This paper examines the evidence for land degradation in Burkina Faso, and argues that local farming practices are not as unsustainable and environmentally destructive as many reports suggest.Main findings of the study include:there is little evidence of widespread degradation of crop and fallow land in Burkina Faso; the low external input practices used by West African farmers are not leading to region wide land degradation processesa major reason for the overestimation of land degradation has been the underestimation of the abilities of local farmersthere is much more to soil and water co

This paper considers the degree of environmental variability in an extensive pastoral area of Altay, northern Xinjiang (China); assesses the extent to which institutional arrangements are able to accommodate environmental variability, and discusses the implications of this for rangeland policy.The article finds that:there is some inter-temporal variation in rangeland productivity (in pasture zones), suggesting some applicability of new range ecologythere is less environmntal variation in summer pasture, suggesting that the concepts and tools of conventional rangeland management might be mor

To understand Thailand's policy on development and industrialization, one must also study its policy on trade and agriculture. Certain Thai policies have facilitated economic development in Thailand: Raising agricultural productivity even during the early period of import substitution. The relatively equal distribution of land. Decentralized industrial growth. The labor-intensive export orientation of both rural and urban industries. Generally open, merit-based access to education.

How do the spatial dynamics of the socialist city compare with those of the market city? What happens to a city when all investment decisions are made without land markets? What are the outcomes when the forces described by familiar urban models are not allowed to work?Bertaud and Renaud describe the structure of Russian cities after 70 years of Soviet development.

In Latin America, government interventions in land grabbing processes provide some preliminary lessons on dealing with this phenomenon, while highlighting some serious threats.

This book explores four central propositions on climate-smart and multifunctional landscape approaches: A) Current landscapes are a suboptimal member of a set of locally feasible landscape configurations; B) Actors and interactions can nudge landscapes towards better managed trade-offs within the set of feasible configurations, through engagement, investment and interventions; C) Climate is one of many boundary conditions for landscape functioning; D) Theories of change must be built within theories of place for effective location-specific engagement.

This case study assesses the strengths and weaknesses of a simple, inexpensive, village-based land registration system put in place between 1996 and 1998 in Tigray, Ethiopia.The authors found that the system worked well and fairly - in large part due to it’s simplicity and low cost. Success also depended, however, on effective local governments which were able to prevent inequities from unforeseen shortcomings.

The 21st Century opened with a commitment to involving forest-local communities in the processes of securing and sustaining forests. But what is the relationship between people’s right to land and the manner in which they may be involved in the management of forests?

This toolkit provides a framework for main-streaming gender in rural development activities.It addresses the lack of conceptual and practical tools in the area of sustainable land management. Its modular design allows for individual approaches and targets development staff at the project and programme levels, with the aim of helping them to find practical ways of dealing with gender issues in rural development activities.

Women’s land ownership and control have important connections with their empowerment in Pakistan’s agricultural context. However, the link between these has largely remained unexplored; and there has been negligible research to determine how many women own or control land in Pakistan. The Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) carried out a multiple pronged research in 2007-09 to fill this knowledge gap and to examine the causality behind women’s land ownership and empowerment.

Is the World Bank’s approach to land relations gender insensitive? Is it realistic to pin poverty reduction aspirations on the promotion of credit markets and reliance on women’s unpaid labour? Does the acquisition of secure tenure rights necessarily benefit poor women? How should advocates of women’s rights in Africa respond to the Bank’s land agenda?

There are no simple solutions for leveraging the project inputs required for the success of township development projects. In most cases, such projects require long planning and implementation periods, the involvement of numerous agencies, and ample persistence and skill. This paper will examines how the inputs for successful township development projects can be mobilised and managed through the course of a project.