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The XCT, Xarxa de Custòdia del Territori (Land Stewardship Network), is an umbrella organisation created as an NGO in March 2003. Its members (124 in April 2007) are foundations, associations, town councils, public partnership (consortium) protected areas, research centres, and organisations alike, devoted to landscape, countryside and biodiversity conservation.
The XCT promotes the use of LS as a part in the strategy to conserve natural, cultural and landscape values of the land. It assists the work of land trusts, communicates stewardship to the general and specific public, works with public and private stakeholders to develop its use and carries out research and pilot projects in the LS field.
To contact us:
info@custodiaterritori.org
and www.custodiaterritori.org
Post address:
XCT, c. Sagrada Família, 7
(Universitat de Vic)
E-08500-VIC (Catalonia – Spain).
Phone: +34 93 8866135
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 Our
origins |
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The Landscape and Countryside Foundation, or FTP, Fundació Territori i Paisatge (a strongly funded organisation created in 1998 by its single sponsor, a savings bank), organised an International Seminar on Land Stewardship in November 2000. Canadian, US, French and Italian organisations were invited, with assistance by the Quebec-Labrador Foundation / AtlanticCenter for the Environment. A key group of 50 invited participants developed the Montesquiu Declaration on Land Stewardship, a 4-page document later signed by more than 60 organisations form Catalonia and the Balearic Islands. The Declaration fixed visions and objectives for developing LS in our country, and proposed the creation of a network organisation to impulse and assist the process in the long term.
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The Landscape and Countryside Foundation, or FTP, Fundació Territori i Paisatge (a strongly funded organisation created in 1998 by its single sponsor, a savings bank), organised an International Seminar on Land Stewardship in November 2000. Canadian, US, French and Italian organisations were invited, with assistance by the Quebec-Labrador Foundation / AtlanticCenter for the Environment. A key group of 50 invited participants developed the Montesquiu Declaration on Land Stewardship, a 4-page document later signed by more than 60 organisations form Catalonia and the Balearic Islands. The Declaration fixed visions and objectives for developing LS in our country, and proposed the creation of a network organisation to impulse and assist the process in the long term.
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| The
present |
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On March 6th 2003 the XCT was officially founded at an event attended by the Catalan Minister for the Environment. A network office at the University of Vic leads the initiatives of the XCT undertaking a real effort to working in network. The Environment Ministry and FTP, are providing starting funds for the work of XCT on its first years which, adding the membership support, come to a current annual budget of some 120.000 Euros (similar US $). Vic University does provide free office space for the same period.
The XCT is directed by a board of members (11 organisations) and an annual general assembly. The office team is composed by four full time and three part-time staff.
At present we rule ourselves according to our new Strategic Plan for the period 2007-2012, with the same open spirit and of participation that guided the elaboration of the first plan, and where it is intended to collect the bases for the consolidation of the stewardship in the next years.
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| Geographycal
scope of the XCT |
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The Montesquiu Declaration (see Origins above) was presented to an audience representing both Catalan and Balearic organisations and institutions. Catalonia and the Balearic Islands are two autonomous Catalan-speaking regions within Spain. The XCT has been registered as an NGO in Catalonia.
Our vision is for a network growing slowly in other parts of Spain, and perhaps up to Portugal or the Western Mediterranean. We see the local interest and demand for land stewardship as a compulsory component of extending XCT to other regions, either in Spain or elsewhere. The formula of a federation of regional networks might be the formula for this participated growth.
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| Accomplishments
on land stewardship in Catalonia and Spain |
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Land stewardship, custòdia del territori in Catalan, is a land conservation philosophy less than 5 years old in our country. Public and private organisations dedicated to land conservation and landowner organisations have now learned the concept and are starting to, or studying how to, use it. The general public and the funding organisations, still have to be introduced to land stewardship.
Land trust are just emerging (around 60 exist, the majority of which have other objectives than just LS), and they do have the task to build on training, professionalisation and membership and funder support. Summing Catalonia and the Balearic Islands some 100.000 Ha and 235 public and private properties are under some kind of LS agreement (from verbal agreements to full land ownership), as shown by a preliminary census updated to November 2004. It is key that land trusts that are emerging in our country work at very varied levels, from national, to regional and local, thus providing very diverse approaches and opportunities for LS.
The Catalan Government is now starting to study legislative opportunities to support land stewardship. Other regional governments in Spain are looking at similar approaches but without any coordination of efforts. This happens as the development of the European Union-wide Natura 2000 Network is entering its management phase looking at various strategies for agreeing management with owners of designated sites.
Elsewhere in Spain some LS initiatives exist, mostly by small to medium environmental foundations, some of which make use of the European Union LIFE Program for funding. A LS network does not exist for all Spain and small LS organisations do not exist or are either working on their own and their work is unknown to us. |
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Global networking for land stewardship |
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The XCT works regionally in the Western Mediterranean to promote the use of LS. Our networking strategy makes use of each single initiative or organisation interested to add up in our common objective. We believe that networking is a key component for the worldwide growth of the LS movement, as most national or regional movements today are disconnected between them. In our case, as a very new movement, we are strongly interested in the possibility to exchange professionals and case studies with other countries, but we are also looking at countries at a similar level of the development of LS to reach agreements for making use of synergies to grow together.
Do
contact us if you see common interests and beliefs for Land Stewardship!
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