A coalition of more than 60 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) has today published a joint declaration, calling on all states and financial institutions to end the practice of land grabbing. The declaration was timed to coincide with the annual Agriculture Investment Summit, being held in London between 26th-29th June 2012. During the event, financial investors and pension funds gather to explore investment opportunities in agriculture across the globe. The NGO declaration highlights deep concerns surrounding the soaring number of pension funds, acquiring large stretches of farmland in developing countries, a practice that threatens the livelihoods and food sovereignty of local communities. Highlighting the coalition’s deep concerns, Rachel Tansey of Friends of the Earth Europe said “European pension funds are driving land grabs across the globe, with serious social and environmental impacts. Anyone with a pension could be implicated in human rights violations and ecological destruction. In a world where 1 billion people already go hungry, land must stay in the hands of local communities so that they can feed themselves”. Research indicates that millions of hectares of land have been leased or bought up in recent years, mainly to produce food or fuel for an international market, seriously damaging the livelihoods of the local population who have relied on these same lands to survive for generations. The declaration calls on states to ensure that pension funds stop speculation on land and damaging investments in global food chains.The signatories have demanded the disclosure of information about direct or indirect financing of land acquisitions and other deals that might involve land grabbing, and have called for a mandatory, prior and independent impact assessment of these investments.