Over two billion people worldwide depend on common property for at least some significant part of their livelihoods.
But the majority of land and aquatic resources that are managed as ’commons’ are often declared to be state property. Governments are variable in their policies of recognition of the rights of commoners over these resources, which in turn creates significant uncertainty, and limits incentives for sustainable management.
One of the key issues to maintaining and protecting common property is to raise the political profile of commons and in particular recognition of the local, regional and global values of resources managed ’in common’.
Thanks to sponsorship from the International Development Research Centre, Canada, a Policy Forum is set take place to provide the opportunity to hear a variety of experiences with advocating for the commons in different fora, from the local to the international, and to explore the opportunity for raising its political profile.
This forum will take place at the 12th Biennial Conference of the International Association for the Study of Commons Conference, which is being organised by the Countryside and Community Research Institute at the University of Gloucestershire, UK, on 14-18 July 2008.
Conference organiser, Dr. John Powell, says "The rising value of resources on the commons poses one of the greatest challenges to local users of commons. Commercial interests, particularly in developing countries, seek concessions to exploit forest resources, develop plantations, mining, or even ecotourism, or governments may sell off land for urban and other development. Poor and marginalized groups, including women, pastoralists, and minority ethnic groups are the most likely to lose out in this process. This forum will explore potential for developing resources to assist organisations in getting a ’voice of the commons’ heard in the policy process at different levels of governance."
Much advocacy for commons protection occurs at the local level where it may help to solve localised management problems and access issues, but failure to gain recognition for commons and common rights at higher political levels can be catastrophic over large areas, wiping out localised gains obtained at the grass roots level. Thus the aim of the forum is to:
- explore situations where policy advocacy and intervention is required to secure rights to the commons;
- exchange experiences about advocacy on behalf of collective rights, identify commonalities and draw lessons from failures and successes;
- discuss the roles of grassroots organizations, federations, NGOs, government policymakers, development assistance programs, and international fora in advocacy on behalf of the commons;
- explore potential for developing resources to assist organisations in getting voice of the commons heard in the policy process at different levels of governance.
In addition, the main conference will be exploring the global implications of poor resource management and conflict between individual interests and the common good, which are increasingly recognised in terms of loss of biodiversity, destruction of valued resource systems, both natural and man-made, and global warming impacts. The Conference will seek to address how common resources should be managed at local, regional, national and global levels to promote a more sustainable world.
The term ’commons’ includes a wide range of ’shared’ resources. Resources, such as a woodland or forest might be shared between members of a local community, and those living outside that community prevented from using it. On the other hand some resources, such as the global atmosphere, are shared by everyone, and no-one can be excluded . There are commons in water, forests, wildlife, energy, climate and landscapes, all of which are increasingly under threat.
Over 500 delegates from over 40 countries will be attending the event.
