News on Land

New Zealand and India recognize personhood for ecosystems

The Brazilian city of Petropolis is known for its 19th century buildings and its Imperial Museum. The museum includes the summer home of Brazil's last ruler, Dom Pedro II.

But many people who live in Petropolis are upset about having to pay a special property tax linked to the country’s former rulers.

The tax is known as laudemio. It takes 2.5 percent of the value of real estate deals. The money from the tax goes directly to the descendants of Dom Pedro II, more than one hundred years after he was ousted.

Federal police in the Mexican state of Michoacan killed four Indigenous campesinos Wednesday, entering their homes and shooting them on site, Ruptura Colectiva reports.

The four victims, whose names have yet to be released, were members of the Arantepacua Communal Property Collective, a grassroots organization that fights for Indigenous land rights in Michoacan. Eight members were left injured and 40 more were arrested, Mexico News Daily reports.

Witnesses also claim police threatened women and children who arrived at the scene of the murder with violence.

Putting land at the heart of radical economic transformation – a perspective from the ground

Over the past several years, the people of Jemna, a region in southern Tunisia famous for its excellent quality dates called Deglet Nour (the dates of light), have been engaged in an important and inspiring struggle around land rights.

Indigenous Peoples and community advocates in Brazil, Guatemala, Kenya, Taiwan, and 21 other countries to take action for community land rights, April 22-29 (Earth Day)

New research provides yet more evidence that granting indigenous and other local communities formal title to their traditional lands can be a boon to efforts to conserve forests.

Deforestation is responsible for as much as 10 percent of total global carbon emissions, which means that finding effective means of keeping forests standing is crucial to global efforts to halt climate change.

Disputes over Brazil’s farmland are growing increasingly violent, pitting farmers against the original residents of the area

Dr (Mrs) Ladi Shambo is the MD of Dijmeds Ventures Limited, a company that is into food processing and Shea butter processing. 

After her retirement from the civil service, she decided to start producing spices. 

“I produce ginger powder, garlic powder, chili pepper and mixed spice (‘yaji’) and ‘garin danwake’. These products have NAFDAC number and are in the market.

There are serious concerns that government reforms will further exacerbate land tenure and food insecurity for the majority of the population in Myanmar who rely on their farm fields and forests for their livelihoods.

Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma calls for ’clever’ lobbying if the ANC wants to amend the Constitution to allow expropriation of land without compensation

The ANC must "be clever" about lobbying other parties if it wants to amend the Constitution to allow for expropriation of land without compensation, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma told a gathering of students at Wits University on Wednesday.

The land reform debate is gaining momentum in the ANC and more broadly, with pressure to scrap what many believe is the obstacle to redistribution.