Held Together: Research Perspectives on Community Land Trusts Around the World
Our latest webinar brought together researchers and practitioners working across Canada, Brazil, and the United Kingdom for a rich, comparative conversation on housing, land, and collective stewardship in an increasingly financialized global housing system.
Grounded in distinct local contexts, the discussion surfaced both the specific conditions shaping community-led housing and the deep historical and practical commonalities that connect these efforts. Speakers emphasized that Community Land Trusts are no longer just theoretical possibilities, but proven, living models: global evidence of how community-led housing can secure land, enable collective ownership, and cultivate real, durable belonging.
Across contexts, the conversation underscored the importance of access to land, shared stewardship, and housing understood as public infrastructure rather than a private investment opportunity. Rather than offering simple solutions, the session highlighted the power of critical, informed, and intersectional approaches, recognizing land not only as a material resource but as memory, relationship, and the foundation of community life. Together, these perspectives point toward housing futures rooted in care, accountability, and collective responsibility, futures we quite literally hold together.
