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New publications

Various new publications on the global land grab have been issued recently:
Biofuels – Economy, Environment and Sustainability
Africa for sale? Positioning the state, land and society in foreign large-scale land acquisitions in Africa
Special issue Development & Change Journal: “Governing the global land grab: the role of the state in the rush for land”
More information:

Biofuels – Economy, Environment and Sustainability
Zhen Fang
2013, InTech

This edited book overviews the social, economic, environmental and sustainable implications of biofuels. It includes publications by LANDac researchers (Annelies Zoomers, Lucía Goldfarb) and researchers from related projects (Ari Susanti, Suseno Budidarsono). Freely accessible publication – creative commons license.

Africa for sale? Positioning the state, land and society in foreign large-scale land acquisitions in Africa

Sandra J.T.M. Evers, Caroline Seagle, Froukje Krijtenburg, VU University Amsterdam
2013, Afrika-Studiecentrum series 29, Brill Publishers

The past several decades have witnessed a rise in foreign and domestic investments in Africa’s arable land. While such land projects are currently the focus of widespread media and scholarly interest, the role of the state in driving, negotiating and facilitating these acquisitions deserves closer attention. This book analyzes how state land policies, stakeholder interactions and privatization schemes interact to facilitate large-scale land acquisitions. It includes a study of the various forms of state intervention, the influence of foreign agencies, governments and private entities, and a look at how states interact with local populations. The inclusion of case studies in settings throughout the African continent should attract the interest of both an academic and non-academic readership.

Includes chapter by LANDac chair Annelies Zoomers:  “A Critical Review of the Policy Debate on Large Scale Land Acquisition: Fighting the Symptoms or Killing the Heart?”

Special issue Development & Change Journal: “Governing the global land grab: the role of the state in the rush for land”

March 2013: Volume 44, Issue 2. Edited by Wendy Wolford, Saturnino M. Borras Jr., Ruth Hall, Ian Scoones, Ben White, includes 12 articles on large-scale land acquisitions worldwide and the role of the state.