I've posted a surprisingly sparse selection of commentary on gender/sexuality and property. Silvia Federici wrote a book called "Caliban and the Witch" that unpacks in great detail the interwoven stories of the rise of capitalism and the suppression of woman, especially "wtiches" - woman who knew to live off the earth fast enclosing around them.

Fast forward a few hundred years, today there was an article on bbc [1] news announcing that gays have gotten property rights in Colombia. The Roman Catholic Church has endorsed the new law, though not gay marriage, obviously. Here's to property rights: blind to the gender, race, and now sexual orientation. Supporters of the bill approved it for the "ideological standpoint" that gay people ought to share the same economic privleges as heterosexuals.

Another group recently awarded expanded property rights are foreigners to the United Arab Emirate (UAE), city of Abu Dhabi. There are interesting strings attached: property must be located in designated "investment areas" and this property is not in land, but rather surface areas that they may benefit off in prescripted ways.

International real estate booms mean a boom in private services, too. One real estate website publishes that "significant local and international investments have been waiting in the wings for new property ownership legislation to be implemented." The website either reveals or falsely hypes the possibilities: "...There are solid plans in place to build massive accomodation complexes incorporating schooling, private health clinics, equestrian centres, polo centres, hotels and spas and there are already many expatriates lining up to buy their place in the next international property market to boom."

One more story about Andean Community's adoption of Payment for Environmental Services - but I'll write about this when I can get my head around it and if it has anything to do with their newly introduced biotech and bioprospecting programs.