Key principles to consider for local authorities
Before you start, establish your ways of working:
Allow adequate time for bringing all the relevant parts of the local authority together - be willing to be a champion
Be willing to share power: with the local community, other local landowners, farmers, civil society organisations
If you can advocate for money to support this process, then do - the more flexibility and resource you have, the easier this will be
As you begin, streamline objectives:
Observe and gather information from a variety of sources - try to find shared goals and areas of consensus in the diagnosis of needs and priorities
Define objectives that are easy to explain - a clear and consistent message will facilitate your work in the long term
Over time, cultivate resilience:
Give yourself time and the right to experiment - trials and errors are numerous in tackling land issues
Work with conviction and strong political will: it is best to anticipate difficulties and opposition and plan ahead how you will respond to these
Put land on the agenda (of your internal meetings, of exchanges with constituents, of the next discussion with other local authorities…)
Make a quick research about organisations that work on land in your country/region, contact them to know if they have tools to support local authorities.
Support collectives and organisations working on land, even if only by providing them a municipal room to meet or by putting them in touch with relevant actors.
If you have relevant data on the land or agricultural market, or knowledge of a land opportunity, share it (with potential new farmers).
Seize opportunities! E.g. if a farmer is nearing retirement connect them with a candidate successor; if a lease is ending on a public farm try to encourage a sustainable project with the new lease; if a cheap or strategic plot is up for sale, acquire it or tell an ethical land trust or new farmer about it.
a- learn about who takes part in the zoning negotiations and their interests
b- think about who in the local authority needs to be involved in these discussions. Paul’s most important role could be as a internal broker between all of the different interests within the local authority
c- gather prior information on local land (existing studies on the local agriculture, existing objectives regarding curtailing land loss or tackling climate change)
d- gather priori information on legal possibilities to protect land through zoning, and examples of towns who have done it
a- evaluate whether the municipal land is fit for vegetable growing (type of soil and fertility, existence of infrastructure like greenhouses/irrigation/storage buildings)
b- evaluate the costs, infrastructure and practices needed to enable the school canteen to start preparing meals from scratch using fresh vegetables
c- reach out to community and civic society organisations who may be interested in managing the land or being involved with growing
d- reach out to local farmers and skilled growers for advice on business models
a- survey the farmers on their current use of the lands held in common
b- make data publicly accessible on common land available
c- engage the local administration - specifically the local council - to establish specific local measures which support new entrants, the safeguarding of common land and animal husbandry as agricultural activity of the community
d- mediate the relationship between new entrants and the local community who are the stewards of the commons
1 - I am Maria, a staff member in an inter-municipal structure. I want our next land local zoning plan to better safeguard agricultural land.
2 - I am Paul, a council member in a small town. I want to use the 4 hectare plot of municipal land to produce vegetables for the local school.
3 - I am Joanna, a recently elected mayor in a rural village. I want to facilitate access to pasture lands held in common by residents to new entrants.
Maria’s first steps could be…
Paul’s first steps could be…
Joanna’s first steps could be…
If you are organising a field survey or land watch action with volunteers, you can use the example below to create a basic land questionnaire for your surveyors to fill out.
Date of the meeting
Location
Editor of the form (last name-first name-telephone)
Context of the land opportunity:
Background and description of the opportunity:
Is there a farmer currently farming this land? If so, how is it being farmed?
What are the owner's intentions (sell, lease, loan, keep as is...)
Is there a development project that threatens this opportunity?
Cadaster reference of the plots:
Section - n° of the plot - area (ha or acre) - zoning - owner
Immediate observations
Land configuration (divided, in one piece...):
State of the parcels (cultivated, fallow...)
Historical use of the parcels
Observations of the soil (texture, color, presence of stones, compaction, depth, slope, geology)
Access to the plots
Access to water for irrigation (groundwater, surface water)
Fences
Ecological infrastructure (hedges, trees, low walls)
Buildings
Type (agricultural only or housing)
Number, square meters
Access to networks (water, electricity...)
State of the building/Important work done or to be planned
Socioeconomic environment
Demographics
Existence of CSA or short supply retailers in the area
Other: community groups, elected official likely to encourage the establishment of a farm, etc.
Natural or environmenal designation
Natura 2000, Park, Other?
Water zoning
Water catchment, innudation risk, other…
Other observations and analysis
Establishing criteria to decide to whom to lease out public land to is a key step. Below is a table for inspiration. The clearer your goals, the easier it will be to adapt criteria and scoring.
Organic farming (2 as a baseline, additional points for specifically regenerative techniques - permaculture, etc.)
2-4 points
Grazing livestock/extensive grassland
1 point
Nature conservation measures/agro-environmental measures
1-3 points
Nb of people paid a living wage (one per person, up to 3 or 4)
1-3 points
Young farmers/new entrants
1 point
Solidarity farming
1 point
Regional marketing and value creation
1 point
Educational opportunities and inclusion
1 point
Maximum number of points achievable: 12-15 points
Deciding on what use to make of the land identified through your surveys can be easier if you have developed clear tools, approved by elected officials and different departments within your local authority.
Below you will find an example of logic diagram developed by the city of Charleroi in Belgium to guide their decision-making processes regarding the use of specific plots. Charleroi’s issue is around the rehabilitation of polluted land (as the city’s economy has long relied on coal and steel industry). Once the plots have been inventoried, the logic diagram serves as a prioritising tool to decide on which parcels to act first.
Plans and aerial photos
Having investigated the three roles of local authorities (acting as a landowner, facilitator, regulator), you are perhaps looking for some practical resources to get started with the land work. This section provides additional tools from a variety of sources, in particular:
Ideas and summaries to take your first steps
Surveying and decision-making tools
New material will be added in this section as the Access to Land network continues to engage with local authorities and to co-develop or adapt practical tools to make farmland work for the public good. Check in later for more resources!
