Green grabbing: Lack of land rights promotes unjust climate action

Kenya recently suspended the Northern Kenya Rangelands Carbon Project, once the world’s largest soil carbon removal effort, after a court ruled that its conservancies were established without sufficient public participation, violating the constitutional land rights of indigenous pastoralists. The court found that the project interfered with traditional grazing practices, a key economic activity for local communities. The article describes a growing pattern across Africa where carbon offset projects infringe upon community rights by not delivering Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC). The article explores the failure of the Global North to reduce emissions and instead creating an over-reliance on land as a carbon sink which threatens the land rights of communities in the Global South.