The issue of land grabbing has itself grabbed headlines recently. Biofuels, so-called agricultural investors, and commodity speculators buying up land have all been criticised for driving a wave of land grabbing and ecosystem destruction in Africa, Asia and Latin America. The resulting rise in food prices, and the reduced access to land, livelihood and home, means that the world's poorest are hardest hit.
Mountai
Each year the average industrialised person consumes up to 18 metric tonnes of materials from the Earth in order to sustain their lifestyle. In extracting these fossil fuels, minerals and metals, mining is not only destroying ecosystems and cultures but also contributing to climate change and mass extinction of species. Dr Vandana Shiva, May 2011