This summary highlights Kenya-specific findings of three RRI studies conducted in 2020. This document will explain what the findings of these three studies mean for Kenya, and aims to equip local communities and civil society organizations (CSOs) with data to advance their advocacy work to influence future reforms and help the government, donors, private sector actors, and conservationists make informed decisions.
RRI’s Collaborators from the Africa region have implemented a wide range of projects with the central goal of securing Indigenous Peoples (IPs)’ and local communities (LC)s’ tenure as a baseline for other pro-community engagements. RRI is highlighting some of the best practices from these projects to strengthen our Coalition members’ advocacy and other work, now and in the future.
A growing body of evidence suggests that recognition of the collective tenure rights of Indigenous Peoples, local communities, and Afro-descendants is a powerful and cost-effective strategy for addressing the climate and biodiversity crises. In spite of this, international funding for rights recognition pales in comparison to donor mobilization around alternative solutions to these crises.
The objectives of this paper include: To gather data on cases of violence and/or criminalization of land and environmental rights defenders (LERDs) in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda; To collect information on existing strategies and resources to address the criminalization of LERDs in East Africa; To map organizations working on the issue at the local, national, and regional levels; and To understand the steps leading to violence against or criminalization of human rights defenders.
This report presents an innovative, international comparative assessment on the extent to which various national-level legal frameworks recognize the freshwater tenure rights of Indigenous Peoples, Afro-descendants, and local communities, as well as the specific rights of women to use and govern community waters.
Companies may face operational, legal, and financial risks when operating or investing in locations where land rights are disputed or where tenure rights are not understood and respected. Perhaps more importantly, community access and rights to livelihoods and economic security may be negatively impacted by such investments. This paper illustrates how selected companies are implementing commitments to international best practices on land rights. Given that the companies referenced in this paper are in the process of developing and improving ways to address land tenure rights, the cases ought to be viewed as examples of emerging company experiences, which can contribute to establishing best practices.
If properly leveraged, natural climate solutions can contribute over 37% of cost-effective CO2 mitigation by 2030. Evidence shows Indigenous Peoples and local communities are key to achieving such outcomes. This report presents the most comprehensive assessment to date of carbon storage in documented community lands worldwide.
At a Crossroads: Consequential Trends in Recognition of Community-Based Forest Tenure from 2002-2017
This analysis reports on trends in global forest tenure from 2002-2017. It is the fourth in a series of analyses monitoring the legal recognition of forest tenure around the world.
This brief presents a review of the nominal progress made in the national-level laws and regulations that govern the carbon trade and define the rights of parties—across a sample of 24 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. These countries collectively hold more than 50 percent of global tropical and subtropical forests.
This study assesses the cumulative risks and impacts of all REDD+ initiatives in the DRC province of Mai-Ndombe on the rights and subsistence of local communities and Indigenous Peoples. Using existing tools while taking into account gray areas in the REDD+ process, the study maps all existing and planned REDD+ initiatives in the province.
This report discusses the critical role of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in the context of emerging climate and development priorities, and the unprecedented opportunity to scale up the recognition and protection of community land and resource rights—both for the benefit of rural peoples and for the realization of global peace and prosperity.
This paper proposes a framework of analysis to systematically classify and evaluate legal pathways to secure recognition of community-based property rights.
This report synthesizes research findings on gender dynamics and the implications for gender justice in community-based tenure systems in Zambia and Bolivia.
A study found that the impact of large scale land acquisitions has caused women to lose their rights to use, access and own land for housing or farming, forest and forest products as well as other natural resources in their communities.
Amid the realities of major political turbulence, there was growing recognition in 2016 that community land rights are key to ensuring peace and prosperity, economic development, sound investment, and climate change mitigation and adaptation.
A synthesis of an investigation of tenure risk in East, West, and Southern Africa, that shows that a majority of tenure disputes are caused by the displacement of local peoples, indicating that companies and investors are not doing enough to understand competing claims to the land they acquire or lease.
Disputes over land and resource rights create operational and reputational risks through delays, rising costs, and curtailed access to finance and markets.
An empirical picture of the causes and effects of tenure-related disputes between private sector actors and local peoples across different sub-regions and countries in Africa, this analysis details statistical evidence of key trends in tenure-related disputes, including their causes as well as the prevalence of violence, work stoppages, and regulatory interventions.
Tenure disputes in Southern Africa have created financial and reputational damage for the companies and investors involved.
This paper examines recent case studies of tenure-related dispute in East Africa to help companies, investors, governments, and CSOs avoid and resolve them more effectively.
Compelling quantitative evidence of the unparalleled role that forest peoples have to play in climate change mitigation.
A new report quantifying the carbon stored aboveground in tropical forests that are legally owned or traditionally held by Indigenous Peoples and local communities in 37 countries across tropical America, Africa, and Asia.
The DRC is home to some of the world’s most important forests and biomes, so reducing deforestation quickly and efficiently is an important part of…
A review of submitted Intended Nationally Determined Contributions to determine the extent to which Parties made clear commitments to strengthen or expand the tenure and natural resource management rights of Indigenous Peoples and local communities as part of their climate change mitigation plans.