Find the most relevant guidance based on your area of intervention

Find the most relevant guidance based on your area of focus

Resources for Civil society

Primer on International Investment Treaties and Investor-State Dispute Settlement

Tools and Guides
 

This primer gives an accessible overview of key aspects surrounding International Investment Treaties and Investor-State Dispute Settlement, and the implications for promoting a rights-based approach to governance.

Promoting participatory law-making for recognition of legitimate tenure rights

Tools and Guides
 

"Participatory law-making” is the process by which citizens actively contribute to policy advocacy and law-drafting. Citizen participation in law-making can improve the quality and legitimacy of policies and laws by ensuring that they reflect and protect the authentic interests of the national citizenry. In the field of land rights, participatory law-making can help ensure the recognition and protection of legitimate tenure rights. The Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land Fisheries and Forests in the Context of National Food Security (VGGT) call on states to develop relevant policies, laws and procedures through participatory processes that include men, women, Indigenous Peoples and members of marginalized groups.

Protecting legitimate tenure rights: From concepts to practice

Tools and Guides
 

 

Putting the Voluntary Guidelines into Practice: A Learning Guide for Civil Society Organizations

Tools and Guides
 

This learning guide provides civil society organizations (CSOs) with a methodology and a set of materials to undertake training on the VGGT with civil society actors from the grassroots to the national level. Trainees will learn how to apply the VGGT to actual tenure governance challenges.

Resource Securing community land and resource rights in Africa: A guide to legal reform and best practices

Tools and Guides
 

This guide explains key aspects of law and land rights that are important for securing community ownership and control of land and resources – also referred to as secure land and resource tenure. It explains how to identify and create opportunities for law reform and offers examples of reforms that have taken place in several African countries.

Respecting free, prior and informed consent

Subtitle
Practical guidance for governments, companies, NGOs, indigenous peoples and local communities in relation to land acquisition
Tools and Guides
 

This technical guide sets out practical actions for government agencies, civil society organizations, land users and private investors globally to respect and comply with their responsibilities in relation to FPIC. It

• translates principles of responsible land governance and tenure (see the VGGT) into practical mechanisms, processes and actions,

• gives examples of good practice – what has worked, where, why and how, and

• provides useful tools for activities such as the design of policy and reform processes, for the design of investment projects and for guiding interventions.

Respecting the human rights of communities: a legal risk primer for commercial wind and solar project deployment

Tools and Guides
 

This legal risk primer provides the general counsels and corporate legal teams of commercial wind and solar companies with an overview of the key legal risks that may arise from the above community-related human rights impacts. It is a companion to CCSI's business guide on the same topic.

Responsible governance of tenure and the law - A guide for lawyers and other legal service providers

Tools and Guides
 

This guide is aimed at legal professionals working with governments, civil society, the private sector or development agencies as well as law societies, notaries, judges and all those who are interested in understanding the role of law in giving effect to the provisions of the Guidelines (VGGT). The VGGT provide important elements for shaping a well-functioning legal framework to facilitate their effective implementation at the national level. The technical guide reviews the legal implications of the VGGT and provides guidance on assessing national legislation, legal reform and improved implementation as well as the settlement of disputes

Social Impact Assessment: Guidance for assessing and managing the social impacts of projects

Tools and Guides
 

This Guidance Note provides advice about what is expected in good practice social impact assessment (SIA) and social impact management processes, especially in relation to project development. It is intended for private sector actors, government agencies, development banks and agencies, civil society organisations, and service providers. It provides guidance to help reduce companies' risk exposure and assist them in being compliant with international standards and/or good practice as they evolve over time by addressing significant human rights issues associated with a project.

Strengthening civic spaces in spatial planning processes

Tools and Guides
 

This technical guide provides strategies on how to strengthen, protect and promote legitimate tenure rights in spatial planning processes at the local, regional and national levels. It addresses state authorities involved in spatial planning processes, national governments and local authorities, and those operating on behalf of the state or within customary governance systems.