About us

Established in 1972, the Aubrey Barker Fund is dedicated to enhancing sustainable survey and land management skills in developing countries through professional education and capacity building for the lasting benefit of local communities.  The Fund works to support the development of necessary survey and land management skills, and to ensure that they are available in all nations and communities; alongside encouraging and facilitating the sharing of these skills and knowledge with communities so that we increase our collective capacity to manage our key asset: our land.

Land is central to our lives – as individuals, as communities and as nations. We cannot generally increase the amount of land on our planet, so it is absolutely essential that we manage it wisely, for ourselves and for future generations. To do this, we need to consider issues including effective development management, protection and improvement of habitats, pollution control, replenishment, security of title and certainty of occupier rights. All of this requires skilled individuals and informed communities who understand the social, economic and environmental importance of land.

The Fund was set up in memory of Aubrey Barker, a distinguished surveyor from Guyana who was president-designate of The Commonwealth Association of Surveying and Land Economy (CASLE) but died before taking office. The Trustees of the Fund – individuals with expertise in this field from around the world – seek to share his passion through grants and through establishing continuing networks which share good practice in sustainable survey and land management. We aim to make long-lasting impacts in communities, in nations and across nations through spreading awareness, capability and capacity.