Architecture of the global land acquisition system: applying the tools of network science to identify key vulnerabilities
Global land acquisitions, often dubbed ‘land grabbing’ are increasingly becoming drivers of land change. We use the tools of network science to describe the connectivity of the global acquisition system. We find that 126 countries participate in this form of global land trade. Importers are concentr...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2014-01-01
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| Series: | Environmental Research Letters |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/9/11/114006 |
| _version_ | 1827870619885109248 |
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| author | J W Seaquist Emma Li Johansson Kimberly A Nicholas |
| author_facet | J W Seaquist Emma Li Johansson Kimberly A Nicholas |
| author_sort | J W Seaquist |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Global land acquisitions, often dubbed ‘land grabbing’ are increasingly becoming drivers of land change. We use the tools of network science to describe the connectivity of the global acquisition system. We find that 126 countries participate in this form of global land trade. Importers are concentrated in the Global North, the emerging economies of Asia, and the Middle East, while exporters are confined to the Global South and Eastern Europe. A small handful of countries account for the majority of land acquisitions (particularly China, the UK, and the US), the cumulative distribution of which is best described by a power law. We also find that countries with many land trading partners play a disproportionately central role in providing connectivity across the network with the shortest trading path between any two countries traversing either China, the US, or the UK over a third of the time. The land acquisition network is characterized by very few trading cliques and therefore characterized by a low degree of preferential trading or regionalization. We also show that countries with many export partners trade land with countries with few import partners, and vice versa, meaning that less developed countries have a large array of export partnerships with developed countries, but very few import partnerships (dissassortative relationship). Finally, we find that the structure of the network is potentially prone to propagating crises (e.g., if importing countries become dependent on crops exported from their land trading partners). This network analysis approach can be used to quantitatively analyze and understand telecoupled systems as well as to anticipate and diagnose the potential effects of telecoupling. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T15:58:50Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9d02419c94cc415796769631dd90ea84 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1748-9326 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T15:58:50Z |
| publishDate | 2014-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental Research Letters |
| spelling | doaj.art-9d02419c94cc415796769631dd90ea842023-08-09T14:43:21ZengIOP PublishingEnvironmental Research Letters1748-93262014-01-0191111400610.1088/1748-9326/9/11/114006Architecture of the global land acquisition system: applying the tools of network science to identify key vulnerabilitiesJ W Seaquist0Emma Li Johansson1Kimberly A Nicholas2Department of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science, Lund University , Sölvegatan 12, SE-223 62, Lund, SwedenDepartment of Physical Geography and Ecosystem Science, Lund University , Sölvegatan 12, SE-223 62, Lund, SwedenLund University Centre for Sustainability Studies, Lund University , PO Box 170, SE-221 00, Lund, SwedenGlobal land acquisitions, often dubbed ‘land grabbing’ are increasingly becoming drivers of land change. We use the tools of network science to describe the connectivity of the global acquisition system. We find that 126 countries participate in this form of global land trade. Importers are concentrated in the Global North, the emerging economies of Asia, and the Middle East, while exporters are confined to the Global South and Eastern Europe. A small handful of countries account for the majority of land acquisitions (particularly China, the UK, and the US), the cumulative distribution of which is best described by a power law. We also find that countries with many land trading partners play a disproportionately central role in providing connectivity across the network with the shortest trading path between any two countries traversing either China, the US, or the UK over a third of the time. The land acquisition network is characterized by very few trading cliques and therefore characterized by a low degree of preferential trading or regionalization. We also show that countries with many export partners trade land with countries with few import partners, and vice versa, meaning that less developed countries have a large array of export partnerships with developed countries, but very few import partnerships (dissassortative relationship). Finally, we find that the structure of the network is potentially prone to propagating crises (e.g., if importing countries become dependent on crops exported from their land trading partners). This network analysis approach can be used to quantitatively analyze and understand telecoupled systems as well as to anticipate and diagnose the potential effects of telecoupling.https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/9/11/114006land grabbingtelecouplingcomplex networkglobalizationvulnerabilityland systems science |
| spellingShingle | J W Seaquist Emma Li Johansson Kimberly A Nicholas Architecture of the global land acquisition system: applying the tools of network science to identify key vulnerabilities Environmental Research Letters land grabbing telecoupling complex network globalization vulnerability land systems science |
| title | Architecture of the global land acquisition system: applying the tools of network science to identify key vulnerabilities |
| title_full | Architecture of the global land acquisition system: applying the tools of network science to identify key vulnerabilities |
| title_fullStr | Architecture of the global land acquisition system: applying the tools of network science to identify key vulnerabilities |
| title_full_unstemmed | Architecture of the global land acquisition system: applying the tools of network science to identify key vulnerabilities |
| title_short | Architecture of the global land acquisition system: applying the tools of network science to identify key vulnerabilities |
| title_sort | architecture of the global land acquisition system applying the tools of network science to identify key vulnerabilities |
| topic | land grabbing telecoupling complex network globalization vulnerability land systems science |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/9/11/114006 |
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