Urban Farm DB
Research catalogue
Database research record2025·Brazil (São Paulo)

“A Roça na Cidade”: Horta Comunitária e engajamento em uma Comunidade Vulnerável

Aline Oliveira Zoia do Amaral, Regina Yoshie Matsue, Luciana Yuki Tomita

Ambiente & sociedade

Urban Farm DB summary

This engaged, reflexive case study analyzed the implementation of a community garden in a condominium in Heliópolis, a high social-vulnerability neighborhood in São Paulo, Brazil, and the participants' motivations, drawing on participant observation, a field diary, and semi-structured interviews. The garden was established through crowdfunding (a "vaquinha virtual"). It contributed to the household budget, expanded the variety of vegetables consumed to include unconventional food plants, and improved diet. It also became a space for recovering affective memories, socializing, an activity for elderly women, and bringing the condominium's children closer to the practice of growing food.