Collective Action & Property Rights News

REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS: International Research Initiative on Adaptation to Climate Change (IDRC)

2009-11-10T10:47:00.001-05:00

The International Development Research Centre, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada are partners in this funding opportunity to support research and networking on the adaptation to climate change in Canada and in low and middle income countries.

Adaptation to climate change is a shared challenge that presents a unique opportunity for collaborative and comparative research to advance knowledge, shape policy and programs, mentor students and facilitate networks. Adaptation is the adjustment in natural or human systems in response to actual or expected climatic conditions or their effects, which moderates harm or exploits beneficial opportunities.

This Initiative will support the formation of multinational teams from Canada and from low and middle income countries, who will develop networks and programs of research. Successful applicants will initiate interdisciplinary and multisectoral collaborations with researchers, communities, practitioners and policy-makers in Canada and around the globe.

[more information]

Deadline: January 7, 2010

Tags: calls, funding

CALL FOR PROPOSALS: International Indigenous Women’s Forum

2009-11-10T10:40:00.001-05:00

The International Indigenous Women’s Forum (IIWF/FIMI) in its commitment to the empowerment of Indigenous women’s human rights and Indigenous peoples’ collective human rights around the world, has opened the first Indigenous Women’s Fund Call for Proposals. Proposals should be innovative, sustainable and will promote the Indigenous principle of ¨good living¨ on the foundation of Free, Prior and Informed Consent. The priority areas of the Indigenous Women’s Fund are:

Educational Empowerment
Economic Empowerment
Political Participation
Institutional Strengthening

For the first grant cycle, proposal budgets must not exceed $5,000 USD. Application requirements, information, and guidelines are available on the IIWF website.

Deadline: January 15, 2010.

Tags: funding, calls

PUBLICATION: Are Farmers’ Organizations a Good Tool to Improve Small-Scale Farmers’ Welfare?

2009-11-10T10:29:00.001-05:00

A new paper by M.E. Bachke uses evidence from Mozambique to analyze welfare impacts of membership in farmers’ organizations.

This paper examines the hypothesis that farmers’ organisations act as a tool to improve the living conditions of farmers in poor countries, both by improving their market situation and enhancing the dissemination of information. In this context, the paper estimates the causal effect on small-scale farmers’ income from being member in a farmers’ organisation in Mozambique.
The paper finds that membership might have a positive effect on income from animal production and that it is contributing to the overall effect on agricultural profits. Nevertheless, for the sales value of plant production the results are somewhat opposite those from animal production.
The paper concludes that:

farmers’ organisations are a good tool to enhance small-scale farmers’ welfare
for this reason, supporting farmers’ organisations is an efficient policy to reduce poverty among small-scale farmers, and these efforts should be strengthened

Yet, the paper underlines that there are questions that still need to be addressed to give policy makers more detailed policy advice on how to best support of farmers’ organisations, beyond the fact that it is working.

The paper is available here. (.pdf)

Tags: publications, Africa

EMPLOYMENT: IDRC Senior Program Officer – Agriculture and Food Security

2009-11-06T17:13:00.001-05:00

The Canadian International Food Security (CIFS) Research Fund is a collaborative program of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). It will finance applied research initiatives that seek to solve immediate and concrete food security challenges on the ground in the developing world. The CIFS Research Fund will focus on developing quality applied breakthrough solutions, and will seek to maximize the breadth and potential impact of the research by supporting a variety of research initiatives. A primary feature of the CIFS Research Fund will be partnerships between research organizations in Canada and in the developing world.

Based in Ottawa, Canada and reporting to the Program Leader, the Senior Program Officer’s role is to develop projects within the priority areas by reviewing, developing, monitoring, managing and evaluating research projects; and liaising and maintaining productive working relationships with partners, researchers and government institutions. [more information]

Deadline: November 15, 2009

Tags: employment

This Week’s Posts

2009-11-05T17:46:00.001-05:00

CALL FOR CONSULTANTS: ILC global study on “Framing the Debates on Land Governance

Deadline: November 13, 2009

SCHOLARSHIPS: 20 PhD Positions for Students from Developing Countries

Deadline: November 15, 2009

SCHOLARSHIP: PhD Opportunity on International Forest Policy, Göttingen University (Germany)

Deadline: 16 November 2009

CALL FOR PAPERS: Climate Vulnerability and Adaptation (ICARUS)
CALL: International Associations for the Study of the Commons USA Regional Meeting

Deadline for abstracts: April 01, 2010.

CALL: FEEM 20th Anniversary Prize in Environmental Economics

Deadline for nominations: March 1, 2010

FUNDING for TRAVEL: CIDA Conference Fund
PUBLICATION: Successful Organizational Learning in the Management of Agricultural Research and Innovation

Tags: CAPRi, contents

SCHOLARSHIP: PhD Opportunity on International Forest Policy, Göttingen University (Germany)

2009-11-05T17:31:00.001-05:00

As part of an international joint doctoral programme of seven European Universities, Göttingen University is offering the opportunity for a PhD in the field of international forest policy, which is well-funded by the EU. Highly qualified PhD-candidates are sought for the topic "The international forest regime as driver for sustainable national forest policies". Key questions include (i) the manifestation of international forest-related commitments in national policy, (ii) the role of national administrations in the implementation of such commitments and (iii) options for strengthening their future impact. [more information]

Deadline: 16 November 2009

Tags: scholarships

SCHOLARSHIPS: 20 PhD Positions for Students from Developing Countries

2009-11-04T17:32:00.001-05:00

The International Center for Development and Decent Work (ICDD) is offering 20 PhD Scholarship Positions for Students from DAC Countries beginning March 1st, 2010. ICDD is an interdisciplinary and international scientific network of excellence with the head office located at the University of Kassel, Germany and partner universities in Latin America, Africa and Asia. Under its Graduate School of Socio-Ecological Research for Development, ICDD invites applications for 20 PhD scholarship positions for students from developing countries at the following internationally renowned universities:

8 at the University of Kassel, Germany in the fields of political and agricultural science,
2 at the Tata Institute of Social Science (TISS), India in the field of sociology,
2 at the Universidade Estaduale de Campinas (Unicamp), Brazil in the field of economics,
2 at the University of Witwatersrand (Wits), South Africa in the field of sociology,
2 at the University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF), Pakistan in agricultural science,
2 at the Universidad Autónoma de Yucatan (UADY), Mexico in agricultural science, and
2 at Egerton University (EGU), Kenya in agricultural science.

[more information]

Deadline: November 15, 2009

Tags: scholarships, Africa, SouthAsia, LatinAmerica

CALL FOR CONSULTANTS: ILC global study on “Framing the Debates on Land Governance.”

2009-11-04T09:33:00.001-05:00

The Secretariat of the International Land Coalition (ILC) is commissioning a global study entitled “Framing the Debates on Land Governance” (see ToR below). A consultant team of four (4) members (to be hired individually) will be responsible for the study. The task allocation among the four consultants is as follows:

A Team Leader will be responsible for the Global Component of the Study and for the final synthesis report
Each of the three (3) other consultants will be responsible for one regional component: Africa, Asia or Latin America.

[more information]

Deadline: November 13, 2009

Tags: calls, employment, Africa, Asia, LatinAmerica

PUBLICATION: Successful Organizational Learning in the Management of Agricultural Research and Innovation

2009-11-03T17:05:00.001-05:00

A recent IFPRI publication uses the Mexican Produce Foundations (PF) as a case study to examine how an organization that manages public funds for research and extension can sustain organizational innovations over extended periods, and how it can learn and adapt to maximize its impact on the agricultural innovation system.

Previous studies found that human resources, organizational cultures and governance structures are three of the most important factors influencing institutional change and innovative capabilities. Despite their importance, these factors have been largely neglected in the literature on agricultural research and extension policies. This document analyzes what role these factors played in the Mexican experience.

The full report is available for download here.

Tags: publications, IFPRI, LatinAmerica

CALL: FEEM 20th Anniversary Prize in Environmental Economics

2009-11-03T16:51:00.001-05:00

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of its foundation, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei will bestow the FEEM 20th Anniversary Prize in Environmental Economics. The Prize, which carries a monetary reward of € 10,000 (ten thousand euro), will be conferred on a researcher or a group of researchers from anywhere in the world who have most significantly contributed to the development of the field of environmental and resource economics over the 20 year period 1989 to 2009. [more information]

Deadline for nominations: March 1, 2010

Tags: calls

CALL FOR PAPERS: Climate Vulnerability and Adaptation (ICARUS)

2009-11-03T09:54:00.001-05:00

The Initiative for Climate Adaptation Research and Understanding through the Social Sciences (ICARUS) invites your participation in two linked ICARUS workshops on vulnerability and adaptation. The first will be on ‘Climate Vulnerability and Adaptation: Theory and Cases’, to be held 11-13 February 2010 at the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign. The second will be on ‘Climate Vulnerability and Adaptation: Methods and Cases’, and will be held at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, from 1-3 April 2010. Those interested in participating in the workshop and contributing papers on theories, frameworks, and empirical applications of the concepts of vulnerability and adaptation should submit their title, 150 word abstract, and contact information at the ICARUS website. [more information]

Tags: calls, events

FUNDING for TRAVEL: CIDA Conference Fund

2009-11-03T09:39:00.001-05:00

The Conference Fund of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) supports participation by eligible delegates at conferences that address topics of particular interest to CIDA. Conferences must directly support one or more of CIDA's program priorities (governance, health, basic education, private-sector development, and environmental sustainability, with gender equality as a cross-cutting theme), and seek to influence sustainable development in developing countries and/or countries in transition. In response to Agency requirements, the Conference Fund may favour conferences that address areas where CIDA is strengthening its programming. Conferences may be held in Canada or abroad.

The Conference Fund will support up to 33% of total conference costs, to a maximum of $200,000, towards the participation of eligible delegates. Please note that complete applications must be received no later than16 weeks before the conference begins. [more information]

Tags: calls, funding, events

CALL: International Associations for the Study of the Commons USA Regional Meeting

2009-11-03T09:09:00.001-05:00

The regional meeting of the US branch of the IASC will have as its theme “capturing the complexity of the commons” reflecting the increasing efforts to understand commons over time at multiple levels of scale. The goal is to foster more discussion and collaboration especially among US researchers working on commons from an interdisciplinary point of view. The meeting is scheduled for September 30 to October 2, 2010 at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona, USA. Scholars from the natural and social sciences as well as humanities and arts are invited.

The conference is organized in 3 subthemes: (1) Complexity, (2) New Commons, and (3) Multiple Methods to Study the Commons. Proposals for panels, workshops, and individual papers relating to the three subthemes of the conference are welcome. [more information]

Deadline for abstracts: April 01, 2010.

Tags: calls, events

This Week’s Posts

2009-10-23T04:38:00.001-04:00

EMPLOYMENT: Amazon Watch Program Director
- Deadline: open until filled
EMPLOYMENT: Senior Land Tenure and Gender Expert (RDI)
- Deadline: open until filled
EMPLOYMENT: Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Nairobi
- Deadline: October 30, 2009
EMPLOYMENT: IFAD Evaluation Officer
- Deadline: November 9, 2009
FELLOWSHIP: REDD Research Fellow with CIFOR
- Deadline: October 31, 2009
FELLOWSHIPS: 2 Post-Doc Opportunities at IFPRI
- Deadline: 1 position open until filled, 1 position deadline November 20, 2009
DOCTORAL TRAINEESHIP: Applied Biodiversity Science, Texas A&M University
- Deadline: January 20, 2010
CALL FOR PROPOSALS: Swiss National Science Foundation/Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
- Deadline: January 18, 2010
CALL FOR PAPERS: Fourth World Congress of Environmental and Resource Economists
- Deadline: January 31, 2010
BRIEF: Just Forest Governance: how small learning groups can have big impact

Tags: CAPRi, contents

CALL FOR PAPERS: Fourth World Congress of Environmental and Resource Economists

2009-10-23T04:10:00.001-04:00

The Fourth World Congress of Environmental and Resource Economists (WCERE) will be held in Montreal, June 28 to July 2, 2010, on the campus of the Université du Québec à Montréal. The congress is a joint initiative of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (AERE) and the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (EAERE). You are invited to submit theoretical and applied papers in all areas of environmental and natural resource economics for presentation at the world congress. Papers must be submitted through the conference website. [more information]

Deadline: January 31, 2010

Tags: calls

EMPLOYMENT: IFAD Evaluation Officer

2009-10-23T03:53:00.001-04:00

IFAD seeks a Rome-based evaluation officer to contribute to enhancing IFAD’s overall development effectiveness by conducting rigorous and evidence-based high quality evaluations in line with international good practice. IFAD’s Office of Evaluation (OE) is independent from Management and reports directly to the Fund’s Executive Board. OE’s key purpose is to conduct evaluations of the Fund’s projects, programmes and strategies in line with internationally recognized evaluation principles. Foremost among these are independence, accountability, learning and partnership building. [more information]

Deadline: November 9, 2009

Tags: employment

BRIEF: Just Forest Governance: how small learning groups can have big impact

2009-10-23T03:03:00.001-04:00

A recent brief by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) looks at how to use “learning groups” for effective forest management.

Forests are power bases, but often for the wrong people. As attention turns from making an international deal on REDD to making it work on the ground, the hunt will be on for practical ways of shifting power over forests towards those who enable and pursue sustainable forest-linked livelihoods. The Forest Governance Learning Group – an alliance active in Cameroon, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Uganda and Vietnam – has developed practical tactics for securing safe space, provoking dialogue, building constituencies, wielding evidence and interacting politically. It has begun to have significant impacts. To deepen and widen those impacts, FGLG seeks allies.

[read the whole brief]

Tags: briefs, publications

EMPLOYMENT: Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Nairobi

2009-10-22T21:49:00.001-04:00

AGRA is currently seeking applications for two program officer positions to be based in its Nairobi, Kenya office.

Program Officer, Market Access Program, for the Southern Africa region. The Program Officer will manage a significant budget to develop and implement a holistic and impact-driven strategy to link African smallholder farmers to markets and create opportunities for economic transactions that generate income.
Program Officer - Gender. The position will report to the President of AGRA and include a range of responsibilities relating to identifying gender knowledge needs and gaps in AGRA’s programs and developing and executing an overall strategic action plan for gender mainstreaming in consultation with AGRA stakeholders.

[more information on both positions]

Deadline (both positions): October 30, 2009

Tags: employment, Africa

CALL FOR PROPOSALS: Swiss National Science Foundation/Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation

2009-10-22T21:25:00.001-04:00

The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF), together with the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) of the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, are launching a call for the submission of projects for research partnerships with developing countries, which are conceived and implemented on a partnership basis between Swiss researchers and researchers from developing countries and which address development-specific problems. With this program, SNSF and SDC would like to support high quality research projects, concerning problems relevant to disadvantaged countries, encourage relations between researchers in Switzerland and the South and which contribute to strengthening the scientific potential of these countries. Applications are eligible from public research institutions in Switzerland and developing countries. Research partnerships are open to all scientific disciplines, including sociology, economics, law, political sciences, provided that projects address specific problems concerning developing countries. [more information]

Deadline: January 18, 2010

Tags: calls

EMPLOYMENT: Senior Land Tenure and Gender Expert (RDI)

2009-10-22T21:18:00.001-04:00

The Rural Development Institute (RDI) seeks a passionate, innovative individual committed to RDI’s mission of securing land rights for the world’s poorest in an effort to alleviate global poverty. The Senior Land Tenure and Gender Expert provides policy analysis, research and implementation expertise on current land tenure conditions and the prospects of reform in developing countries. This role will be fundamental in promoting RDI’s integration of gender considerations in all programs and projects, and will approach land tenure issues with specific emphasis on the impact on women and their families.Qualified candidates will bring seasoned experience in international development issues, specifically in land tenure and gender topics. They must be dedicated to improving women’s land rights while remaining pragmatic and avoiding dogmatic ideology. [more information]

Deadline: open

Tags: employment

FELLOWSHIPS: 2 Post-Doc Opportunities at IFPRI

2009-10-21T19:22:00.001-04:00

The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) seeks 2 Postdoctoral Fellows/Research Fellows to be based at IFPRI headquarters in Washington, DC. One fellow, based in IFPRI’s Development Strategy and Governance Division (DSGD) will conduct research on household food security, nutrition and poverty in support of regional and country development strategies. The fellow will develop a cross-divisional research program to search for policy options and to design strategies to improve household welfare with an emphasis on food and nutrition security in developing countries. More specifically, the fellow will develop and coordinate the following research and outreach activities to:

Support country strategy support programs in designing household surveys in collaboration with national statistical agencies
Conduct research to analyze policy options to improve household welfare and integrate research to support national strategy development on food and nutrition security, and
Strengthen capacity of national researchers in conducting research.

Deadline: position is open until filled. [more information]

Another fellow, based in IFPRI’s Markets, Trade and Institutions Division (MTID) will conduct research on issues related to impact evaluation of institutions and infrastructure and on applied microeconomics. His/her essential duties will be to:

Work on impact evaluation, mainly empirical micro econometric modeling, and household and intra household analysis.
Help to research and test ways in which applied mechanism design can help to promote factor markets development in developing countries, through the use of experimental economics methods

Deadline: November 20, 2009. [more information]

Tags: fellowships, IFPRI, CGIAR

FELLOWSHIP: REDD Research Fellow with CIFOR

2009-10-21T07:59:00.001-04:00

CIFOR is looking for a Research Fellow to work on national policy processes and strategies related to reducing emissions (component 1) of the Global Comparative Study on REDD (GCS-REDD). GCS-REDD is a four-year global comparative research project on first-generation REDD demonstration and readiness activities in selected countries across Asia, Africa and Latin America. The goal is to provide REDD policy makers and practitioner communities with the information, analysis and tools they need to ensure effective and cost-efficient reduction of carbon emissions with equitable impacts and co-benefits – the ‘3E’ criteria. The project consists of four components: national initiatives around policy processes and strategies, demonstration activities, monitoring and reference levels, and knowledge sharing. The research fellow will be attached to the Forests and Governance Programme, responsible to the programme director and under the immediate supervision of a CIFOR senior scientist. [more information]

Deadline: October 31, 2009

Tags: CGIAR, fellowships

Doctoral Traineeship: Applied Biodiversity Science, Texas A&M University

2009-10-20T20:04:00.001-04:00

Doctoral Traineeships are available through the Applied Biodiversity Science (ABS) NSF-IGERT Program at Texas A&M University. The vision of the ABS Program is to achieve integration between research in the natural and social sciences and on-the-ground conservation practices. Research teams of faculty mentors and students, in collaboration with partners from sites in Latin American and the US-Mexico border region, develop complementary dissertations related to two research themes: (A) Communities and Governance; and (B) Ecological Functions and Biodiversity. It is the primary goal of the ABS NSF-IGERT to train scholars prepared to understand ecological functions ecosystems and the activities and needs of surrounding communities in wider social, economic, and political contexts. The ABS NSF-IGERT Traineeships are for two years and include an annual stipend of $30,000 plus $10,500 toward cost of education (tuition, fees, health insurance, and other benefits), as well as funding for field research and participation in a field course in the Peruvian Amazon. [more information]

Deadline: January 20, 2010

Tags: latinAmerica

EMPLOYMENT: Amazon Watch Program Director

2009-10-20T19:48:00.001-04:00

Founded in 1996, Amazon Watch is a dynamic nonprofit organization that protects the rainforest and advances the rights of indigenous peoples in the Amazon Basin. In the coming years, the organization will expand public awareness and support of the intrinsic value of indigenous peoples stewardship and the significance of the Amazon rainforest, especially as it relates to climate change. The Program Director, based in San Francisco or Washington DC, is responsible for managing and directing program staff to deliver results in advocacy campaigns for human rights, corporate accountability and the preservation of the Amazon's ecological systems. The Program Director is also responsible for helping program teams deliver effective support to indigenous and local communities in the regions of the Amazon where we work. [more information]

Deadline: open until filled

Tags: employment, LatinAmerica

This Week’s Posts

2009-10-15T22:31:00.001-04:00

EMPLOYMENT: Assistant Professor Conjunctive Water Management & Conflicts, South Asia (Wageningen University)
- Deadline: October 23, 2009
EMPLOYMENT: Director of PLAAS / Chair of Development Management
- Deadline: October 30, 2009
EVENT: International Workshop on Fairness and the Commons
- October 19-20, 2009
EVENT: Asian Pacific NGO Forum on Beijing + 15
- October 22-24, 2009
PUBLICATION: IFPRI 2009 Global Hunger Index
PUBLICATION: Discourses and Expertise in Environmental and Forest Governance
The Significance of Elinor Ostrom’s Nobel
BLOG ACTION DAY: Property Rights in Climate Change Mitigation

Tags: CAPRi, contents