river basin is located in a semi-arid region of Maharashtra state, India. The study demonstrates the advantages of using satellite remote-sensing techniques to monitor LUCC, which is useful for predicting future land use development and for providing evidence to underpin adaptation strategies.

Climate change and green grabbing/resource grabbing together call for nuanced understanding of governance imperatives, and for constructing a knowledge base appropriate to political intervention. This paper offers preliminary ways in which interconnections can be seen and understood, and their implications for research and politics explored. It concludes by way of a preliminary discussion of the notion of ‘agrarian climate justice’ as a possible framework for formal governance or political activism relevant to tackling grey area interconnections.

IAI projects funded by the US National Science Foundation (NSF) and Canada's IDRC included support of research in the La Plata Basin, which has experienced extensive land use changes. Projects examine the effects of hydrological and climate change on agriculture, as well as how land use feeds back into effects on regional hydrology and climate, both economically and socially. Several articles in this newsletter present results of these interactions, such as an economic analysis of flooding, effects on soil carbon stocks, and drivers of land use change.

Approximately 20% of novel emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) and 50% of emerging and re-emerging zoonotic diseases have been attributed to land-use change. It is a clear threat to global biodiversity and ecosystem services and a key driver of EIDs. The project investigates the mechanisms underlying disease emergence by assessing the impacts of land-use change, measured as forest fragmentation, on viral diversity and bat host assemblages.

Adaptation at Scale in Semi-Arid Regions (ASSAR) researchers collaborated to understand the complex changes and patterns in semi-arid vegetation and socio-ecological systems. Ecosystems were mapped using a cross-regional coarse scale study, relying on climate data to capture global and regional trends. Finest spatial scale mapping relied on LANDSAT to show changes in land use and land cover. Details of observed changes are provided for Botswana, Namibia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Mali, Ghana, West Africa, and India. Links to referenced studies are embedded in the report.

The paper provides a case study of the conversion of state land in the Commune of Limonade, from a community-controlled agricultural economy to a large-scale agro-export banana plantation called Agritrans. This study shows how repurposing state land may impact food security and social stability of peasant farmers. The Agritrans plantation, designed and implemented by Haitian businessman and current President Jovenel Moïse, is used as a blueprint for Haiti’s development future.