Commoning the Commons: Mediating for Spaces in Public Policy
Kumari, Kiran et al.
Common lands in India account for 15 - 25 % of the geographical area, and are critical to the livelihoods of a diverse group of rural households, from the landless and socially marginalized groups to often the dominant groups with access to land and other resources. This paper highlights the continued significance of Commons to the rural livelihoods and the policy advocacy initiatives undertaken at the state and national level to improve governance of common lands through measures to improve tenurial security, strengthen institutional arrangements at local level and develop a programmatic action for restoration of common lands. The paper builds on the initiatives undertaken in the States of Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh, and at the national level towards enabling a process wherein community can claim, consolidate and verify their rights on community lands and channel investments to strengthen the biophysical infrastructure such as soil, water, biomass and biodiversity to enhance ecological health and improve rural livelihoods.
Event: Annual World Bank Conference on Land and Poverty 2015
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