As the Seattle Times reported, Professor Roy Prosterman of the University of Washington, Seattle has been advocating for the cause of the rural poor in the developing world since the 1960s.
Prosterman is the founder of non-profit organization Landesa, which helps poor families in the developing world to secure land ownership. Landesa primarily does this by advocating for legal reforms to promote land ownership.
Land ownership is important for a number of reasons. According to Landesa, “legal rights to land improve the resiliency of families so they can climb out of extreme poverty.” This means, for families that have secure ownership of their land, higher rates of agricultural productivity, income, and high school graduation, and lower rates of teen pregnancy.
Prosterman is passionate about the work Landesa does. Although Prosterman has retired as Landesa’s CEO, he is still active with his organization at age 77, and travels to India and China multiple times per year.
