ILDC 2023 - Day 3 Agenda
One of the most interesting paradoxes in Indian cities is that while cites are the source of innovations in digital governance systems; their own data bases and governance mechanisms, particularly in relation to land are full of several anomalies and paradoxes. These anomalies and paradoxes have multiple dimensions: those linked to the status of property titles, record keeping, the multiplicity of laws governing land, the practices linked to land allocations and distribution, the management of public land and the role of informal occupancy and claim making.
This curated panel bases itself in this anomalous context and seeks to engage with the question of inclusion and access to cities. Conventionally, it is the route of informal occupancy that has paved the way for vulnerable groups to stake some claims to the city. Benjamin (2008) argues that this in fact is perhaps a radical mode of practice. The question is however, whether such anomalies continue to work in a similar manner in the present day where there are increasing trends of judicial activism, prioritization to aesthetics and emphasis on formal housing as a way to include as opposed to land based programmes. Is the way forward for the vulnerable then in improving land governance mechanisms, making them democratic and transparent?
The panelists in this session locate themselves in a multiplicity of perspectives and experiences from varying city contexts in the country and will bring their rich engagement and research experiences to respond to the above questions.
Amita Bhide : Professor in the Centre for Urban Policy and Governance with about two decades of experience in researching urban issues with a focus on land, housing and governance amita@tiss.edu
Ishita Chatterjee: Assistant Professor in the O.P.Jindal University, Ishita has a Phd from Melbourne University and has researched the peripheries of Delhi
Ishita.chatterjee@jgu.edu.in
Smita Waingankar : A researcher with more than a decade of experience in researching small and medium towns in Maharashtra with an interest in land, housing and gendered governance smita30waingankar@gmail.com
Simpreet Singh: An activist researcher with more than a decade of experience in identifying critical land governance anomalies and spaces for the urban poor
Simpreet.singh@tiss.edu
Dr Siddharth Dhende: Former Deputy Mayor of Pune, Dr Dhende is a doctor by education and a significant voice in popular politics of Pune city. He has taken active interest in securing rights of vulnerable groups in the city siddharthdhende18@gmail.com
India is currently undergoing a significant transformation through rapid urbanization, agricultural intensification, and industrial expansion. Despite advancements driven by modernization and technology that are reshaping traditional ways of life, this transition is struggling to absorb the growing number of young job seekers. Consequently, India’s unemployment rate within the 15-29 age bracket stands at 12.5%, significantly higher than the national average of 4.1%, indicating the immense strain on its demographic dividend. A considerable portion of India resides in rural areas where agriculture remains a vital source of income. Although government initiatives to enhance employability have been commendable, they have primarily focused on skill development in non-farm sectors. This approach often overlooks the potential of farm-based livelihoods to provide sustainable income and social stability. However, engaging in such livelihoods is also riddled with challenges, as evidenced by the declining rates of youth participation. In a country where land is typically owned by older generations or divided into fragmented plots, acquiring land can be a formidable challenge. Moreover, rural youth frequently find themselves excluded from institutions that provide access to financial services, including credit and insurance, making it difficult for them to secure the necessary capital for agricultural ventures. The unpredictability of weather patterns due to climate change further complicates their path. Limited resources, opportunities, and influence over policies governing their lives often propel or ‘push’ many youths to migrate to urban settings. Simultaneously, the allure of cities – where opportunities for white-collar jobs and a modern, consumer-driven lifestyle beckon – serves as a prominent ‘pull’ factor for the youth to leave their homes. This interplay of factors is shaping the aspirations and choices of young people in India, which further contributes to the decline in the attractiveness of farming as a career choice.
Recognizing the ILDC’s impact and reach, we are eager to organise a panel discussion focusing on “Strengthening Farm-Based Livelihoods for Rural Youth.” Experts, practitioners, and researchers can convene to shed light on innovative strategies, best practices, and policy interventions for the multifaceted challenges highlighted above. This discussion would also benefit from the insights of accomplished youth who possess experience in this domain. The panellists can exchange ideas on themes such as: ❖ Social Enterprises for Youth in Non-Violent Local Economies: Youth engagement in social enterprises can empower them to drive change through innovative, community-driven initiatives. Rooted in non-violent local economies and grassroots livelihood initiatives, these ventures exemplify the potential of youth-led endeavours to transform rural landscapes. Strengthening the value chain of these grassroots initiatives is important to support livelihoods as well as to contribute significantly to the socio-cultural fabric of rural communities. ❖ Policy Perspectives on Youth and Livelihood: Policies play a crucial role in shaping the trajectory of youth involvement in the agrarian sector. By advocating for supportive policies, an enabling environment can be created for the youth to foster entrepreneurship, skill development, and access to resources. Moreover, this aligns with the growing market demand for climate-resilient livelihood models, where young farmers play a vital role in adopting sustainable agricultural practices. ❖ Customary Knowledge and Technology: Integrating customary knowledge and technology further enriches this landscape. By leveraging traditional wisdom in tandem with modern information and communication technology, youth-led farm-based livelihoods become more robust and adaptable. This synergy not only preserves cultural heritage but also enhances the efficiency and effectiveness of agricultural practices. Through this, we intend to examine strategies to make land-based livelihoods more appealing and accessible to young people, considering the evolving economic landscape, environmental imperatives, and the need for inclusive and sustainable development. To spark up a discussion, some leading questions that can be explored during the session are:
What are the key challenges rural youth face in securing stable and sustainable livelihoods? What opportunities exist to address these challenges? ● Are there examples of successful youth-led land-based livelihood initiatives? What lessons can be drawn from these experiences? ● What innovative strategies can enhance young people’s access to land and financial resources? How can land-based livelihood options be better integrated into policies and government initiatives? ● How can technology and digital solutions be leveraged to enhance the productivity and profitability of farm-based livelihoods for youth? ● How can collaboration between governments, the private sector, civil society, youth organisations, and other stakeholders be encouraged to drive meaningful change? ● What possibilities can be seen at the policy level from the perspective of youth and climate-resilient startups?
Access to land is crucial for eradicating poverty and ensuring social security and equality in society. More importantly, homestead land is key to housing security, a decent standard of living, and a dignified life. In both, rural and urban areas, access to homestead is central to the housing question. Contrary to popular belief, the lack of homestead ownership is a significant issue in rural India. In addition to inequalities in agricultural land ownership, disparities in homestead ownership also exist. Historically marginalized groups like the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes, and women-headed households often lack access to homesteads, leaving them vulnerable to eviction, exploitation, and poor housing conditions (OTELP-LANDESA, 2021; Singh, 2015; 2022). The disparities in homestead ownership can lead to clashes and conflicts as different sections of society compete for housing sites and resources. This underlines the need for an inclusive and socially just legislative and governance framework to address these issues.
In the same manner, urban centres face a crisis in providing adequate housing to a large population. Homestead lands in the urban and peri-urban areas are often seen as the ‘fourth nature’ that overlaps between urban ecosystems and human settlements (Hunt, 2000; Patil et. al., 2023). Due to the speculative nature of land in the urban areas, urban homesteads have come under a lot of stress that could have otherwise contributed to the creation of ‘green infrastructure’ in Indian cities. Urban homesteads are crucial for ensuring access to food, nutrition, and livelihoods for vulnerable and marginalized communities. They can help in attaining gender equity and well-being for the urban and peri-urban populations. Most importantly, they enable habitation for populations with varying housing needs.
As a signatory to international covenants such as the Right to Adequate Housing, India has committed to ensuring the security of tenure and freedom from eviction and providing essential amenities for all sections of society (ILO, 1961; UN, 1991, 2006, 2008). These commitments come with policy and legislative implications for the government. Several state governments in India in recent years have initiated various schemes and programs aimed at providing access to homesteads and housing for its citizens, but the problem of homesteadlessness remains acute and far from satisfactory.
This panel invites papers focusing on issues related to access of households and communities to homestead lands in both rural and urban contexts. Papers submitted to this panel, based on primary and/or secondary data, should contribute to a deeper understanding of the challenges and opportunities concerning equity, role and limitations of government schemes and programmes, recommendations and suggestions for inclusive and just legislative interventions. The contributors should offer actionable insights for policymakers, practitioners, activists and researchers working in the field of housing security and social equality.
Community efforts, enabling legislation and supportive role of NGOs has led to many village communities obtaining better protection of their tenurial rights over common lands and have been able to restore several lands across the country. The improved ecological health and strong community stewardship helps communities to be resilient in the climate crisis and rising economic inequalities. The upcoming opportunity in carbon markets and other PES markets can help the community stewards in ensuring sustenance of the efforts.
However, several barriers restrict the agency of the communities like lack of clear tenure on commons, low recognition of community institutions and local governance mechanisms by the government as well as markets. There are barriers to knowledge too. Indigenous knowledge systems about conservation and sustainable land use is not recognized by the markets or by the Governments. There is more reliance on carbon-centric and third-party-based assessments for carbon which are not fully understood by communities. Some ecosystem services, including carbon sequestration, are not well understood by communities. There is also a lack of equitable platforms which can provide a level playing field for Community stewards for forests and Civil society vis a vis Markets and Government agencies. The very high costs of project registration and verification in carbon markets also make them dependent on special expertise. This creates big entry barriers for communities and impacts transparency due to the increased dependence upon intermediaries (like project developers, facilitating NGOs) in the market.
In view of these barriers, there is a need for running a collaborative process of learning towards PES markets. Such a process would bring challenges and opportunities for communities in PES markets. It will also support efforts to boost appreciation by markets and government agencies of indigenous knowledge systems and their incorporation in ecosystem service payment programmes. It will also help build a clear understanding of challenges, suggest design improvements and larger responses to existing programs.
Learning Agenda for the round table:
During the round table, we will try to look for answers to the following questions:
1. Community Stewardship for natural resources – How can we understand community stewardship for natural resources especially in the context of ecosystem service payment mechanisms? What are the challenges faced by women and the marginalised in decision making, control and use of resources and income at the household and community level in the context of PES markets? What are the most effective ways to improve the collective and individual agency of community stewards at scale? What are the enabling factors?
2. Science and methods – What are the methodological challenges that put stewardship for resources on the backfoot, when it comes to leveraging PES schemes? What would be a community-friendly methodology to measure different ecosystem carbon sequestration (Carbon stocks)? Can indigenous knowledge offer some solutions for methodological problems?
3. Markets – Are there any PES schemes which are working well for people? To what extent are innovations to generate economic opportunity also reinforcing efforts to secure community tenure and restore degraded lands? And vice-versa? How can these linkages be strengthened? What are the community-based payment for ecosystem services mechanisms in different contexts and how is this work contributing to the long-term conservation of resources?
4. Civil society and PES markets – What are the challenges before civil society in rising PES markets? What should be the role of civil society in PES markets? How would Stewardship be improved in the entire ecosystem of PES markets that includes all actors; government, markets, community, NGOs and others?
Indian cities are confronting intensive challenges of bare livability. As metropolitan region expansion reaches its stretch, the essence of vibrant urban living is overshadowed by the looming challenges of congestion, lack of green spaces, insufficient drainage infrastructure and unchecked construction activities. The proliferation of built up environments juxtaposed with underutilized open public spaces under the prerogative of Land Use & Zoning leading urban areas being particularly susceptible to heat island effect thereby deteriorating living conditions & undermining the overall habitable spaces in these urban centers. According to one news report, only 1.24 sqm of open space per person is available to every Mumbaikar. Almost 40 percent of Mumbai’s population lives in densely populated slums, as per the 2011 census. As per one estimate, the figure inflated up to 55 percent of the population living in informal settlements and is routinely excluded from urban planning. The Sustainable Development Report 2022 ranks India 121 out of 163 nations and gives an SDG Index score of 60.3 assessing the performance
based on prescribed indicators for an ease of livability. Among the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) endorsed by the United Nations, SDG 11 is dedicated to focus on cities, aiming to “make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable” with its 10 targets. Of the ten targets, i) Inclusive and sustainable urbanisation; ii) Provide access to safe and inclusive green spaces; iii) Strong national and regional development planning; are three main targets where the situation is worsening and of pressing concern due to deteriorating conditions.
In the face of these escalating challenges of deprived spaces , there is a dire need for innovative, adaptable, and sustainable solutions. Addressing these urban challenges requires not just administrative will but also community participation. The haphazard urbanisation not only hampers the daily life of citizens but also impacts the economic vitality of cities.
Proposed Solution
An adaptable solution to deal within this framework is the effective utilisation of spaces that are currently underused within existing city limits. The spatial planning or land use & zoning which divides the city into differently coloured zones for enabling different activities, like the yellow for residential zones, red for business districts in the development plan influences the
development potential of different lands. The approach of Tactical Urbanism emerges as a beacon of hope in this context. Tactical Urbanism is a pivotal strategy to deal with the manifestation of these escalating challenges of unplanned development. This method emphasizes short term, low-budget, and easy to adapt interventions within the existing scenario and serve as a prelude to instigate lasting impact in urban transformation. Tactical Urbanism offers a pathway to repurpose urban spaces to make them resilient, inclusive and sustainable for a brighter future. Urban dwellers through participatory design approach can engender innovative, adaptable and sustainable solutions. The Tactical Urbanism framework can be a true catalyst for social interaction and community engagement that serves as a panacea for the menace of unplanned growth by generating an efficient solution. Having said that, to embrace Tactical Urbanism framework as a pragmatic approach for an effective utilisation of spaces underused within city limits.This proposal invites for a panel discussion bringing together elected
representatives, urban planners, civil society organisations, policymakers etc. to deliberate and harness the potential of Tactical Urbanism.
Key Objectives
The key objectives of this panel discussion would be:
i) Awareness and Knowledge sharing: To raise awareness about the concept of Tactical Urbanism among stakeholders, emphasizing its benefits and potential to mitigate unplanned growth.
ii)Discussing Best Practices: To share successful case studies and best practices so far in Mumbai & other metropolises where Tactical Urbanism interventions have led to positive urban transformations.
iii) Ideating Collaboration through PPP : To facilitate an open exchange of ideas between different stakeholders, encouraging collaborative brainstorming on the most effective ways to apply Tactical Urbanism principles within the local context.
iv) Policy Integration: To discuss ways to integrate Tactical Urbanism strategies into existing urban planning policies, ensuring that short-term interventions align with long-term city development goals. By bringing together diverse perspectives in a panel discussion, this initiative aims to pave the way for practical solutions that utilize Tactical Urbanism to address the conundrum of spatial planning & land use. Through such collaborative efforts, we can foster vibrant, sustainable, and inclusive urban spaces that cater to the needs and aspirations of present and future inhabitants.
India is the world’s most populous country, seventh largest in area, with the fifth largest economy, third highest carbon emissions and 24.62% of land under forest cover. India’s continental size, enormous diversity, high population density, civilizational pedigree, colonial history and high biodiversity have resulted in a complex, multilayered land governance regime consisting of “communal, imperial, feudal, colonial and modern systems, gradually moving towards individualization and conclusive titling.”
Current land tenure in India consists of complex “mosaics of customary tenure and community ownership in tribal and hilly areas and dwindling rural common lands amidst the expansion of privatized spaces in urban and industrial areas converted from once predominant forest and agricultural landscapes.” How India manages to unlock the full potential of its land while safeguarding its environment and ensuring social justice will carry important lessons for students of land governance in India and the world.
Technology-focused initiatives have gained increasing prominence in India’s attempts at comprehensive land reform. A case in point is India’s massive, ongoing digitization of land records through the Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP) which aims to develop an “integrated system which will….provide real-time information on land, optimize use of land resources, assist in policy and planning, reduce land disputes, check fraudulent transactions, obviate the need for physical visits to Revenue/Registration offices and enable sharing of information with various organizations/agencies.” The aforementioned objectives are sought to be achieved through the “completion of digitization of Record of Rights (RoRs) and Cadastral Maps and the integration of the two” and the “computerization of Sub-Registrar Offices (SRO’s) and the integration of SRO’s and Revenue Offices by March 2024.”
Another salient example is the SWAMITVA scheme which aims to achieve “clear ownership of property in rural inhabited (“Abadi”) areas, by mapping of land parcels using drone technology and providing ‘Record of Rights’ to village household owners with issuance of legal ownership cards (Property cards/Title deeds) to the property owners.”
This massive wave of digitization and use of technology such as drones has complex implications for land governance in India. How has the use of technology-based solutions at speed and at scale impacted land tenure in India? Has it reduced land disputes, facilitated the optimal use of land resources, prevented fraudulent transactions, fostered seamless information-sharing and enabled the push towards conclusive titling? Has it managed to do all the aforementioned while ensuring social justice for economically and socially marginalized communities? Has the process of technology design and development been inclusive and citizen focused and if yes, in what specific manner? In particular, how have gender, participation and trust-related aspects been integrated into the design, development and deployment process? The session on Land and Technology will aim to encourage an in-depth discussion on the multifarious implications of the technologization of land governance in India.
India is home to over 17% of the world’s population on just 2.4% of the world’s land (UN DESA 2023, FAO nd). Forest landscapes, interspersed with other land-uses such as grasslands, plantations, agriculture etc., provides habitat to nearly 8% of the global biodiversity (MoEFCC 2019). These mosaic landscapes also support nearly 700 million people with key provisioning services in the form of minor forest produce, fuelwood, wood for construction, fodder etc. (MoEFCC 2015). Despite their importance, these critical forests, agricultural landscapes and other natural ecosystems in India are facing threats of degradation, fragmentation, declining productivity, biodiversity loss, and soil erosion. Climate change is exacerbating the vulnerabilities of dependent communities, which also include the majority of the 85% of the small and marginal land holders (< 2ha) (MoEFCC 2015, MoAFW 2015).
To protect the livelihoods of vulnerable communities and to make production systems resilient, India needs integrated management of its natural resources. Integrated management also helps in maintaining the health of natural ecosystems. To be effective, any solution intending to address the challenge of land degradation must involve local voices, especially of women, tenant farmers and other marginalised sections of society. The UN Declaration on Rights of Indigenous People provides for the right of self-determination to indigenous people for the development/use of their land or territories and other resources (Daes 2008; UN 2008). Recognition of communities’ rights over forest resources has been recognised as one of the tools to fight climate change (Stevens et al 2014) and has proven to be effective in conflict avoidance (Reyes 2018) by ensuring benefit sharing. A step in this direction, i.e., the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, has empowered forest dwelling communities in India to take management decisions over their community forest resource (CFR) rights (MoTA 2014). Evidence suggests that with recognition of resource use rights, communities aggregate to capitalize the power of collective bargaining and better manage natural resources (Pathak, 2022).
Against this background and aligning with the theme of ILDC 2023, the session aims:
• to discuss conditions necessary for evolution of a successful community-based institution
• to discuss experience of involving communities for managing natural resources;
• to highlight the role of community-based organizations in addressing inclusion, resource access and benefit sharing concerns;
• to learn approaches for community mobilization for making agricultural systems more productive, having naturally regenerating forests and deriving associated co-benefits
• to discuss challenges faced by these institutions
• to discuss the efforts needed to strengthen the community-based institutions to realise the ecological restoration potential.
Over centuries, indigenous communities have developed interdependent systems of agriculture and forestry that are uniquely suited to their ecological and cultural requirements. Also called Tribal, these communities depend on land/forest for food, medicine, construction materials and even source of income, while at the same time, the ecosystem is sustainably managed. In fact, forest is life for them. One of the major findings across the globe is that there is positive correlation between indigenous people and density of forest cover. Culturally, the Tribal people are extremely conscious and aware of the natural resources available around them be it for food intake, medicine, building houses and more. There are undocumented indigenous knowledge systems about the forest – flora and fauna and its usesn– which are part of the oral tradition and gradually forgotten as more and more youths arebecoming distant from the forests and land to find employment and income opportunities elsewhere. Additionally, with deepening poverty and precarity, intra-village conflicts and tensions have risen based on land and its use. Therefore, RNBA has considered maintaining, conservation and restoring forest lands tosupport and accelerate the function of wide range of ecological services that forests provide and come up with “Forest Restoration with Locally Important Species (FORLIS) to promote rural resurgence where community and local economy thrive by restoring locally important species while keeping the communities native forest intact.
Plurality of different forms of tenure, widespread tenancy across the country and lack of clear titles by many rural households is an accepted reality in India. It is estimated that anywhere between 25% to 40% of farmers are tenants in the country.
These farmers often operate on modest plots of land and face numerous challenges, one of the most significant being limited access to agricultural credit. The primary factor impeding their ability to secure credit is the lack of comprehensive and accurate land data.
Many smallholder farmers in India lack proper land documentation, making it difficult for financial institutions to assess the value and ownership of the land. Without this essential information, the farmers are deemed risky borrowers, which leads to loan rejections or high-interest rates. In many cases, land ownership in rural India is not officially recorded. This leads to disputes, unclear titles, and difficulties in proving land ownership, further complicating the process of securing credit. Insufficient credit also hampers their ability to invest in modern equipment, quality seeds, and other inputs that could significantly boost their agricultural productivity.
Ensuring sustainable agricultural practices is crucial for India’s food security and environmental well-being. Smallholder farmers, with better access to credit, could invest in sustainable farming methods, such as crop diversification and organic farming. The digital revolution has opened new opportunities for land data management and credit assessment. However, the implementation of such technologies is still a challenge, especially in remote rural areas.
Therefore improved land data availability is not just a solution; it’s a fundamental requirement for addressing these challenges and creating a more equitable and prosperous agricultural sector in India.
Through this session we aim to bring together private sector companies, nonprofits and experts working in the field of land data to discuss the pathways and challenges in consolidating and utilizing different forms of land-based data for better credit assessment. Apart from credit assessment we also want to explore how addressing land tenure data gaps can help us address issues of marginalization of women through better tenure info, easier access to land based investments and much more.
Ultimately, the session will work towards developing a roadmap for addressing this issue. It will foster discussions on practical steps, policies, and actions that can be taken to enhance land data availability, leading to improved credit access and, by extension, the empowerment of smallholder farmers in India.
The session is co-organized by Land Stack which is an upcoming initiative aimed to create a better data ecosystem for land data across the country.
Land and property record digitisation efforts in India have spanned almost four decades now.
1 Have they allowed financial institutions to better lend against property collateral thereby expanding access to finance? The goal of this roundtable is to bring lending practitioners together with government officials and experts to discuss what has worked and prospects for future progress.
The discussion will focus specifically on:
– Banking perspective on the effectiveness of digitisation efforts across states
– Key pending areas of reforms
– Major bottlenecks and scope for change
– Best practices in ensuring public access to information with adequate safeguards
for individual privacy
One reason for the under-utilization of real estate collateral in India has been attributed to the information asymmetries around title and disputes. With limited land records and long-drawn litigation, lenders avoid properties where it is difficult to ascertain ownership or discover encumbrances. There has been a long ongoing effort to bring about greater digitization of land records across the country by both the centre and different state governments, but significant challenges remain. This roundtable discussion aims to bring together a panel of senior government officials, practitioners from the financial sector, and independent experts to help identify the extent to which limited land data inhibits financial inclusion and identify an action plan to resolve the bottlenecks.
Technology is viewed as a catalyst for transformation in various aspects of human life, society and economy. In the field of land, technology has been used to improve governance efficiency, access to information, delineation of rights and the transfer of property. Some key
areas where law and technology converge include:
• Blockchain and land records
• Smart contracting
• Digital signatures and authentication
• Property due diligence
• Online markets
• GIS for zoning, land use planning and property rights delineation
• Property tax assessments
• Dispute resolution
While using technology may bring a variety of benefits, it cannot solve deeper problems that require changes in the law, procedures and the institutional structure. Further, the use of technology, requires that we create a legal environment that fosters its use and abates misuse. For instance, the use of technology also has implications for privacy, data management and security, which will not be possible without the right frameworks and implementational capacity. There is a need for deep thinking that is rooted in reality to examine some key issues in this field.
In this session, we will explore some key issues on land law and technology in the myriad contexts of developing countries including communal land tenures, sustainability and women’s land rights. Key themes we will explore in the backdrop of the technological advances in land highlighted above include:
(i) Are current land rights and administration systems compatible with the use of
technology in the field of land?
(ii) What should be the role of the legal framework in fostering the use of technology
in the field of land?
(iii) How can we balance this with protection to society and inclusivity?
(iv) How we can make land legislation more responsive to technology use?
The session addresses just and fair compensation associated with infrastructure development. The focus is how to minimize impoverishment risks for extractive industries (mining), hydropower development, transmission line, and other infrastructure projects that need to be built in large numbers as a source of alternative energy to achieve Net Zero and Just Transition. This area has a poor track record in restoring livelihoods and living standards of project affected people, especially when initiated in the developing world. The session will discuss challenges in determining what may, at minimum, ensure the principle of equivalence for involuntary resettlement of Indigenous communities and compulsory acquisition of informal/customary lands, given the unique challenges they present due to their complex dependencies on lands as a source of livelihoods, identify, social fabrics and security. The limitation of compensation for physical assets in restoring livelihoods, and the question of non-physical/market values that are not captured in the “market value” but are important to the affected local communities, will be highlighted, and alternative approaches to better recognize them will be explored. Concrete examples from Asia, Africa and Latin America which sought to go beyond the reconstruction of physical assets to restore livelihoods based on participatory approaches, challenges they face including due to limitations in prevailing legal and regulatory frameworks, and potentials for improvements will be sought. The session will limit the presentation to three so sufficient time can be allocated for discussion among practitioners to share experiences and explore ways to improve the practice on the ground.
Session Summary: The session addresses the challenge of involuntary resettlement of Indigenous communities, a critical risk to achieve sustainable development, Net Zero and Just Transition which needs construction of multiple infrastructural developments, that often require large-scale displacement of vulnerable local communities.
Land and its resources are heavily contested. Businesses, communities and the state often have conflicting needs, aspirations and positions about the use and control of natural resources. Climate Change complicates these contests. Marginalised communities that depend on land for livelihood are also most vulnerable to the climate-change impacts.
How well does the media play its role of a watchdog while covering these contests? How do journalists connect the dots to show how citizens’ lives are shaped by India’s land, its political economy and climate change? Seasoned reporters from the global, national and regional media and communicators who work at the intersection of science and policies come together to discuss.
