Local and indigenous communities across the world are advancing innovative sustainable development solutions that work for people and for nature. Few publications or case studies tell the full story of how such initiatives evolve, the breadth of their impacts, or how they change over time. Fewer still have undertaken to tell these stories with community practitioners themselves guiding the narrative. The Equator Initiative aims to fill that gap.

Local and indigenous communities across the world are advancing innovative sustainable development solutions that work for people and for nature. Few publications or case studies tell the full story of how such initiatives evolve, the breadth of their impacts, or how they change over time. Fewer still have undertaken to tell these stories with community practitioners themselves guiding the narrative. The Equator Initiative aims to fill that gap.

On the occasion of the International Year of Mountains-2002, FAO and its partners undertook a large-scale assessment and global review of the current status and future trends of integrated and participatory watershed management. The overall objectives were to promote the exchange and dissemination of experiences in implementing watershed management projects in the decade from 1990 to 2000 and to identify the vision for a new generation of watershed management programmes and projects.

This case study looks at the land tenure in Namibia, where for a century of colonial rule indigenous Namibians were dispossessed from rights to both land and resources – by German and then white South African settlers establishing commercial farms and related businesses. Access to freehold tenure was reserved for white settlers and tenure security for indigenous Namibians largely disappeared. In non-white areas, rights were provided under indigenous tenure systems whose legal status was somewhat murky. Urban tenure was denied as blacks were not allowed ownership of residential land.

The study aims to clarify the various issues regarding land security of poor and other marginalized groups in Malian rural areas. It looks into questions relating to how poor and vulnerable groups obtain access to land and natural resources, and what factors cause their exclusion. It analyzes existing methods for formalizing land rights and land transactions and their impacts on the poor. Specific attention is given to the practical organization of the procedures for formalization and recording land rights.

Este manual de formación se centra en cómo gestionar y resolver conflictos sobre los derechos de tenencia de la tierra, la seguridad de la tenencia y el acceso a la tierra en el campo del desarrollo rural. Resulta de las actividades complementarias realizadas con el Programa de apoyo a los medios de vida, de la FAO, (LSP) y la Unidad de Gestión y Tenencia de la Tierra y con la Coalición Internacional para el Acceso a la Tierra.

Most of the world’s poor work in the “informal economy” – outside of recognized and enforceable rules. Thus, even though most have assets of some kind, they have no way to document their possessions because they lack formal access to legally recognized tools such as deeds, contracts and permits.

This paper identifies the key issues of land tenure security for the rural poor, vulnerable and marginalized in the East African countries of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. The report finds that most of these issues are common across the three countries, both in terms of the challenges that the communities face and imperatives that inform policy interventions and responses.

This training manual focuses on how to manage and resolve conflicts over land tenure rights, security of tenure and land access in the field of rural development. It results from complementary activities undertaken within FAO's Livelihood Support Programme (LSP) and the Land Tenure and Management Unit and with the International Land Coalition. It addresses the specific issues of land tenure identified in the volume Negotiation and Mediation Techniques for Natural Resource Management published by the LSP.

This book is a cross-cultural endeavour to promote global strategies for enhancing security of tenure in the Muslim world. It addresses the gap in both the human rights and Islamic literature on land and property issues.

Issues identified as being of major importance in relation to the land rights and land conflict situation are: questions related to governance; contradictions and lack of harmonisation between recent laws and policies in Tanzania; the existing power relations (including gender relations); and present development priorities. Makes it clear that dealing with land matters is in essence political and presents a series of recommendations for interventions in the field of land rights.

Uncontrolled development was threatening to destroy the forest environment
and the traditional way of life of the hill people of Ratanakiri. Researchers
worked with the villagers to produce unique maps and resource use plans
that convinced the government of the people’s traditional resource use and
management rights, and eventually set an example for inclusion in new land
tenure legislation for the nation.