'The ever increasing competition for land, and the environmental pressures being placed on this most fundamental resource, call for a new approach to its governance. Based on case studies from around the world this book provides a comprehensive and unique insight into the development of sustainable land use policies in developing countries and heralds the need to integrate environmental, social and economic considerations for effective and sustainable governance.' - Lisa Emberson, University of York, UK 'Despite rapidly growing natural resource scarcity, land use policy remains an under-studied subject. This book provides a valuable resource on both methodologies and case studies on land use policy assessment for developing countries, where change is most rapid.' - Claudia Ringler, IFPRI, Washington, DC, US The urgent need to enhance sustainable development in developing countries has never been greater: poverty levels are growing, land conversions are uncontrolled, and there is rapid loss of biodiversity through land use change. This timely book highlights the need for integrated assessment tools for developing countries, considering the long-term impacts of decisions taken today. The success of land use policies has in the past often been hampered by the fact that we simply do not know enough about their impact on sustainable development across developing countries. This book contributes to bridging this knowledge gap while facilitating the successful design and implementation of land use policies. The challenge of land use changes in response to changes in the policy environment - macro policy, agricultural and forest policy, environmental policy - is explored with a focus on the South. Detailed case studies encompassing seven countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America are presented via a common framework of analysis. In each case, sustainable development concerns are identified from environmental, economic and social perspectives. The interrelated causes of these problems are analyzed by identifying key drivers and relevant land use policies, and the potential impact of prioritized land use policies are then discussed. This important book will prove invaluable to academics, researchers, postgraduate students and policy makers concerned with land-use planning, sustainable development and environmental studies. Contributors: A.M. Arbi, I. Bezlepkina, M. Bonin, F. Brouwer, M. Bursztyn, L. Chen, Y. Cisse, E. Coudel, S.A. Dalimunthe, N. Debortoli, N.I.S. Dewi, S. Feng, L.N. Gachimbi, P. Gicheru, H. Jeder, S. Kashyap, H. Konig, D. Lindoso, X. Ma, D. McNeill, S.N. Makokha, I. Nesheim, N. Novira, N. Ounalli, S. Patil, S. Purushothaman, F. Qu, T.S. Rahayu, P. Reidsma, S. Rodrigues-Filho, J. Schuler, M. Sghaier, X. Shi, J.-P. Tonneau, R. Verburg, J. Von Braun, J.W. Wamuongo, A.P. Wicaksono