Annual Conference IOS Fair Transitions / LANDac 2023

Fair Transitions and the Politics of Land: Institutions and imaginaries for inclusive futures

Please be reminded that on Thursday June 29th we start with parallel sessions at the Drift Building. Please refer to the button below 'Programme: Parallel Sessions' to know what session is taking place in which room or ask our volunteers at the Drift building for directions. 

Whether the energy transition, nature protection or food system transformation, the global challenges of our time all involve claims on land, water and forests. How these claims are framed, analyzed and governed and who gets a seat at the table to discuss key decision-making processes are questions of urgent concern.

Over the past 12 years the LANDac International Conference has offered a stage for researchers, policy makers and practitioners working on land governance to foster equitable and sustainable development. In this year’s conference LANDac and IOS Fair Transitions will join hands in facilitating the interdisciplinary dialogue necessary to address these concerns.

Join us in radically rethinking sustainable development and institutions for a future that safeguards not only ecological boundaries, but also the boundaries of fair and just development – on equal and symmetrical terms!
 

Register here

Key dates:

  • Call for Abstracts: February 28th to April 7th, 2023 | closed
  • Online registration:
    • Early bird tickets: April 14th until May 12th
    • Regular tickets: May 13th until June 27th
  • Conference: June 28th to June 30th  

Format: 

This year the conference will be held on-site in Utrecht City Centre. Online participation is limited to participants that are presenting during a limited amount of hybrid sessions. Please note that attending the conference online is not possible this year.

Registration fees:

Early bird:€ 175
Regular:€ 225

Dinner:
On Thursday June 28th.

We are sorry to inform you that due to great interest in joining the dinner there are no longer any vacant spots available.

€ 50

 

Conference Programme 2023

Please note that the programme might be subject to change. For the latest version of the programme, please regularly check the Conference Page. Times are displayed in CEST (Central European Summer Time).

Programme: Conference 2023
Programme: Parallel Sessions 2023

Practical information

We want to make your attendance to the conference and your stay at Utrecht as comfortable and enjoyable as possible. Click on the button below for all the practical information about directions on how to go to conference venues, where to book your hotels (and where possibly discounts apply) and some tips on where to eat out or enjoy a drink after the conference activities. 

Welcome document: Going around Utrecht

Key note speakers:

The book of abstracts is now online. Click below for a detailed overview of the conference sessions and abstracts. 

Book of abstracts

More on the core concerns of the conference

Questions about how land is governed and controlled in the context of multiple crises are key to debates about fair transitions. The energy transition, net-zero ambitions, nature protection, and food system transformation all involve claims on land, water, and forests. How these claims are framed, analysed, and governed, how access to land is organised, and who gets a seat at the table to discuss key decisions are questions of urgent concern from both a fair transitions perspective and a land governance perspective.

More than ever, land is scarce and the transitions on the agenda take place in a context of high inequality at multiple scales and levels. Exclusionary pathways of transition lead to highly unfair distributions of ‘costs and benefits’ of the effects of climate change and mitigation measures. Under the current conditions of capitalism and authoritarianism, climate, food security, and biodiversity imperatives may lead to the loss of access to land and resources, and propel a deepening of existing social, economic, and political inequalities. Feminist, (post-)colonial and intersectional critiques from across the globe suggest ways to rethink these wicked problems and expose false solutions. The growing awareness that fair transitions in our times have to take into account non-human life in all of its articulations, asks for a serious change of perspective. Rethinking justice and inclusion from this perspective is hugely challenging- in land governance and beyond.

The current situation raises urgent questions as to how these transitions will and should be governed, and how dynamics of deepening exclusion and inequality should be addressed and prevented. The challenges ahead call for theoretical, historical, legal, and empirical analysis, feeding smart and sustained action. Key global concerns are: How much land do we need for what transitions? Who is able to claim what part, on what basis, and at whose expense? What (legal) frameworks should guide decision-making? With this background, the questions guiding this conference are: How could transitions be made fair for both human and non-human life? What role is there for land governance actors and (formal and informal) institutions? Who will have a seat at the table and what knowledges are taken into account? How will non-human interests be represented? Could transitions be a lever for promoting equity?

To explore these questions, we invite session proposals around any of the below themes:

Organizing Committee:

Rick Dolphijn (UU, IOS Fair Transitions)
Imke Greven (RVO Netherlands)
Richard Pompoes (UU, IOS Fair Transitions)
Marit Meijer (UU, IOS Fair Transitions)
Annelies Zoomers (UU)
Gemma van der Haar (WUR/LANDac)
Wytske Chamberlain (UU & LAND-at-scale)
Mayke Kaag (African Studies Centre Leiden)
Barbara Codispoti (Oxfam Novib)
Joanny Bélair (Bureau du Québec, Rabat)

Learn more about the IOS Fair Transitions Platform

For inquiries contact fairtransitions.landac2023@gmail.com