ABSTRACT
In this chapter, there are eight key concepts. Social function of property is a major concept in land politics as it is the idea behind some of the important land policies in some parts of the world. Land scarcity takes a central stage in terms of justifications made in framing land policies, but its meaning is fiercely contested by scholars from different traditions. Two key concepts linked to the land rush are spectacle and the contested notion of scope. Spectacle is fundamental to a land rush, and thus in any analysis of the origins, conditions and trajectories of land rushes. Scope is one of the issues that will never generate a consensus among scholars, policy experts and activists because understanding it depends mainly on one’s framework of analysis. In this chapter, we offer ways to problematize the notion of ‘scope’ of land rushes. Sharing and sparing are two concepts associated with land politics and nature conservation. Sandwich strategy is an analytical framework that is useful in understanding state-society relations in land politics. Scholar activism is a key element of Critical Agrarian Studies that seeks to interpret world in order to change it and is a fundamental starting point for this book.
