Process, Property and Patrons: Land reform in upland Thai catchments

Where common pool resources are important elements of local livelihoods, getting the processes right for management is essential for sustainable development. In these situations, and where a range of organisations and individuals have claims to these resources, property entitlements need to be developed through a process which is socially and ecologically appropriate.~This paper presents a case study from the upland areas of Thailand, where the government is currently promoting land reform. The author used soft systems methodology, a participatory approach to inquiry, to identify and develop partnerships for specifying and building property entitlements. A number of collaborative actions have developed as a result, and include local collective management of a water supply; partnerships relating to elements of conservation and production within the local agroecosystems; and socially legitimate patronage to support formal protocols of land reform.