In recent decades, mechanisms for observation and information production have proliferated in an attempt to meet the growing needs of stakeholders to access dynamic data for the purposes of informed decision-making. In the land sector, a growing number of land observatories are producing data and ensuring its transparency. We hypothesize that these structures are being developed in response to the need for information and knowledge, a need that is being driven by the scale and diversity of land issues. Based on the results of a study conducted on land observatories in Africa, this paper presents existing and past land observatories on the continent and proposes to assess their diversity through an analysis of core dimensions identified in the literature. The analytical framework was implemented through i) an analysis of existing literature on land observatories, ii) detailed assessments of land observatories based on semi-open interviews conducted via video conferencing, iii) fieldwork and visits to several observatories, and iv) participant observation through direct engagement and work at land observatories. We emphasize that the analytical framework presented here can be used as a tool by land observatories to undertake ex-post self-evaluations that take the observatory’s trajectory into account, or in the case of proposed new land observatories, to undertake ex-ante analyses and design the pathway towards the intended observatory.

ResumoEste artigo investiga a estrangeirização e internacionalização de terras no Brasil, como instrumento de apropriação por pessoas (físicas e jurídicas) e grupos estrangeiros e nacionais como parte da desnacionalização dos interesses nacionais via investimentos e arranjos regulatórios. O pano de fundo leva em conta que as históricas lutas por reforma agrária, segurança alimentar e soberania continuam ativas e representam espaços de resistência à estrangeirização de glebas e da natureza. O objetivo é, através de pesquisa bibliográfica, dados secundários, interpretação sociológica do direito e dados de campo, discutir o ambiente institucional-político e as consequências socioeconômicas, enfatizando aspectos históricos e jurídicos que permitem analisar criticamente "para quem" esse fenômeno representa uma "janela de oportunidades".Palavras chave: Internacionalização de terras. Estrangeirização de terras. Agronegócio. Territorialização. Acesso à terra. AbstractThis article investigates the process of land grabbing by foreign individuals and groups in Brazil as a land access tool and the consequent impact of this phenomenon on dynamics in the Brazilian countryside. As background, it is important to account for long-standing struggles for land reform, food security and sovereignty that remain active and represent areas of resistance to these processes. Through a literature review, sociological interpretation of the law, and an analysis of field data, this paper discusses the institutional environment in which foreignization and internationalization unfold. By emphasizing historical and legal aspects of this process, we explore the critical question central to our analysis: "for whom" does this phenomenon represents a "window of opportunity?"

The authors wish to make the following corrections to this paper [...]

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