Online event

21st May; 3:00pm – 5:30pm (BST)

Registration form

Event organisers:

Martina Manara - Lecturer in Urban Planning, Bartlett School of Planning (UCL)

Monica Martin - PhD Candidate, Department of Geography and Planning | Urban Institute (UoS)

Information:

Rapid urbanisation is reshaping how land is accessed, governed, and contested across cities in the Global South. As formal planning struggles to keep pace, residents increasingly rely on hybrid regulatory systems that combine social norms, customary arrangements, and state law. Yet de facto land rights—how rights operate in practice—remain difficult to measure and translate into effective policy.

This webinar presents key insights from the METRE project, which conducts a systematic and critical review of leading land governance measurement frameworks used worldwide. The event brings together academic researchers and practitioners from international organisations, development agencies, and civil society to reflect on current approaches, recent innovations, and persisting challenges in measuring land rights.

Speakers include Dr. Martina Manara (University College London), Regina Orvañanos (ex-UN-Habitat – GLII), Malcolm Childress (Prindex / Land Alliance), Dr. Heather Huntington (DevLab@Penn / USAid), Christina Seybolt (DevLab@Penn / MCC), Ashleigh Flowers and Dr Caitlin Kieran (Landesa), and Prof. Cheryl Doss (Tufts University).

The discussion aims to foster mutual learning and dialogue between academics and practitioners, and to identify ways forward for more grounded and responsive land governance tools.

When registering here, you will be directed to a page with the online link to the webinar. —We will also circulate the link again with the registered participants closer to the date. 

Know more about the MetRe project here

PROGRAMME

PART 1

Welcome & Introduction 

MetRe Presentation: Dr. Martina Manara (UCL) 

Q&A 

 Break ~ 5 mins

PART 2

Presentations

(2) UN-Habitat (GLII) —Speaker: Regina Orvañanos (ex-coordinator GLTN, UN-habitat)

(3) Prindex —Speaker: Malcolm Childress (Land Alliance)

(4) USAid —Speaker: Dr. Heather Huntington (DevLab@Penn)

Q&A 

(5) MCC —Speaker: Christina Seybolt (DevLab@Penn)

(6) Landesa —Speaker: Dr. Caitlin Kieran (Landesa)

(7) Magnet —Speaker: Prof. Cheryl Doss (Tufts University)

Q&A 

Break ~ 5 mins

Conclusion

Plenary —Ways forward: facilitated by Monica Martin (TUoS)