May 16 is World Community Land Trust Day
World Community Land Trust Day is a global event dedicated to raising awareness about community land trusts (CLTs). The intention is to build interest in CLTs while celebrating the contributions they make to communities around the world including in affordable housing, community wellbeing, sustainability, and social change.
What is a Community Land Trust?
Community Land Trusts are non-profit organizations that help create and cultivate strong, healthy communities. They are stewards of valuable community assets such as housing and community-owned farm land with the goal of supporting the immediate and long-term needs of the community.
A key principle of the global CLT movement is that land is a sacred trust that, as much as possible, should be held in stewardship for communities rather than being used for speculative investment, and that collective ownership of land is one of the foundations of a strong and stable community.
A Brief History of the Movement
The formal Community Land Trust movement evolved out of social justice activism in the US Civil Rights movement; the first CLT—called New Communities—was founded in rural Georgia in 1969. While the movement is still strongly based in rural areas, more than 600 CLTs exist today in both urban and rural environments.
As much as New Communities was the first—and still active—organization to identify as a CLT, the movement itself is deeply embedded in longstanding land stewardship practices in the Global South. Active land reform movements and communal land ownership practices have been central for centuries in places like India, Mexico, and Tanzania. Today, CLTs are working in places as diverse as Vancouver and Puerto Rico, Belgium and Australia, Denman Island and right here on Gabriola Island.
Gabriola Island Land Stewards Society
The Gabriola Island Land Stewards Society (GILSS) is a member of the Canadian Network of Community Land Trusts. Our official mandate is “to benefit Gabriolans and Snuneymuxw First Nation members and relieve poverty by acquiring and stewarding land on Gabriola Island under a community ownership model that promotes long-term community benefits.”
In many small communities in B.C., including Gabriola, property prices have increased significantly. The result is that people have been locked out of opportunities for housing, agriculture, retail rental, and small-scale economic development. As individual land ownership becomes increasingly unaffordable and out of reach, community ownership of land becomes even more important. GILSS operates on the principle that forward-thinking community self-sufficiency is possible through a model that supports diversity, equity, and economic justice. It’s essential that we take advantage of opportunities today that may not exist in the future. GILSS’ goal is to ensure that community-owned land will be available and affordable to Gabriola-based non-profits and co-operatives, individual residents, and the Snuneymuxw First Nation with a particular focus on addressing economic inequality. In this model, GILSS will own land and buildings, and ensure the properties are used by the community in ways that benefit the community.
GILSS’ relationship with the Snuneymuxw First Nation is critical. Given that we are engaging in land-based practices on their unceded lands, we are committed to developing a strong, mutually beneficial relationship that supports Snuneymuxw and other Indigenous peoples, communities, and organizations through direct engagement and consultation, and ideally through partnerships and other kinds of collaboration. This commitment is built into the bylaws and governance structure of the organization.
Celebrating World Community Land Trust Day
GILSS is working toward the purchase of properties that will satisfy one or all of our mandate goals. To achieve these goals, community support and involvement is essential.
Why not celebrate Community Land Trust Day by committing to getting involved in GILSS’ work?
Here’s how:
Become a member.
It’s only $10, and it means you will be on top of new announcements and projects.
Become a donor.
One of our biggest hurdles is building a stable source of revenue to support our goals. GILSS is a registered charity, able to receive donations of cash or property. You can make a one-time donation, a donation of land, securities, cash or bequests, or become a monthly donor. Donation details are available at our website. Board members are available to discuss options or to answer questions.
Tell a friend.
We want everyone on Gabriola to be aware of the work we are doing. Know some community-minded person interested in donating land or other assets? Have a lead on a great property that might fulfil all of GILSS’s dreams for community-owned property? Please get in touch.