ABSTRACT
International standards converge on the importance of livelihoods as central to ensuring sustainable wellbeing for people displaced by development. It was recognised early on that, typically, property and expropriation law, which so often set the terms for development displacement, did not address these dimensions. Can a negotiated settlement lead to a better, sustainable wellbeing and livelihoods for affected landholders than expropriation? To address these questions this chapter first draws upon theoretical perspectives that articulate a role for negotiations in support of livelihoods and wellbeing. The chapter then reviews some of the ways in which development displaces people and the multiplicity of opportunities that arise for negotiation in country frameworks. It identifies a surprising number of potential negotiation points in law and practice, mapping a wider range of negotiation possibilities than is generally realised whether prior to, instead of, or as part of compulsory acquisition. Few of these negotiation points open up a dialogue on livelihoods and wellbeing specifically, however, nor do they create scope for addressing asymmetries in information, access and power between the negotiating parties. Several promising exceptions are identified in recently enhanced country legal and regulatory frameworks that open up possible new directions in negotiation for people displaced by development.
