Gaining Social Control over Land, Labour, and the Economy — Presented by Joshua Barndt

Joshua Barndt, drawing on eleven years of leadership within PNLT, explores how CLTs can evolve from a constructive response to gentrification into catalysts for broader social transformation. He poses four guiding questions linking theory and practice: How can CLTs be grounded in concrete theories of social transformation? How can they scale to gain more social power over land, housing, labour, and the economy? How can they expand social power through social procurement, cooperative enterprise, and solidarity-economy partnerships? And what role do social and cultural practices play in transforming our relationships to land, home, and democratic institutions?

Together, these perspectives frame the CLT as a living experiment in shifting economic power from private accumulation to collective stewardship. The lecture invites planners, students, and community organizers to imagine how CLTs and allied movements might contribute to a post-capitalist transition to a more socially just world.

About Joshua Barndt
Joshua Barndt is a specialist in Community Land Trusts (CLTs) and non-profit affordable housing, with expertise in acquisitions, community-engaged planning, and participatory action research. Since 2015, he has played a central role in building The Neighbourhood Land Trust (NLT) in Toronto’s Parkdale neighbourhood. As former Executive Director, Joshua led the Land Trust through key phases of growth—acquiring land, launching repair programs, and advancing community economic development. Under his leadership, NLT expanded to 85 properties with 208 permanently affordable rental units in downtown Toronto, all held in trust for community benefit. Now as Senior Manager of Development Strategy, he leads acquisition planning, development strategy, and capital structuring to support the Land Trust’s continued growth. Joshua is also a co-founder and former Board Chair of the Canadian Network of Community Land Trusts, a national organization supporting CLT development across Canada.