Internal Displacement in Ecological Restoration: An Environmental Justice Perspective from Rwanda

Abstract
Ecological restoration in degraded ecosystems can require relocating people from environmentally sensitive areas, generating incompatibilities between environmental and social objectives central to the Global Biodiversity Framework. Despite increased attention to such dynamics, little is known about how such displacements aligns with or departs from principles of environmental justice, particularly where ecological outcomes are prioritized over social impacts, as is often the case in parts of Africa. To address this gap, we combined a desk review of policy documents and relevant literature on Rwanda with purposefully selected cases, to analyze national policies, assess justice dimensions, and identify gaps in the integration  of environmental justice into restoration practice. Our analysis shows that policy instruments guiding internal displacement in Rwanda fall into three main categories: spatial planning frameworks; land governance and expropriation regulations; and environmental and climate governance policies. Institutional involvement varies across cases but typically includes national ministries, district authorities, environmental agencies, and local administrative structures. In practice, displacement occurs through eviction from designated high-risk areas, strict enforcement of land-use master plans, and land clearance linked to ecological restoration projects. Although these policies formally commit to fair and participatory processes, communities are minimally consulted, and local authorities have limited influence over decisions. From an environmental justice perspective, procedural justice is constrained by centralized decision-making and superficial consultation, while recognition justice is weak, as local knowledge, identities, and land claims are largely overlooked in planning and implementation. Distributional outcomes are uneven, with vulnerable households bearing the greatest costs, while broader societal actors reap most of the benefits from restoration. Overall, these findings highlight persistent tension between ecological objectives and social outcomes and point to the need for governance reforms that embed more equitable approaches to restoration in Rwanda and across other regions pursuing large-scale restoration under the Global Biodiversity Framework.

Keywords: Restoration governance; Environmental justice; Power dynamics; Resettlement; Relocation