Story of Mohammad Salim Working to protect tenure security in the Geneva Refuge Camp Mohammad Salim lives in the Geneva Refugee Camp in Dhaka, Bangladesh. As a Bihari, his family has lived in the camp since 1971. He shares an 8 by 10 feet room with his wife and daughter. The rooms are separated by two feet wide passageways shared by residents, goats, and chickens. With over five thousand camp residents, it is common for three generations to share a room.…

Story of Aigul Aidarbekova - Preserving the traditional knowledge brought in by women pastoralists in Kyrgyzstan "If you treat your land as a mother with respect, then good will come from this land," says Aigul Aidarbekova, a woman pastoralist. Aigul Aidarbekova is a wife, mother, and herder living in the village of Cholpon, in Naryn, Kyrgyzstan. As a person who is juggling numerous roles, she starts her day at 5 a.m. She cooks, brings out the cattle for grazing, and milks…

Documenting the land claims through the Forest Rights Act Shimgi Sukarya Bhovar is a 60 year old mother of two from the Phanaswadi Village in Panvel Taluka, Raigad District of India. Shimgi’s life and livelihood are dependent on the forest surrounding her village.Shimgi explains, “Our family used to work for wages on a farm controlled by a non-tribal landlord. One time there was a quarrel between the landlord and our family over the wages. The landlord sent men to kill my…

Journey of Bari Marndi, from a relocatee to a landowner Bari Marndi has aptly proved the saying, “Farming isn’t just a job, it’s a way of life”. Daughter of a farmer, Fakir Marndi, Bari and her family used to stay in Kabatghai, a village inside the core of Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) in Mayurbhanj district of Odisha. She farmed an area of 2.5 acres and collected and sold Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) as part of her livelihood activities. In the year…

Ambaji Jetu Katakari is a 66 year old father of three from the Shirdhon Village in India. The forest near where Ambaji lives is fundamental to his livelihood: he cultivates food to both eat and sell.Reflecting on his relationship to the forest, Ambaji shared, “This is the third generation in my family that is dependent on the forest. We have been cultivating land for many decades. My great-grandpa is buried in this forest. Forest is everything for us. Forest is giving…

A brief report on GPS land Mapping-Homestead and NRM plots Chief is the sole owner of land in Kuki Society. Land Tenure Security through proper documentation is one of the biggest challenges in the Kuki society as there is no legal documentation or records maintained. This kind of land tenure system has been practiced only through the mutual understanding, oral or verbal system. Villagers are carrying out the cultivation of land at the mercy of the Chief. Outsiders, which refers to…