In brief
Roy L. Prosterman, a dedicated lawyer and land reform pioneer who reshaped land rights for the rural poor, passed away on February 27 at the age of 89. His life's work through the land-rights organization Landesa impacted millions across Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
Roy L. Prosterman, known for his unwavering commitment to land rights, died in his Seattle home on February 27 at 89. He notably left a successful corporate law career to devote his life to helping the rural impoverished by advocating for land ownership reform. A founder of Landesa, formerly known as the Rural Development Institute, Prosterman’s influence spanned 60 countries, crafting land redistribution strategies that benefited countless peasant families.Throughout his nearly six-decade career, Prosterman urged governments, whether authoritarian or newly formed democracies, to acknowledge land rights as critical to alleviating poverty. His work included convincing the governments of Vietnam, El Salvador, and India to implement policies that provided land to those in need, sometimes facilitating the expropriation of land with compensation to previous owners or by donating state-owned land directly.In an obituary published by Landesa, the organization highlighted Prosterman's impact, with millions benefiting from the access to land and security he championed. As described by Nobel-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz in the preface to Prosterman's edited book, "One Billion Rising: Law, Land and the Alleviation of Global Poverty," he was a pioneering voice recognizing the crucial role land rights play in the lives of the rural poor. Under his leadership, Landesa emerged as a globally influential institute, providing innovative solutions for land rights that continue to resonate in the fight against poverty worldwide.
