Making the ‘rules of the game’: constituting territory and authority in Nicaragua's indigenous communities

Indigenous communities, particularly in Latin America, are increasingly winning recognition of rights to lands and forests that they have managed or used historically under customary institutions. If property refers to ‘the rules of the game’, this article uses the constitution of indigenous communa...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor principal: Larson, A.M.
Formato: Journal Article
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: 2010
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/20529
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author Larson, A.M.
author_browse Larson, A.M.
author_facet Larson, A.M.
author_sort Larson, A.M.
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Indigenous communities, particularly in Latin America, are increasingly winning recognition of rights to lands and forests that they have managed or used historically under customary institutions. If property refers to ‘the rules of the game’, this article uses the constitution of indigenous communal territories in Nicaragua to examine the process of ‘making the rules’. Specifically, the recognition of rights by central governments leads to political contestations over both territory and authority as communities and indigenous political leaders vie for different configurations of both lands and new territorial authorities. That is, the process of constituting large collective territories is intimately related to the constitution of authority, as it involves not only the negotiation of physical boundaries but also the recognition of an existing authority structure – or the creation of a new entity – to represent the beneficiaries. In Nicaragua's North Atlantic Autonomous Region, then, the decision over ‘which configuration of territory’ is ultimately a political negotiation over which ‘authority’ will have the right to control and enforce access to which rights and benefits from land and natural resources.
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spelling CGSpace205292025-01-24T14:12:56Z Making the ‘rules of the game’: constituting territory and authority in Nicaragua's indigenous communities Larson, A.M. tenure systems community forestry political systems property rights Indigenous communities, particularly in Latin America, are increasingly winning recognition of rights to lands and forests that they have managed or used historically under customary institutions. If property refers to ‘the rules of the game’, this article uses the constitution of indigenous communal territories in Nicaragua to examine the process of ‘making the rules’. Specifically, the recognition of rights by central governments leads to political contestations over both territory and authority as communities and indigenous political leaders vie for different configurations of both lands and new territorial authorities. That is, the process of constituting large collective territories is intimately related to the constitution of authority, as it involves not only the negotiation of physical boundaries but also the recognition of an existing authority structure – or the creation of a new entity – to represent the beneficiaries. In Nicaragua's North Atlantic Autonomous Region, then, the decision over ‘which configuration of territory’ is ultimately a political negotiation over which ‘authority’ will have the right to control and enforce access to which rights and benefits from land and natural resources. 2010 2012-06-04T09:13:27Z 2012-06-04T09:13:27Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/20529 en Larson, A.M. 2010. Making the ‘rules of the game’: constituting territory and authority in Nicaragua's indigenous communities . Land Use Policy 27 (4) :1143-1152. ISSN: 0264-8377.
spellingShingle tenure systems
community forestry
political systems
property rights
Larson, A.M.
Making the ‘rules of the game’: constituting territory and authority in Nicaragua's indigenous communities
title Making the ‘rules of the game’: constituting territory and authority in Nicaragua's indigenous communities
title_full Making the ‘rules of the game’: constituting territory and authority in Nicaragua's indigenous communities
title_fullStr Making the ‘rules of the game’: constituting territory and authority in Nicaragua's indigenous communities
title_full_unstemmed Making the ‘rules of the game’: constituting territory and authority in Nicaragua's indigenous communities
title_short Making the ‘rules of the game’: constituting territory and authority in Nicaragua's indigenous communities
title_sort making the rules of the game constituting territory and authority in nicaragua s indigenous communities
topic tenure systems
community forestry
political systems
property rights
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/20529
work_keys_str_mv AT larsonam makingtherulesofthegameconstitutingterritoryandauthorityinnicaraguasindigenouscommunities