Course Outline
 
I.     Title:  The 161^st Regular Session on Land Policy for Rural Development
II.   Organizer:  International Center for Land Policy Studies and Training(ICLPST)
III.  Venue: No. 574, Zhongshan Rd., Taoyuan Dist., Taoyuan City 33058, Taiwan (R.O.C.)
IV.  Duration:  29 days, scheduled from May 16 to June 13, 2025 (excluding arrival and departure)
V.    Target Audience:  28 international and Taiwanese participants of medium and high-level government officials or experts in the fields of land policy for sustainable rural development.
 
VI.  Objectives:

1. Providing the participants with understanding of the most recent lessons learned in achieving goals for effective rural land administration where policy is dominated by rapid urban growth, world trade agreements and competition over natural resources.
2. Introducing the participants to the techniques of information management and institutional development that integrate rural populations into the overall national economic, political and social development.
3. Giving the participants a deeper knowledge of institutional and administrative means for effective management of natural resource endowments, and land/resource tenure systems as a functional framework for meeting national development goals.
4. Arming the participants with skills and perspectives in sustainable development, land administration, land use and planning, local governance, rural economy.
5. Exploring with participants models, policy development, implementation, and Taiwan experience regarding:
   1. Rural Economy and Development
   2. Situating the Local in Land Relations
   3. Managing Local Governance for Sustainable Development
   4. Net Zero and Sustainable Development

 
VII. Course Components

1. General Structure:
   1. Rural Economy and Development (Week 1): Types of Land Ownership and Development: a Broad Historical Analysis; Notes on the Historical Development to the Present Capitalism; Agriculture Roles and Characteristics in the Present Economic Situation; Institutional Economics and Economic Consequences of Land Administration; Land Prices Formation and its Relations with Economics; An Introduction to Land Economics; Impact of Climate Change Risk; Rethinking Natural Resources rights and tenure.
   2. Situating the Local in Land Relations (Week 2): Re-Thinking Commons Governance; Rationalities of Land Administration and its Implicatios for Local Land Users; Divergent Interests in Land: Country Examples; Bridging Interests & Scales in Land Administration: Theory; Bridging Interests & Scales in Land Administration: Practicum; Sustainable Rural Land Development and the Demand for Natural Resources; Strengthening Indigenous Knowledge to Achieve the SDGs; Rural Planning in Taiwan.
   3. Managing Local Governance for Sustainable Development (Week 3): Governance: Why it Matters for Land Administrators; Decentralization and Rural Governance Experience: A Comparative Analysis; Building Local Level Capacity: Issues for Land Administrators; The Changing Roles for NGO Activity; Case Study Analysis of Local Governance Capacity; Remote Sensing-based Approaches for Sustainable Land Management; Making Use of Geographic Information-from Data over Analyses to Decisions; Land Information System in Taiwan;
   4. Field trips to related government agencies and organizations.

 

2. Instructors:  Instructors include one course coordinator, three international lecturers and eight local lecturers.

 

3. Presentation
   1. In addition to class lecturing and field trips, the program at the ICLPST encourages interaction among participants.  Individuals are expected to not only learn the theory from the lectures by the instructors, but also learn through debate about real problems from case presentation and active discussion with fellow participants and other professionals.  Therefore, each participant will be required to make a 30-minute presentation (adjusted in accordance with the actual number of participants) to the group about the major problems facing land policy for sustainable rural development in their countries.

 

2. The presentation shall include the following components:
   1. Country Background: The first part of your presentation should include general information about your country’s land and agricultural policies, land tenure, land administration as well as some major rural development issues.  You should consider the following points:
      1. Geographic Background: It is helpful to bring a map of your country.
      2. Land Administration System: Information of the political system would facilitate understanding of land policy making in your country.
      3. Your Job or Position: Try to identify the functional role of your working institution in terms of rural land administration.
      4. Issues and Solutions: To your best knowledge, identify the major issues of rural land administration, rural land use planning and rural development in your country. Examples of efficient solutions and difficult experiences are welcome to share with all participants. 
      5. Future Challenges: It would be useful to identify the foreseen major rural land administration issues of primary concern in your country.
   2. Problems and Solutions: In addition to background information, the presentation should cover at least one major contemporary rural land tenure and/or land administration problem in their countries.  To take advantages of participants’ working experience, they are free to choose a topic at their convenience and should be prepared to explain the nature of the above said problem.
   3. Net Zero and Sustainable Development: In response to global climate change, the presentation should also include a separate portion to deal with issues related to this theme, such as net zero, sustainable development, etc.

 

3. Preparation: Participants are required to have materials prepared for their presentations prior to their arrival at ICLPST.  Besides, multi-media such as video player, computer and projector will be available for the presentation.  During the training course, the participants will be divided into three panels in accordance with the three themes covered in the first, the second, and the third weeks.  Each panel shall be composed of seven to eight participants, in accordance with the participants’ expertise and choice of time.  The three themes are as follows:
   1. Rural Economy and Development
   2. Situating the Local in Land Relations
   3. Managing Local Governance for Sustainable Development

 

4. Field Trips: The field trips and cultural visits are arranged in line with the specific topics dealt with in the course. The participants are typically taken to land management agencies in the central and local governments, academic research institutes, etc.; within the trips and visits, the participants are given a chance to take in the beautiful views in some internationally renowned scenic spots and cultural sites, which are hoped to help the participants see and feel for themselves Taiwan’s developments in its society and economy as well as its friendly people and good tradition.

 

5. NOTE WELL:
   1. The course emphasizes experience sharing and direct participation; lectures and participants’ presentations are all conducted in English, while field trips and cultural visits are guided by the ICLPST’s staff members, who act as interpreters whenever necessary to enable the participants to better communicate and understand the hosts during the visits.
   2. In each of the five objectives identified above, instructors would be expected to provide (a) appropriate theory that informs the subject, (b) a discussion of cases illustrating the implementation success/failures of the subject, and (c) prescription for appropriate policy action in developing and transition economy countries.  Participants are encouraged to take part in class discussions so that the participating countries’ experiences can be shared. The course makes extensive use of technical seminars to enhance the sharing and common understanding of imparted knowledge.

To validate the application process, applicants recommended by their office has to be channeled through the Republic of China (Taiwan) Embassies/Missions Abroad (https://en.mofa.gov.tw/). The latter shall transmit the application to the International Center for Land Policy Studies and Training (ICLPST) for consideration.