Paper short abstract:

The paper will explore how rural land markets emerge and evolve by investigating indigenous struggles for land in the highland region of Ecuador and drawing out wider empirical and theoretical insights from the case.

Paper long abstract:

In this paper, I will explore how rural land markets emerge and evolve by investigating indigenous struggles for land in the highland region of Ecuador. Land markets began to develop in the region in the late nineteenth century, but did not start to form fully until land reform commenced in the 1960s. The reform triggered a number changes which stimulated land market activity and provided the basis for the expansion of land markets. Drawing on the social theory of Karl Polanyi, I develop a concept to explore the opportunities and threats the expansion of land markets created for highland indigenous peoples. The concept draws an analytical distinction between two dimensions of the land market: 'activation' and 'development'. The former refers to the occasional participation of actors in markets to secure land, while the latter relates to the establishment of price-making markets which create continuous opportunities for the exchange of land. I argue the activation of markets opened-up spaces for indigenous peoples to secure land, while the development of price-making markets closed them down. The process, which involved complex interactions between formal and informal institutions, generated significant levels of social and political conflict. The case therefore offers support for Karl Polanyi's claim that markets are contested spaces which are constructed and reconstructed through social, political and economic forces. I will conclude the paper by attempting to draw out empirical and theoretical insights for understanding the evolution of land markets elsewhere in the Global South.