Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
1063 results(14 / 43)
Urban Gardens vs. Community Gardens: Tensions and Trajectories for Urban Agriculture in Istanbul
2023Candan Türkkan · Moment Journal · Turkey (Istanbul)
This paper analyzes urban gardening practices in Yedikule Bostanlari and Kuzguncuk Bostani in Istanbul, examining the convoluted relationship between the food movement and urban agriculture. It argues that while urban agriculture initiatives are significant for generating community and proposing alternative uses for urban space, they do relatively little to mitigate the structural problems underlined by the food movement. As such, even though they are examples of urban agriculture in practice, their aspirations do not readily associate with those of the food movement.
Limited or null effectCommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyNetwork Structure in Sustainable Urban Farming Development Policies in Makassar City
2023Mahyuddiin · KnE Social Sciences · Indonesia (Makassar)
This qualitative study analyzed the network structure of sustainable urban farming development policies in Makassar City, Indonesia, using observations, interviews, and documentation with stakeholders. The findings indicate that the network structure is not fully effective due to erratic, uneven, and unclear contact between actors, and a lack of binding written agreements in the trust dimension. However, information sharing and resource exchange dimensions are progressing well.
Governance failurePolicyCommunityEconomicsWhich urban agriculture conditions enable or constrain sustainable food production?
2023Seongeun Lee, Seongmin Shin, Hansol Lee, Mi Sun Park · International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability · Global
A systematic review of urban agriculture (UA) case studies identified conditions enabling and constraining UA development across different country income groups. For high-income countries, a lack of farmers' knowledge and urban development are significant challenges to UA implementation. Common requirements for all income levels include motivation, labor, policy, social capital, and arable land.
Governance failureFood sovereignty & justicePolicyEconomicsCommunityThe Impact of Indonesia Green Economy in Masterplan for Future Urban Farming Indonesia
2023Agnes Naipospos, Raia Azzura · Journal of Sustainable Development and Regulatory Issues (JSDERI) · Indonesia
Indonesia faces a reduction in vegetable supply due to rapid urban development, and urban farming can be a solution to meet food needs, reduce household expenses, and increase farmer income. Using a normative juridical approach, this study indicates that Indonesia needs an urban farming program, but its current implementation is not optimal. Therefore, the Indonesia Masterplan for Future Urban Farming (IM-for-FUF) is introduced as an innovation expected to better support the implementation of the green economy.
Governance failurePolicyEconomicsCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceUrban gardening as a risk-reduction strategy – an intersectional analysis of top-down gardening initiatives
2023Emelie Larsson, Katarina Giritli Nygren · Journal of Risk Research · Global
This study analyzed strategy documents and municipal website information to examine how municipalities frame urban gardening as a risk-reduction strategy, using critical discourse analysis. It identified two discourses: an eco(no)logical risk discourse addressing ecological risks within a capitalist market logic, and a social risk discourse focusing on gardening for work training. The findings reveal that top-down urban garden initiatives highlight contemporary inequalities in urban spaces.
Equity & displacementPolicyCommunityEconomicsWelfareAnalisis Dampak Kebijakan Program Kebun Sekolah untuk Mengatasi Kekurangan Gizi pada Anak
2023Deni Permana · ANTASENA Governance and Innovation Journal · Global
This analysis evaluated the impact of school garden programs on students' nutritional status and nutritious food intake, using surveys, interviews, and nutritional status measurements before and after program implementation. School gardens positively impacted students' nutrition knowledge and increased fresh fruit and vegetable consumption, contributing to a reduction in malnutrition prevalence with significant increases in children's weight and height. However, the program's success was constrained by budget limitations and a lack of training for educators, highlighting the need for adequate training, stable financial support, and curriculum integration.
Governance failureFood educationHealthPolicyWelfareThe entrepreneurial ecosystem and the performance of micro and small enterprises (MSEs) in Amhara region, Ethiopia: the political–legal perspective
2023Mulugeta Chane Wube, Heena Atwal · Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship · Ethiopia
This study, conducted in the Amhara National Regional State, Ethiopia, examined the integrated effect of the entrepreneurial ecosystem's political-legal subsystem on the performance of Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) and the mediating role of entrepreneurial competence. A sample of 499 MSE operators engaged in manufacturing, construction, and urban agriculture was selected. While the political-legal aspects significantly impacted both entrepreneurial competency and MSE performance, the relationship between entrepreneurial competencies and MSE performance was found to be insignificant. The mediating role of entrepreneurial competency in the relationships between policy and business performance and other business environments and business performance was also shown to be insignificant.
Limited or null effectPolicyEconomicsChallenges and potential solutions in developing community supported agriculture: a literature review
2023Catharina Any Sulistyowati, Suraya Afiff, Muhammad Baiquni, Mia Siscawati · Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems · Global
A literature study conducted from October 2021 to June 2022 identified challenges in the development of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). Farmers face expenses for sustainable practices and labor shortages, while CSA members encounter issues with time commitment, cost, and adapting food consumption habits. Organizational challenges include member recruitment and retention, competition, and CSA sustainability.
Economic viabilityCSA & TeikeiEconomicsCommunityPolicyPEOPLE’S REASONS NOT TO PARTICIPATE IN COMMUNITY GARDENS IN DISADVANTAGED NEIGHBORHOODS OF ROANOKE, VIRGINIA
2023Sinan Kordon, Patrick Miller · ArtGRID - Journal of Architecture Engineering and Fine Arts · United States (Roanoke)
A survey in five disadvantaged neighborhoods of Roanoke, Virginia, identified primary reasons for non-participation in community gardening. Using descriptive statistics, T-test, and factor analysis, the study found that "theft and damage," "difficult access," "too much effort," and "no personal interest" were the main deterrents. These findings highlight specific barriers to public involvement in community garden projects.
Limited or null effectCommunityPolicyEconomicsHealth« Nous sommes la montagne qui ressent »
2023Victorine Dréau · EcoRev · Colombia
In Bello Oriente, Medellin, Colombia, displaced peasant communities resist extractivist expansion and neoliberal territorial reconfiguration through practices like urban agriculture, reasserting collective land use. This research reveals a struggle to reclaim land from the control and speculation logics of criminal gangs and urban planning institutions, indicating critical governance issues.
Governance failureCommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyDevelopment of Urban Farming as a Strategy to Support Food Security
2023Diana Hertati · MIMBAR Jurnal Sosial dan Pembangunan · Indonesia
This study investigated the development of urban farming as a strategy to support food security in Indonesia using descriptive and qualitative methods. While the community understands urban farming (P2L), inhibiting factors include perpetrators' lack of technical understanding, insufficient capital, and extreme weather. Local government strongly supports food security policies through urban farming.
Economic viabilityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyCommunityEconomicsAddressing US Food Deserts: Evaluating Current Solutions and Proposing Other Comprehensive Alternatives
2023Seohyun Kim, Carlos Almeida Peña · Journal of Student Research · United States
This study critically evaluated existing initiatives like SNAP, HFFI, and urban agriculture for addressing food deserts in the United States, which affect approximately 19 million individuals. Through a literature review and interviews, the research found that these programs, while offering some positive impact on food insecurity, largely fail to directly address the fundamental issue of distance and systemic accessibility to supermarkets. The study proposes enhancing public transit and online delivery platforms as comprehensive solutions.
Limited or null effectHealthEconomicsPolicyPracticing ecological citizenship through community supported agriculture: Opportunities, challenges, and social justice concerns
2023Manoj Misra · Culture Agriculture Food and Environment · Canada
A qualitative study of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) participants in the greater Edmonton region of Canada examined how this local food initiative promotes ecological citizenship. The study concluded that discursive and structural limitations prevent the Edmonton CSA community from achieving meaningful diversity and addressing social justice concerns within its realm.
Equity & displacementCSA & TeikeiCommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyOpportunities and Constraints for Creating Edible Cities and Accessing Wholesome Functional Foods in a Sustainable Way
2023Katarzyna Świąder, Dražena Čermak, Danuta Gajewska, Katarzyna Najman, Anna Piotrowska, Eliza Kostyra · Sustainability · Global
This review analyzed opportunities and constraints for creating edible cities and accessing wholesome functional foods sustainably. While urban food production methods like controlled-environment farms and home gardens exist, significant constraints include pollution, a lack of government support, and economic challenges for urban farms. These issues must be resolved for edible cities to become widespread.
Governance failureFood sovereignty & justiceClimate changeHealthPolicyAgroecología y construcción de ciudadanía en los huertos urbanos de la Ciudad de México
2023Nehiby Alcántara Nieves, Rosa María Larroa Torres · Iztapalapa(en línea)/Iztapalapa · Mexico (Mexico City)
This article identified agroecological practices in 10 urban gardens (hu) in Mexico City and their relationship with the construction of food citizenship. Data was collected through interviews with garden managers and users, and participant observation. The study found a tendency to prioritize responsibilities over rights within these urban gardens.
Governance failureFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityPolicyA Double-Edged Sword: Examining the Structures That Afford and Limit Practices of Environmental Learning and Community Building in an Urban Community Garden in South Korea
2023Saerom Ahn, Gyeong Mi Gi, Sonya N. Martin · Asia-Pacific Science Education · South Korea
This study examined specific structures that both afford and limit practices of environmental learning and community building in an urban community garden in South Korea. The analysis illustrated the importance of understanding the dynamic relationship between gardening practices and supporting structures. The research identified how structures can provide and also restrict learning opportunities and community building within the community garden setting.
Governance failureCommunityFood educationPolicyLe portage foncier public et sa réception par les agriculteurs. L’exemple du pacte agricole de la région Île-de-France
2023Alioune Badara Dabo · Norois · France (Île-de-France)
This article analyzes how the public land tenure system, introduced in the 2018 "Agricultural Pact" in the Île-de-France region, articulates with local farming systems. Based on a qualitative survey conducted in the Green Belt area, the findings reveal that this land tenure system does not fully align with the strategies of farmers, particularly young people outside family farming who wish to establish themselves in agriculture, as they do not necessarily seek land ownership.
Governance failurePolicyPeri-urban agricultureEconomicsPlanting Commons through Art ?
2023Mareike Schwarz · Street Art & Urban Creativity · Global
This paper analyzes the intersection of urban art and community gardens to explore whether commons can emerge from this collaboration. Through a comparative study of two community garden projects in Berlin and Dakar, the research examines the impact of funding structures, accessibility, artistic concepts, and design on commoning. Findings reveal that the two projects differ significantly in their development context and underlying structures, affecting their ability to function as commons. Furthermore, the paper argues that the dependency of artistic involvement on third-party funding contradicts the principles of commoning.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsWastewater governance in the upstream catchment of the Awash Basin, Ethiopia: challenges and opportunities for better accountability
2023Yosef Abebe, Mulugeta Gashaw, Asenake Kefale, Tim Brewer · Water Reuse · Ethiopia
A study on wastewater governance in the upstream catchment of the Awash Basin, Ethiopia, found that untreated wastewater discharged from industries is polluting rivers and the surrounding environment. Regulatory bodies have done little to enforce rules and directives for wastewater regulation, and due to poor implementation of laws, urban agriculture is expanding without concern for its negative health and socioeconomic impacts.
Contamination & food safetyHealthPolicyEconomicsClimate changeDesafios da expansão da comercialização da agricultura urbana e periurbana do município de Macapá - Amapá
2023Charles Achcar Chelala, Cláudia Maria do Socôrro Cruz Fernandes Chelala · DELOS Desarrollo Local Sostenible · Brazil
This article analyzes the urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) in Macapá, Amapá, Brazil, focusing on existing commercialization channels to identify the relationship between urban food production and city supply. The study aimed to pinpoint difficulties, limitations, and expansion capacity of UPA. It concludes that despite a diversity of accessible channels for UPA, short commercialization channels like direct sales and open-air markets remain the primary outlets for production, indicating challenges in expanding commercialization beyond these traditional methods.
Economic viabilityPeri-urban agricultureEconomicsFood sovereignty & justicePolicyUrban Food Security and Resilience
2023Gareth Haysom, Jane Battersby · Palgrave studies in agricultural economics and food policy · Africa
Based on findings from cities in five African countries, this study argues for a re-framing of urban food system resilience. It contends that the urban system, specifically infrastructure, shapes the functioning of the food system and consumers' ability to use it, and that the agency of urban food system users needs inclusion in understandings of, and efforts to increase, food systems resilience.
Governance failureFood sovereignty & justicePolicyEconomicsUrban–rural linkagePolitical Ecology of Urban Agricultural Pollution
2023Rajat Kumar · Ecology Economy and Society–the INSEE Journal · India (Delhi)
This paper investigates the toxicity in river water in the Yamuna khadar floodplains in Delhi, India, caused by pesticides and fertilizers used in agriculture. The study examines how this toxicity is perceived, discursively constructed, and dealt with by differently located stakeholders. It finds that stakeholders in the Yamuna khadar do not experience pollution as a homogeneous community, nor do they all perceive themselves as suffering from or contributing to the toxicity in a similar way.
Contamination & food safetyPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceEqualizing urban agriculture access in Glasgow: A spatial optimization approach
2023Amy Russell, Ziqi Li, Mingshu Wang · International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation · United Kingdom (Glasgow)
This study investigated the distribution of urban agriculture in Glasgow, Scotland, UK, finding that existing projects are mostly centrally located, covering 36% of the total population (approximately 635,000) within a 10-minute walk. A positive correlation was found between walking travel time to the nearest urban agriculture project and food desert status, indicating access disparity. Using the Maximal Covering Location Problem model, the research identified that a minimum of 15 new urban agriculture projects on vacant and derelict land could increase population coverage to 49% and equalize access disparity to a statistically non-significant level.
Equity & displacementCommunityHealthFood sovereignty & justicePolicyImplementation, Benefits, And Challenges of The Gulayan Sa Paaralan Program in Lila District, Bohol
2023Imelda Cahiles, Ricardo Bullecer · ACADEME University of Bohol Graduate School and Professional Studies · Asia
A study assessing the implementation of the Gulayan sa Paaralan Program (GPP) in schools in Lila District, Bohol, Philippines, revealed that the overall program implementation was less implemented. While roles and responsibilities at the school level and the establishment and maintenance of school gardens were implemented to a moderate extent, capability building, program monitoring, sustainability mechanisms, and program evaluation were less implemented. Respondents generally perceived the program as moderately beneficial and reported that implementation-related problems were less serious.
Governance failureFood educationFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityPolicyBrazil’s Return to the Hunger Map: An Analysis of Public Policies and Effective Measures for Food Security
2023Ana Tereza Souza Domingos, Carolina Oliveira Mesquita, Emiliano Lôbo de Godoi, Thiago Augusto Mendes · Laws · Brazil
This bibliographical and documentary research analyzed the effectiveness of public food security policies in Brazil between 2012 and 2022, also considering urban agriculture as an alternative. It concluded that public policies were gradually weakened, and from 2019 to 2022, the Brazilian government discouraged food policy implementation. Consequently, Brazil faces food insecurity and hunger due to disjointed policies, the pandemic, and an economic crisis.
Governance failurePolicyFood sovereignty & justiceCommunity