Billings Farm, Woodstock, Vt., USA: Heavy storm clouds hovering over the pasture slowly grazing cows of Jersey breed, famous for its high fat content of milk. Farm-based indigenous vermonttsem Frederick Billings, and later passed into the hands of enthusiast and conservationist, philanthropist Laurence Rockefeller.

Billings Farm, Woodstock, Vt., USA: Heavy storm clouds hovering over the pasture slowly grazing cows of Jersey breed, famous for its high fat content of milk. Farm-based indigenous vermonttsem Frederick Billings, and later passed into the hands of enthusiast and conservationist, philanthropist Laurence Rockefeller.

Land issues and conflicts occur all over, all the time on the African continent and continue to mushroom on a continuous basis. Although many of these issues are not new, they do continue to change and are extremely complex and embedded, which may lead to the inability to deal with them and to questioning the legitimacy of the forms of intervention and prevention of conflicts. The way in which these issues are dealt with often does not take into consideration their major - and thus potentially recurring - causes. "The Struggle over Land in Africa: Conflicts, Politics and Change" is a compelling study which analyses the role of land as a place and source of conflict, especially with regard to policy development, crisis management and post-war/post-conflict reconstruction. The author's main aim is to gain insight into the nature of policy-making concerning land and to delve into the underlying causes of these land issues, not only at national level but also in terms of broader Africa. The book covers land issues in Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, northern Cameroon, Namibia, Mozambique, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Tanzania and Zimbabwe. Some of the themes explored in this powerful volume include: Ethnic and indigenous land conflicts, Traditionalism versus modernity, renewed land interests, land use and conflict, state building, politics and land (for example Agricultural land reform); land policy development, planning, inclusiveness/non-inclusiveness; and regional scopes of land conflicts and changing norms.

Billings Farm, Woodstock, Vermont — Heavy storm clouds hang in the dark sky above a pasture of grazing Jersey cows. Established in 1871 by native Vermonter Frederick Billings, it was later owned by conservationist and philanthropist Lawrence Rockefeller. On this morning, it seems little has changed since the first field was plowed here. This sense of timelessness is expressed not only by the 19th century farm house and surrounding split-rail fencing, but by the age-old interdependencies between human and domesticated animals. Southdown sheep and lambs look on as a farm hand corrals a herd of milking cows from the fields to the milking barn. This routine has existed since these cows' ancestors were imported from the Isle of Jersey. Shafts of sunlight slip through the breaking cloud cover and reveal handsome draft horses eating breakfast.