Author Profile: Deborah Espinosa

Deborah Espinosa

About Deborah Espinosa

Ms. Deborah Espinosa is a senior attorney, land tenure specialist, and photographer. She is a land law and policy attorney with expertise in land tenure policy, legal and regulatory reform, women’s access and rights to land, land-related conflicts and dispute resolution, land titling and registration, and legal literacy. She also has broad expertise in environmental and natural resources law. Deborah has performed rural fieldwork to understand land-related customary law for purposes of designing new land policy, legislation, and interventions, with particular emphasis on women’s access to land. She has assessed a variety of proposed and existing land laws and policies, land conflict and dispute resolution mechanisms, and government-sponsored land programs. She has managed land dispute resolution and legal aid programs. Deborah is also an accomplished photographer. She is responsible for many of the powerful images on this website as well as many of the beautiful images in Landesa's print material. Her international experience includes Burundi, India, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kyrgyz Republic, Russian Federation, and Rwanda. Deborah earned her J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law and an M.A. in Russian, East European & Central Asian Studies from the Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington. She also holds a Certificate in Career Training from the Rocky Mountain School of Photography and a B.A. in history from the University of California, Berkeley.

A Letter to Mothers in the Developing World

A Letter to Mothers in the Developing World, On this Mother’s Day, Landesa salutes mothers in the developing world – our partners. We advocate for your land rights not just because it is a good idea – but because it …
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Land rights for women – a ripple effect

People often question Landesa’s emphasis on women’s land rights in our work, from China and India to Rwanda and Kenya. Why do women need secure rights to land if their husbands already have such rights?  Do we have something against …
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Photo Essay: Life After Gaining a Land Title

View this photo essay slideshow that depicts what having secure land rights can do for a farming family in Rwanda, three years since receiving a title to their land.

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The Next Big Idea

“Exchanging ideas that matter” – Big Ideas. That phrase sums up the Aspen Ideas Festival 2011, which I had the privilege of attending as a Scholar thanks to a Landesa supporter.  During the last week of June, Supreme Court Justices, …
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They Know the Solution

She was one of at least 40 landless women who demanded to meet with us that day.  They had heard that we would be visiting their village to talk with women in self-help groups (SHG) who had participated in the …
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In the Interest of Conservation . . . Landesa Now in Kenya (a Photo Essay)

Click on the photo below to view the slideshow with captions.

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