• After defeating a plan to turn much of the Aru Islands into a series of giant sugar plantations, indigenous people in the eastern Indonesian archipelago are mulling how to raise their standard of living without sacrificing their rich environment.
• Time may be short: Indonesia’s minister of agriculture appears to be pushing another corporate-backed agribusiness plan in Aru involving Andi Syamsuddin Arsyad, an up-and-coming tycoon better known as Haji Isam.

Somali women are challenging social norms and navigating male-dominated property market in hope that, one day, they will have security that comes with owning a place of their own

OHANNESBURG, July 8 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - In the hallway of a large, brick-face apartment block in Johannesburg, Halima Jawahir greets her tenants, a group of six Somali women drying their henna-painted hands in the sunlight streaming through the windows.

A regional workshop on “Strengthening the Accessibility and Visibility of Agricultural and Land Data through the Use of Semantics - AGRIS in Europe and Central Asia” was held by FAO in collaboration with the LandPortal Foundation (the Netherlands) in Moscow, 27-28 June 2019, hosted by the Central Scientific Agricultural Library (CSAL).

AGRIS, or International System for Agricultural Science and Technology, came into being in 1974 on the joint initiative of around 180 FAO member states.

Under the theme of “Rights-Led Transformation Toward Climate-Resilient Landscapes”, this iteration of the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF), taking place this coming June 22-23, will explore the essential contributions made by Indigenous Peoples and local communities, rural women and youth to the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the targets laid out in the Paris Agreement on climate change.

Can urban planners use the technology in “Smart Cities” to create cities that are more just—and safe—for all?

What does a “smart city” look like from a gender perspective?  Is there a difference as to how women experience a city? Does technology help or hinder that experience? And how can technology be harnessed to purposefully address challenges of most concern to women? 

Sourcing products from sustainable production areas and offering farmers better loans for environmentally friendly practices are just two ways to support sustainable development – ultimately benefiting millions of farmers and significantly reducing deforestation

European Union (EU)’s Programme Manager for Climate Change and Rural Development, Vera Kellen, says land rights remain the precondition for sustainable development in Africa and the rest of the world.

Madam Kellen made the remarks on Tuesday, June 4, 2019 at the “Sustainable Ownership, Empowering Community and Civil Society Liberia” meeting held at a resort in Monrovia, organized by ForumSYD. The day-long meeting brought together both local and international partners with focus on land rights advocacy and empowerment of CSOs.

Indigenous peoples own or manage at least one-quarter of the world’s land surface – vast areas that overlap with 40 percent of global land-based government-protected areas, according to a unique mapping study that demonstrates the significant part Indigenous peoples are playing in safeguarding critical areas for conservation. The study took five years to complete and is the first of its kind, using geospatial data to estimate the size of this overlap.

Like many other Aboriginal kids in 1938, Isabel Flick was denied an education because she was “too black” to be allowed into the segregated public school.

Her father, a returned serviceman, was disrespected by the nation he had fought for. She and her siblings faced the threat of being taken from their family. She was later called a “trouble maker” for demanding justice for Aboriginal women and children and Aboriginal rights to land.

New Delhi._ The 21st century is often projected as one of Urbanity. Some go to the extent of even saying that if the hallmark of 20th century was the rise of nation states (and of welfarism), the current one will be that of cities, urbanity and ecology, and defined by struggles of millions to claim urban spaces and redefine urbanity, generating enormous challenges.

Recent studies find that the prevention of irreversible climate catastrophes require the world’s population to commit to transformative change within the next decade. On 12–14 May, the Global Landscapes Forum Kyoto (GLF Kyoto) event entitled “Climate, Landscapes and Lifestyles: It is Not Too Late” focused on making this commitment a reality.