Create a critical mass of support

There are several ways to organize a network that can benefit both individual communities and the ICCAs’ overall cause and goals. The simplest kind of network is a “working group”, where representatives of ICCAs, sympathetic organizations, and individual activists and experts gather more or less formally to share ideas and advice, and work on common concerns. Some ICCA custodian communities have also found it useful to create a “second level” formal organization, i.e., a federation that represents their common interests. This model allows ICCAs to gather resources and have formal representation in interactions with other actors, such as regional or national governments. Another path to creating a network is to build a coalition or platform. This can be especially useful when working on specific pressing issues (e.g. impending land grabbing, or for the recognition of collective rights). The nature and urgency of the issues and specific context will inform different networking solutions.

An effective way to promote and support an ICCA Network is to gather a number of contacts (usually community representatives of ICCAs or potential ICCAs) and propose a meeting.  The meeting offers an occasion to listen to each other’s needs and ideas and establish a basic common ground. Once initial priorities and possible/ desirable joint activities and outcomes are identified, the ICCA communities and partners will have an opportunity to figure out whether and how they wish to continue their interaction and contribute to the common good. Importantly, a network needs to emerge from felt needs and “from the bottom up”. Pushing for the creation of a network in a top- down fashion is destined for irrelevance and failure.