Leveling the Playing Field: Fostering Collaborative Governance Towards On-Going Reconciliation

This paper looks at the potential for collaborative governance for land and resources to become a form of on-going reconciliation in societies transitioning from past oppression and on-going social injustice. Structural violence in the form of capacity disparities and policy configuration are explored in order to frame the discussion. Canada and South Africa are presented as two countries that have been going through different experiences in terms of transition, but have had similar experiences in regards to a need to foster new ways of working towards more equitable forms of governance. Here, much like reconciliation, governance is presented as a process, which under the right conditions can lead to relationship building and mutually desirable outcomes. This process creates a platform for establishing common ground, as well as the potential to negotiate solutions to structural violence.