Soil Atlas 2024
Equitable access to land and fertile soil is fundamental to realising human rights, such as the right to food. Although numerous United Nations declarations on land rights have been ratified by national governments, deadly land conflicts persist throughout the world.
Land distribution is highly unequal. Just one percent of farming enterprises control more than 70 percent of the world’s agricultural land. Moreover, land ownership is often poorly recorded, masking the true extent of this growing inequality. In many countries, people who suffer land rights violations are often marginalised and subjected to other forms of discrimination. For example, in Kenya, widows are often driven from their land by male relatives. In the Brazilian Amazon, deforestation and illegal gold mining continue to destroy and endanger the traditional lands of Indigenous communities. And in Cambodia, the expansion of large-scale agricultural operations violates the rights of smallholder farmers. Conflicts over land often become violent. Between 2012 and 2023, more than 2,100 people were murdered worldwide for defending land and the environment.
Many international human rights instruments recognise the right to land for certain population groups whose rights are particularly under threat. Among these are the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, and the Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas. Another key human rights instrument is the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which includes the right to adequate food. Adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1966 and coming into force in 1976, this Covenant has been ratified by 176 states. According to the Covenant, states have a duty to respect the legitimate land rights of citizens, actively protect these rights, and ensure they are not violated by third parties. This obligation is particularly indispensable for women’s land rights, which are frequently neglected and violated.
The Soil Atlas 2024 presents data and facts about the importance and condition of land, soils and arable land. In numerous graphics and text contributions, it provides a current insight into the condition of and threats to the soils on which we live.
Legitimate land rights go beyond formal rights recognised by the state and include rights acknowledged under informal land tenure systems. These systems can encompass customary and communal land rights, and their scope extends beyond the Western concept of individual ownership. Legitimate land rights also include those derived from tradition, long-standing practices, and extended periods of occupancy. In practical terms, this means that Indigenous groups have a right to their traditional areas of settlement and land use. However, progress in recognising and protecting these rights is often slow and inconsistent. A step forward in one region may be often matched by setbacks or stagnation in another. For example, in a landmark case in September 2023, Brazil’s Supreme Court upheld Indigenous Peoples’ rights to their traditional lands, ruling against the prior government’s attempt to delegitimatise their land rights. Conversely, in Bangladesh, Indigenous land rights have been stalled for decades.
The duties of states to protect land rights do not end at national borders. For the European Union (EU), this means ensuring that EU-based firms or organizations investing in land in other countries adhere to these obligations. This responsibility applies regardless of whether these investments concern the protection of biodiversity, agricultural production, or other land uses.
In 2012, the Voluntary Guidelines on the Responsible Governance of Tenure of Land, Fisheries and Forests (VGGT) were endorsed by 124 member states. By 2015, over 140 countries had endorsed them. The VGGT set a global precedent for land tenure and are heralded as an influential framework for promoting equitable land access and securing land rights. Although voluntary, the guidelines are grounded in legally binding human rights instruments and reinforce the link between land tenure security, human rights, and environmental protection.
Access to land is essential for rights, such as the right to food, housing, and income. Secure land tenure incentivises people to invest in sustainable land management, which is crucial for a clean, healthy, and sustainable environment. Healthy soils improve agricultural productivity and food security. Together, tenure security and human rights frameworks underscore states’ obligations to their citizens’ and show how fulfilling these rights can benefit the environment.
Despite the benefits of equitable land distribution, sustainable land use, and protective laws, enforcement is often weak. This is particularly evident in issues of inheritance or co-determination over land ownership, where land reform measures often encounter significant resistance. For example, efforts to guarantee land ownership rights to women are often opposed by patriarchal norms embedded in legal structures or cultural practices, as well as by large landholders wielding considerable political influence. Civil society organisations play a critical role in advocating for necessary reforms and are frequently at the forefront of advancing the application of internationally recognised human rights standards. Their efforts deserve the full support of organisations, institutions, and political bodies, such as the EU, to ensure these rights are more effectively – and equally – upheld and enforced.
