This paper summarises lessons learnt from the Legal Tools for Citizen Empowerment project, which explores how to strengthen local rights and voices in the governance of land and investment. This project adds value to the many grassroots efforts underway in Africa and Asia through contributing:

1) high-impact research that documents changing pressures on land and sheds light on applicable national, international and transnational legal frameworks ;

2) learning materials and practical tools to strengthen local-to-national capacity to exercise rights and influence laws ;

3) platforms to share lessons, including workshops, webinars, publications and communication.

The project’s contributions have ranged from widely cited research on ‘land grabbing’ and grassroots-level legal literacy trainings in Mali’s mining areas to capacity support for governments in West Africa and Southeast Asia.

Read the publication here.