Land is a key driver of conflicts and is a bottleneck to recovery. Although increasingly acknowledged as a critical factor in peace-making and peacebuilding, land-related issues are often linked to the development agenda but are not properly addressed in post-conflict and peacebuilding. Neither are they inserted in the conflict cycle analysis. Conflicts are often not linear in character and phases of insecurity and partial stability can alternate.

This guide is intended for practitioners who are confronted with land conflicts in the course of their work or are in a position to prevent them and/or include land governance as one pillar in their policies. It aims to broaden the understanding of the complexity of causes that lead to land conflicts in order to provide for better-targeted ways of addressing such conflicts, and provides a number of tools with which to analyse land disputes. In addition, this guidebook discusses a wide variety of options and tools for settling ongoing land conflicts and for preventing new ones.

At its fifty-sixth session the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human
Rights, in its resolution 2004/2, welcomed the progress report of the Special Rapporteur and
requested the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to circulate
the draft principles on housing and property restitution for refugees and displaced persons
contained therein widely among non-governmental organizations, Governments, specialized
agencies and other interested parties for comment, and requested the Special Rapporteur to take

‘Voices from the mine’ is a new 33-minute documentary film by University of Bath researcher, Dr Roy Maconachie. It focuses on resource governance in Sierra Leone's artisanal diamond mining sector, tracing the pathway of diamonds from pit to market, and documenting the stories of different stakeholders along the way. In doing so, the film depicts the challenges of local level governance in the sector, shows why benefits do not accrue to those working at the bottom of the chain, and sheds light on why it is so difficult to formalize artisanal mining.

Sudan experiences one of the most severe fissures between society and territory in Africa. Not only were its international borders redrawn when South Sudan separated in 2011, but conflicts continue to erupt over access to land: territorial claims are challenged by local and international actors; borders are contested; contracts governing the privatization of resources are contentious; and the legal entitlements to agricultural land are disputed.

Land consolidation is an implement, which allows the rearrangement of spatial structure in rural areas leading to their socioeconomic development. However, the process is costly and time consuming. The needs for land consolidation always exceed the actual possibility of its implementation, therefore it is essential to develop tools, which identify areas of high priority for such investments. Most often they are based on multi-criteria spatial analyses, which include a number of parameters defining agricultural production area.

Agricultural transport roads play an important role not only from the point of view of individual farm holdings, but also the general development of rural areas. Roads constitute an element of the technical infrastructure indispensable for communication and transport; they play a role in shaping the rural landscape, and the routes they follow affect the forms and size of agricultural land and forest areas found within the area covered by a given road system. The existing public road network does not always provide access to all fields.

An Introduction to 3D Cadastre

Over the last half century the world has seen rapid urbanization, which is anticipated to increase over the foreseeable future. According to the United Nations Population Division, only 30 percent of the world’s population lived in urban areas in 1950. As of 2018, that has increased to 55 percent with urbanization rates rising faster in some less developed regions.25 With the rise of urbanization, more people are living in multi-story buildings with shared services and facilities.

This guide for legal advisors, community leaders and members builds on Guide 1 in this series. If a community decides to negotiate with a potential investor, this guide describes issues that can be included in a community–investor contract. It also explains what language should be avoided in the contract. It is designed to help communities negotiate a contract with an investor that is clear, fair, and equitable.

The ICMM has developed 20 tools to support mining and metals companies in promoting sustainable community development. These tools will also be useful to companies involved in other sectors. They offer practical guidance for every stage of the mining process from exploration, construction and operations, to decommissioning, closure and ultimately, the post-closure environment.These tools are accompanied by easy-to-use, step-by-step route maps, to help:

• Foster constructive working relationships between communities, companies and governments

These principles provide guidance on ways to align business objectives with the safeguard of human rights. The principles aim to integrate the management of human rights risks into contract negotiations on investment projects between host State entities and foreign business investors, building on the UN’s Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

This guide is primarily intended for private equity and real asset investors seeking to improve the risk profile of their portfolios and maximise their returns by investing in companies that manage their supply chains effectively. It provides information on what to look for and on how to engage with companies on E&S risks in supply chains.