Empowering millions of women and men with a powerful tool they can use to improve their lives:

LAND RIGHTS

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WHY DO LAND RIGHTS MATTER?

Around the world, people experiencing poverty often share three traits: they live in rural areas, rely on agriculture and forests to survive, and don’t have legal control over the land on which they depend. We offer the tools to help people lift themselves out of poverty. Stronger rights to land have the power to reduce poverty and conflict, increase economic activity, empower women, strengthen food security, and improve environmental stewardship — for an individual, a family, a community, and an entire country.
WHO WE ARE

ENGAGE

Landesa partners with progressive governments and civil society to develop pro-poor and gender-sensitive laws, policies, and programs that strengthen land rights for people experiencing extreme poverty. In Africa and Asia, our land rights experts work shoulder to shoulder with government officials, local leaders, and rural residents developing scalable, practical, and innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing problems – food insecurity, conflict, climate change, women’s lack of empowerment.
WHAT WE DO

EXPLORE

Strong, legal rights to land can provide people in rural areas with the opportunity, security, and incentive they need to invest in their land to improve their harvests and their lives. Learn more about the connection between land rights and the most significant challenges of our time, from nutrition to climate change, from inclusive economic development to gender equality.
RESOURCES

JOIN

In an era defined by concerns over food security, environmental sustainability, stubborn cycles of poverty, and conflict over land, strong land rights are critical. Landesa champions the power of land rights for people and communities in rural areas as a fundamental building block for a safer and more prosperous future. Join the global land rights movement—make your gift to Landesa today.
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RECENT NEWS
Research

Land Divestment: Comparing Experiences with Returning Land to Local Communities in Mozambique and Tanzania

December 20, 2024

Two recent cases of voluntary relinquishment of land by a company offer a rare opportunity to better understand land divestment, and to identify motivations, risks, and good practices to carry out a responsible exit that supports communities’ rights and benefits. The largest forest development and wood processing company in East Africa recently carried out large-scale land divestments under different circumstances and at different scales in Mozambique and Tanzania.

Read Article
What's New

Staff Spotlight: Robert Wayumba

December 18, 2024

Meet Robert Wayumba, Landesa’s Senior Land Tenure Specialist based in Nairobi, Kenya. Robert began working for Landesa in 2022.

Read More
What's New

COP29 countdown: Failure on climate finance ‘not an option’, says Guterres

November 21, 2024

UN News — Landesa's Jessica Hernandez (Binnizá & Maya Ch'orti') was interviewed at COP29 about indigenous land rights and the inclusion of land rights into nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

Read More
What's New

Landesa x Julia Quinn

November 20, 2024

Landesa welcomes Julia Quinn, international bestselling author of the Bridgerton series and longtime Landesa supporter, as a partner to amplify how secure land rights can help women realize economic opportunity, social empowerment, and the chance to write their own destinies.

Read More
Research

Blue Carbon: Assessing the Mitigation Potential of Strengthening Coastal Community Fisheries’ Tenure

November 20, 2024

A new Landesa report shows how strengthening local rights to manage coastal resources in Cambodia can protect livelihoods, restore mangrove forests, and fight climate change. Many community fishery organizations face challenges like unclear boundaries and limited control over their resources, putting both ecosystems and livelihoods at risk. This report shares findings from carbon studies at two pilot sites, highlighting how strengthening land rights can help expand Cambodia’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions and meet its climate goals.

Read Article
What's New

Staff Spotlight: Sam Pickett

November 20, 2024

Meet Sam Pickett, Landesa’s Program Coordinator based in Seattle, Washington. Sam began working for Landesa in 2022.

Read More
Featured image for “Climate-smart agriculture offers agency and resilience in rural Liberia”

Climate-smart agriculture offers agency and resilience in rural Liberia

In Liberia’s Bong County, Landesa is helping communities like Diagmah Clan secure formal land rights and adopt climate-smart agriculture, empowering farmers to grow food sustainably and build resilience against climate change.
Read More
Featured image for “National advocacy, local resilience: women’s land rights and climate change in South Asia”

National advocacy, local resilience: women’s land rights and climate change in South Asia

In this three-part blog series, we asked the Women-led Collective Advocacy for Climate Action national coalition leads about their work forming and strengthening coalitions, building capacity among women-led and women-focused civil society organizations, and scaling advocacy efforts for effective emergency preparedness, climate action, and gender-equitable and socially inclusive land rights.
Read More
Featured image for “To Safeguard Africa’s Forests, Protect Local Land Rights”

To Safeguard Africa’s Forests, Protect Local Land Rights

‍Africa’s forests and natural areas are an indispensable collective resource. Capably stewarded by the communities that have called these areas home for centuries, these forests can continue to ensure livelihoods while serving as a bulwark against climate change.
Read More
Featured image for “The Right to Steward: Protecting People and Planet in Asia’s Mangrove Forests”

The Right to Steward: Protecting People and Planet in Asia’s Mangrove Forests

The lives of Chumpou Khmao’s residents are woven into the roots of their mangrove forests. With the support necessary to gain secure rights, they can steward their forests to flourish for generations.
Read More
Featured image for “Nature-based carbon offsetting project incentives: An unintended form of social harm?”

Nature-based carbon offsetting project incentives: An unintended form of social harm?

Nature-based emission-reduction projects must ensure that their benefit sharing arrangements properly account for and transparently compensate local stakeholders for their labor and resources used in planting and managing trees.
Read More
Featured image for “No Climate Justice Without “Us””

No Climate Justice Without “Us”

Civil society representatives across Asia and Africa met in Dhaka this October to talk about the growing impact of climate change on land-based rural people across Asia and Africa. They crafted the ‘Dhaka Declaration,’ which calls on governments to center rural people, including women, youth, and Indigenous Peoples, in climate change policy.
Read More
Research

Land Divestment: Comparing Experiences with Returning Land to Local Communities in Mozambique and Tanzania

December 20, 2024

Two recent cases of voluntary relinquishment of land by a company offer a rare opportunity to better understand land divestment, and to identify motivations, risks, and good practices to carry out a responsible exit that supports communities’ rights and benefits. The largest forest development and wood processing company in East Africa recently carried out large-scale land divestments under different circumstances and at different scales in Mozambique and Tanzania.

Read Article
What's New

Staff Spotlight: Robert Wayumba

December 18, 2024

Meet Robert Wayumba, Landesa’s Senior Land Tenure Specialist based in Nairobi, Kenya. Robert began working for Landesa in 2022.

Read More
What's New

COP29 countdown: Failure on climate finance ‘not an option’, says Guterres

November 21, 2024

UN News — Landesa's Jessica Hernandez (Binnizá & Maya Ch'orti') was interviewed at COP29 about indigenous land rights and the inclusion of land rights into nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

Read More
What's New

Landesa x Julia Quinn

November 20, 2024

Landesa welcomes Julia Quinn, international bestselling author of the Bridgerton series and longtime Landesa supporter, as a partner to amplify how secure land rights can help women realize economic opportunity, social empowerment, and the chance to write their own destinies.

Read More
Research

Blue Carbon: Assessing the Mitigation Potential of Strengthening Coastal Community Fisheries’ Tenure

November 20, 2024

A new Landesa report shows how strengthening local rights to manage coastal resources in Cambodia can protect livelihoods, restore mangrove forests, and fight climate change. Many community fishery organizations face challenges like unclear boundaries and limited control over their resources, putting both ecosystems and livelihoods at risk. This report shares findings from carbon studies at two pilot sites, highlighting how strengthening land rights can help expand Cambodia’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions and meet its climate goals.

Read Article
What's New

Staff Spotlight: Sam Pickett

November 20, 2024

Meet Sam Pickett, Landesa’s Program Coordinator based in Seattle, Washington. Sam began working for Landesa in 2022.

Read More
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PLANT SEEDS OF HOPE

Land rights are a key that unlocks a world of possibilities, giving rural families hope, opportunity, and the tools to lift themselves out of poverty. Become a partner in this global movement.
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