Formalization of Community Land Rights – Does it Really Matter in Practice?

Policy reforms which seek to formalize community land and resource rights are receiving increased attention in the development discourse on tenure. Partly this is because such formalization is seen as necessary to enable communities to better defend their interests against outside commercial investors and other external claimants on their land. Additionally it is expected to give local communities both the legal means and incentive to protect, and thus better conserve, their forests and other natural resources (often seen as a pre-requisite for effective approaches to climate change mitigation). It remains open to question however as to whether legal recognition – typically coupled with demarcation and registration of land rights - is really having the intended effects in practice. This in terms of both strengthening local people’s control over their land and empowering them in relation to outside commercial interests and state actors. These and other related questions will be discussed at this LARRI webinar.

Juliana Porsani, Södertörn University, will make an introductory presentation based on her PhD research on communityinvestor relations in Mozambique, followed by comments from Jean LaRose, Amerindian Peoples Association of Guyana and Robin Biddulph, University of Gothenburg, before the floor is opened for general discussion. Moderator: Lasse Krantz, LARRI Project Leader.

When and where

Wednesday 10 March, 13.00 – 15.00

Location: online (link will be sent out to registered)

Registration

Register by e-mail to: lassekrantz15@gmail.com