Stichting Grond van Bestaan is a Dutch foundation dedicated to reforming land ownership, access to land, leasing, and property rights. Established in 2020, it addresses land issues by implementing Community Land Trusts (CLTs) in the Netherlands. CLTs are non-profit, place-based organizations with open membership that remove land from market speculation, ensuring permanent community control. The foundation acquires land in perpetuity on behalf of local communities, preventing future sales to support regenerative agriculture and ecological restoration.
Its core mission centers on transforming relationships with land and communities, fostering a new economy aligned with social, ecological, and cultural values. Key activities include collaborating with local groups to establish regional and local CLTs, providing democratic land allocation for a new generation of farmers. This model promotes soil health, climate resilience, and biodiversity through sustainable land use. While primarily focused on agriculture and nature, the approach indirectly supports affordable housing by advancing collective land commons, which can stabilize land prices and enable community-led development in rural areas.
Based in Varik, the foundation operates nationally in the Netherlands, with practical projects emphasizing sovereign, ecologically solidary land management. Ted van den Bergh serves as chairperson, bringing over 20 years of experience in ecological and social sustainability from roles at the European Center for Nature Conservation and Stichting DOEN. As an ANBI-recognized public benefit organization (KVK number 65641582), it relies on donations and publishes annual reports and a 2024-2025 policy plan. Contact is available via info@grondvanbestaan.nl.