Browsing by Author "Dohrn, Stephan"

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Biting the Bullet: How to Secure Access to Drylands Resources for Multiple Users
(2006) Mwangi, Esther; Dohrn, Stephan
Close to one billion people worldwide depend directly upon the drylands for their livelihoods. Because of their climatic conditions and political and economic marginalization drylands also have some of the highest incidents of poverty. Pastoral and sedentary production systems coexist in these areas and both very often use common property arrangements to manage access and use of natural resources. Despite their history of complementary interactions, pastoralists and sedentary farmers are increasingly faced with conflicting claims over land and other natural resources. Past policy interventions and existing regulatory frameworks have not been able to offer lasting solutions to the problems related to land tenure and resource access; problems between the multiple and differentiated drylands resource users, as part of broader concerns over resource degradation and the political and economic marginalization of the drylands. This paper discusses enduring tension in efforts to secure rights in drylands. On the one hand are researchers and practitioners who advocate for statutory law as the most effective guarantor of rights, especially of group rights. On the other side are those who underscore the complexity of customary rights and the need to account for dynamism and flexibility in drylands environments in particular. It explores innovative examples of dealing with secure access to resources and comes to the conclusion that process, rather than content, should be the focus of policy makers. Any attempt to secure access for multiple users in variable drylands environments should identify frameworks for conflict resolution, in a negotiated manner, crafting rules from the ground upwards, in addition to a more generalized or generic identification of rights. Elite capture and exclusion of women and young people continue to pose significant challenges in such decentralized processes. For rights to be meaningfully secured there is need to identify the nature and sources of threats that create insecurities.
Gender and Collective Action: A Conceptual Framework for Analysis
(2006) Meinzen-Dick, Ruth; Pandolfelli, Lauren; Dohrn, Stephan; Athens, Jessica
"This paper presents a framework for investigating the intersection of collective action and gender; i.e. how gender-oriented analysis can foster more effective collective action in the context of agriculture and natural resource management and how collective action can be used as a vehicle for gender equity. We begin with definitions of the key concepts and then present three entry points for a gendered analysis of collective action-motivations, effectiveness, and impact on gender equity- vis-a-vis the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework (Oakerson, 1992; Ostrom, 1991). At the heart of this framework is the action arena, which is shaped by a host of initial conditions, including asset endowments, vulnerabilities, and legal and governance systems that influence a range of outcomes. Applying a gender lens to this framework, we present an analysis of how women and men experience the initial set of conditions differently and thus, have different motivations and capacities for engaging in collective action. Next, we look at how the gender composition of groups affects the effectiveness of collective action, and finally, at the impact of collective action on gender equity and women's empowerment. We conclude with a discussion of how this framework can improve our understanding of gender and collective action in order to facilitate more effective collective action while fostering gender equity."
Gender and Collective Action: Policy Implications from Recent Research
(2007) Pandolfelli, Lauren; Dohrn, Stephan; Meinzen-Dick, Ruth
"Collective action plays a vital role in many peoples lives, through such areas as income generation, risk reduction, public service provision, and the management of natural resources. However, mens and womens interests often differ because they have different rights, resources, and responsibilities. Due to these differences as well as socially constructed norms of what it means to be male and female, mens and womens voices are often not equally represented or valued in collective action institutions. Including a gender perspective in these institutions can lead to more effective and equitable outcomes. "This brief summarizes findings from an international workshop on Gender and Collective Action organized in 2005 by CAPRi in Chiang Mai, Thailand."
Governing Land: Reflections from IFPRI Research
(2006) Dohrn, Stephan
"Land is still among the most important assets of the rural population in the developing world. Land resources are governed by a variety of tenure systems based on statutory, customary, or religious law. At the same time, many national, subnational, and local institutions administer the application and enforcement of these laws, relying on a wide variety of policies, rules, and regulations that promote different practices for using and managing land and land-based resources. IFPRI contributes to land policy debates by demonstrating the importance of land policy and its impact on rural people. This occurs across multiple dimensions, including people's livelihoods, the sustainability of the resource base, and the effectiveness of the institutions that govern land. This brief summarizes findings of relevant IFPRI research on land management and governance to promote strategies and policies targeted toward the achievement of gender equity, poverty reduction, and sustainable resource management."
Securing Common Property Regimes in a 'Modernizing' World: Synthesis of 41 Case Studies on Common Property Regimes from Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America
(2006) Fuys, Andrew; Mwangi, Esther; Dohrn, Stephan
"Common property regimes remain a significant property arrangement in many parts of the developing world. Resources held under such regimes continue to play a major role in sustaining the livelihoods and socio-cultural practices of many communities, particularly of the poor and marginalized sections of such communities. This paper provides a broad synthesis of the status of common property regimes, from a community perspective, from a total of 20 countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America, covering a diversity of resources including forests, trees, rangelands, and fisheries. "While privatization for large scale commercial development and the expansion of small-holder agriculture are significant threats to CPRs, other threats include the appropriation of CPRs for conservation under various arrangements and obligations, legal ambiguities and a non recognition of customary law. Communities together with their partners have devised strategies for securing their common property regimes in particular and access to resources from the commons more broadly. We outline these efforts as well. "We argue that those elements that pertain to the orthodox security of private, individual property such as state recognition and backing are also relevant and fundamental to securing CPRs (the private property for a recognized group) primarily from external threats. We also suggest that securing the rights and entitlements of individuals and sub- groups to resources held under common property arrangements is crucial. Strengthening internal governance structures and arrangements (such as conflict resolution, rule making and enforcement), and making them more equitable and accountable may ensure more equitable decision making and benefit distribution, both of which are crucial for securing against internal threats."
Securing Common Property Regimes in a Globalizing World: Synthesis of 41 Case Studies on Common Property Regimes from Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America
(2008) Fuys, Andrew; Mwangi, Esther; Dohrn, Stephan
"A total of 41 case studies were contributed by researchers, civil society organizations and government project officers. These discussed examples of common property as it relates to a variety of resource settings, including forest and agro-forestry areas, pastures and rangelands, agricultural lands, and freshwater and marine resources. "This synthesis paper seeks to provide an overview of findings from these case studies. While this study is by nature quite broad, it is hoped to serve as a starting point for drawing out patterns and emerging concerns with regard to the broader goal of securing access and rights to resources via common property regimes, across different settings as well as across a range of natural resources. The first section outlines the study methodology, provides a definition of basic terms and reflects on why common property matters. The second section considers how groups and individuals gain access and rights to commons resources. The second and third sections treat the problem of tenure security for the commons, first by discussing how tenure security can be assessed and second by identifying factors and processes that jeopardize such security. The final section provides examples of some innovations intended to strengthen common property regimes. This is followed by a conclusion that distills the key lessons learnt from the case studies."
Securing the Commons: What are the Commons and What are they Good For?
(2006) Meinzen-Dick, Ruth; Mwangi, Esther; Dohrn, Stephan
"Over 1.6 billion people live in and actively use the 30% of the global land mass that is forest and close to 1 billion people the 40% land mass that is drylands. These areas, although often classified by national law as public lands, are in many places actively managed by their inhabitants, very often through common property arrangements. In addition to many forest and dryland areas, fisheries, pastures, irrigation systems, and the oceans are examples of commons. The commons may also include farmland that is seasonally left open for livestock grazing, as is widespread in situations where pastoral and cultivating communities interface in the Sahel region in Africa. Another example for commons on privately owned land are the seasonally flooded wetlands in the Mekong region of mainland Southeast Asia that are used for collective fishing and individual rice production at different times."