Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
455 results(4 / 19)
Always Been (English)
2024Yarrow Koning, Sofía Abreu · Occasional Paper Series · United States (Florida)
This abstract describes a nature journaling session held in a community garden as part of an LGBTQ+ youth summer day camp in Florida in summer 2022. The session took place shortly before new anti-LGBTQ+ laws, including the "Don't Say Gay" law, went into effect, which are intended to erase LGBTQ+ people and histories from schools and highlight the challenges faced by LGBTQ+ educators and youth.
Governance failureCommunityFood educationWelfareSpatial Barriers to Transforming toward a Healthy Food System in the Noreste of Mexico
2024Rob Roggema, Aleksandra Krstikj, B. J. Erazo Flores · Nutrients · Mexico (Monterrey)
This study in the Noreste of Mexico, focusing on Monterrey, investigated spatial and non-spatial barriers to adopting healthy diets and accessing plant-based foods. Findings revealed significant disparities in food access across the Monterrey metropolitan area, with central urban zones having superior access to fresh foods compared to suburban and peripheral regions. This inequality disproportionately affects marginalized areas with higher poverty rates, worsening food insecurity.
Equity & displacementHealthEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceUrban–rural linkageFactors Associated with Participation in Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) among Low-Income Households: A Scoping Review
2024Karla L. Hanson, Claire Concepcion, Leah C. Volpe · Nutrients · United States
This scoping review explored factors associated with Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) participation among low-income households in the United States. Analyzing 18 articles, findings suggested that women may be more likely than men to enroll in CSA. A lack of familiarity with CSA may hinder enrollment, whereas more education and self-efficacy for food preparation may facilitate participation.
Equity & displacementCSA & TeikeiWelfareEconomicsHow healthy are horticultural plants cultivated in urban gardens in polluted cities? The case of Mexico City
2024Ivonne Alonso Durán, Elizabeth Hernández-Álvarez, Ofelia Mortón-Bermea, Javier Castro-Larragoitia, Margarita Collazo-Ortega · Revista Internacional de Contaminación Ambiental · Mexico (Mexico City)
This study investigated the concentrations of 15 metal(loid)s in four vegetables (tomato, onion, chili, lettuce) cultivated in four urban garden locations in Mexico City. While soil analysis showed only vanadium exceeded Mexican limits in one location, various vegetables harvested in the study exceeded international recommended limits for cadmium, mercury, and lead. Lettuce exhibited the highest metal concentrations and transfer factors, with exceptionally high transfer factors for cadmium in lettuce and mercury in tomato.
Contamination & food safetyHealthCultivando espacios socioambientales : perspectivas y transformaciones a través de la agricultura urbana y periurbana en el municipio de Foz do Iguaçu – PR.
2024Exzolvildres Queiroz Neto, Gilson Brandão de Oliveira Junior, Marcelha Silva de Andrade, Suncar Dabo, Geisiane Michelle Zanquetta de Pintor · LA Referencia (Red Federada de Repositorios Institucionales de Publicaciones Científicas) · Brazil
This article presents reflections on the practice of Urban and Peri-urban Agriculture (AUP) and its impact on land use and occupation in Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil. The research raised several questions concerning rural-urban dynamics, the specificities of urban family farmers, and the complexity of land use in the municipality. Diagnostic results from a semi-structured research guide will be used as an empirical basis for further reflection, and the abstract does not state specific research findings or critical findings regarding governance.
Governance failurePeri-urban agricultureUrban–rural linkagePolicyInvestigating the Social Relations of Community Gardens for Adult Education
2024Mitchell McLarnon · Canadian Journal for the Study of Adult Education · Canada
This paper described and analyzed the social relations emerging from an adult education internship and community-based garden project in Montreal, Canada. Using institutional ethnography, it uncovered how adult education internships in community gardens and gardening programming can produce disproportionate outcomes for adult learners, community workers, and community members. It elucidated that specific institutional contrivances, such as funding, policy, work processes, and discourse, structure and define who experiences access to gardens, gardening, its ostensible health and well-being benefits, and adult education.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood educationPolicyAssessing Healthy Effects between Local Level Farmer’s Markets and Community-Supported Agriculture and Physical Well-Being at the State Level
2024Patsy Kraeger, Rhonda Phillips, J. H. Lubin, Jonathan Weir, Kristina R. Patterson · Sustainability · United States
This study investigated the connection between local farmers markets (FMs), community-supported agriculture (CSAs), and physical well-being at the state level across the 50 states of the United States. Analyzing 2016 data from the United States Department of Agriculture using an ordinal logistic regression model, the study found an inconclusive relationship at the state level. While local FMs and CSAs may increase physical well-being, this study did not find such an increase.
Limited or null effectCSA & TeikeiHealthEconomicsUrban Agriculture as a Public Good: Valuing Farming and Gardening in Philadelphia and Chicago
2024Domenic Vitiello · Urban agriculture · United States
US cities have developed urban agriculture support systems reflecting competing values, with some prioritizing public good and others economic gains. A chapter reflecting on urban agriculture planning in Chicago and Philadelphia notes that institutional structures significantly impact equity and justice. The study indicates that the existing urban agriculture support systems in these cities may not adequately promote equity and justice.
Equity & displacementPolicyCommunityEconomicsHealthCommunity gardens support high levels of food production, but benefit distribution is uneven across the gardener community
2024Brenda B. Lin, Peter Bichier, Heidi Liere, Monika Egerer, Stacy M. Philpott, Shalene Jha · Sustainability Science · United States (California)
A study of 18 urban community gardens in Central Coast, California, USA, used gardener surveys and field measurements to evaluate food production and its distribution. Gardeners produced an average of four pounds of food per week, saving an estimated $16 USD weekly. However, gardeners with greater food insecurity (larger families or lower incomes) were not the largest producers, indicating uneven benefit distribution despite high overall productivity.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsA review of food asset maps in Canada
2024Belinda Li, Tammara Soma, Raghava Payment, Srishti Kumar, Nicole Anderson, Flora Xu, Phonpoom Piensatienkul · Canadian Food Studies / La Revue canadienne des études sur l alimentation · Canada
This study reviewed and categorized 73 food asset maps in Canada based on their included food assets and design characteristics. Most maps included built environment assets like grocery stores and food banks, as well as agriculture-based natural food assets such as farms, community gardens, and orchards. However, representations of Indigenous-focused food assets and non-agriculture-based natural food assets like forests, water bodies, and foraging areas were generally lacking. This lack of Indigenous perspectives reinforces the values of a settler-colonial food system within food asset maps.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyEconomicsMarginalised agrarian traditions as a tool for climate justice
2024Finn Bell · Critical and Radical Social Work · United States (Ypsilanti)
This qualitative study explored how marginalized agrarian traditions can aid communities in surviving climate change, conducting in-depth interviews with 23 marginalized food growers and community leaders in Ypsilanti, Michigan. The study found that while growing food builds resilience to food insecurity and climate change, it is difficult due to land injustice. Policy implications include the need for housing justice, proactive planning for climate refuges, and reparations for land rematriation.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceClimate changeGreen resilience: Securing life through vegetal being
2024Delf Rothe · Political Geography · United States (New York City)
This paper critically examines the concept of "green resilience" through a case study of various green resilience projects in New York City, including survivor trees, memorial groves, and community gardens. The study argues that these spaces function as key forms of state rule and biopolitical power, identifying three tensions or contradictions of green resilience as a form of biopolitical government: visibility and invisibility, knowledge and ignorance, and control and emergence.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceGrowing together or growing apart? A study of food donation community garden programming during the COVID-19 pandemic
2024Moses Wanyakha, Nancy Grudens‐Schuck, Ann M. Oberhauser · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · United States (Iowa)
This study investigated resilience and vulnerabilities in fresh produce donation partnership programs to food pantries in Iowa during the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings revealed a significant decrease in labor hours during the pandemic years of 2020–2021, attributed to government policies and social distancing requirements. Volunteer shortages, donation inconsistency, and exclusionary community practices appeared to be inherent vulnerabilities of volunteer-based food donation programs.
Limited or null effectCommunityWelfareFood lossPolicyA profile of urban agricultural growers, organizations, their needs, and challenges in the Northeastern United States
2024Matthew L. Richardson, John Taylor, Megan J. Thompson, Anusuya Rangarajan, Mamatha Hanumappa, Neith G. Little · PLoS ONE · United States (Northeastern United States)
This online survey of 394 urban growers, primarily in the Northeastern United States, profiled growers and assessed urban agriculture's state, identifying needs and challenges. Most growers were white (non-Hispanic), under 45, well-educated but without agriculture degrees. Urban agriculture was dominated by small non-profits and home/community gardens. A critical finding is that urban growers face diverse barriers, with the most common being land availability and long-term access in urban areas, and many reported low revenue or operating at a net loss.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsUrban–rural linkageFood sovereignty & justiceThe Practical Ethics of Urban Agriculture in Public Housing
2024Nevin Cohen, Michael H. Stein, Annie Hancock, Alfonso Morales · Urban agriculture · United States
This paper examined two housing authority-led urban agriculture projects in New York City and Denver, Colorado, highlighting their multidimensional benefits such as skill-building and community cohesion. While these projects improved residents' daily experiences, the study noted that social problems persist despite new interactions. The analysis emphasized the need to consider both stated and implicit goals in urban agriculture ethics, acknowledging that attempts to harmonize competing claims are at the root of urban agriculture practices.
Equity & displacementCommunityPolicyHealthWelfareMETODOLOGIA PARA AÇÕES COMUNITÁRIAS SUSTENTÁVEIS – PRÁTICAS DE INTEGRAÇÃO DO MODELO DAS CINCO HÉLICES EM UMA HORTA COMUNITÁRIA BRASILEIRA
2024Rosângela Míriam Lemos Oliveira Mendonça, Samantha de Oliveira Nery, Ediméia Maria Ribeiro de Mello · MIX Sustentável · Brazil
This paper presents a methodology applicable to sustainable community actions, developed from seven years of experience with low-income communities in a Brazilian community garden. The methodology is based on participatory action research, systemic design, agroecology, food sovereignty, and solidarity economy principles. The study demonstrates the importance of integrated work among the elements of the quintuple helix model (society, government, industry, academia, and environment), but it does not detail specific challenges or limitations regarding governance.
Governance failureCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceWelfarePolicyFAZENDA VERTICAL COMO MODELO SUSTENTÁVEL DE AGRICULTURA URBANA
2023Renata Priore Lima, Lady Laura Soares Gundim · Revista Gestão & Sustentabilidade Ambiental · Brazil (São Paulo)
This study investigates the benefits of vertical farms as a sustainable food production model in cities. Through a literature review and a case study of Pink Farms in São Paulo, Brazil, the results indicate benefits such as energy and land use optimization, but also highlight the ecological, social, and landscape limitations of vertical farms.
Environmental trade-offsDigital agricultureClimate changeEconomicsMapping and characterizing the urban and periurban agriculture in Porto Alegre, Brazil
2023Geisa Zanini Rorato, Eugenia Aumond Kuhn, Bruno Luan Soares Paula de Mello, Rodrigo Vitória Alves, Giulia Togni Geremia · LA Referencia (Red Federada de Repositorios Institucionales de Publicaciones Científicas) · Brazil (Porto Alegre)
This study mapped and characterized 82 urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) initiatives in Porto Alegre, Brazil. It found that educational and health-related initiatives with social and ecological objectives predominated. A significant finding was that only half of these initiatives were active at the time of the survey, with the rest being inactive or closed, indicating structural fragilities, especially in peripheral and less dense areas impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Economic viabilityFood educationHealthCommunityPeri-urban agricultureUrban agriculture in California: Lessons learned from an urban farmer workshop series
2023Rachel Surls, Rob Bennaton, Gail Feenstra, Ramiro E. Lobo, Alda F. A. Pires, Jennifer Sowerwine, Julia Van Soelen Kim, Cheryl A. Wilen · California Agriculture · United States (California)
From 2017 to 2018, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) researchers conducted a series of 16 workshops for urban farmers in California. The evaluation found that economic issues such as profitability and land access are among the greatest barriers for urban farming in California. While networking among participants was an unexpected positive outcome, urban farmers expressed a need for more opportunities for mentoring and building partnerships.
Economic viabilityEconomicsCommunityFood educationSchool Gardens and the Urban Child
2023Angela Oulton, Susan Jagger · · North America
A discourse analysis of historical school garden texts in North America reveals that school gardens have not been welcoming or accessible to all children, despite persuasive research on the positive effects of nature-based learning. Historically, school gardens were used to serve adult agendas, including containing urban children, assimilating marginalized groups, and creating laborers, thereby reinforcing patriarchal, colonial, white supremacist, and eugenic aspirations. This study explores how these discourses culturally constructed childhoods and influenced children.
Equity & displacementFood educationCommunityHealthPolicyRunoff Water Quality from Different Urban Agricultural Systems Using Common Nutrient Management Practices
2023Leigh Whittinghill, Major Ballard, Anju Chaudhary, Smriti Kandel, Caitlin Mullins, Pradip Poudel · HortScience · United States
This study analyzed runoff water quality from four different nutrient management treatments (conventional fertilizer, organic fertilizer, low-compost + organic fertilizer, and high compost) in raised beds and small plastic pool container plots in the United States. Water samples, collected monthly, were analyzed for pH, conductivity, color, turbidity, nitrate-nitrogen, ammonia-nitrogen, total phosphorus, and potassium. While significant differences existed between raised beds and container plots, these did not translate to meaningful water quality differences for most variables, except for nitrate-nitrogen. The conventional fertilizer treatment showed greater or more variable nutrient leaching than other treatments.
Environmental trade-offsOrganic cycleClimate changeDIYUnderstanding Barriers and Strategies to Accessing Healthy Food in Urban Agriculture for Community Residents in Predominantly Black Communities
2023Saria Lofton, Akilah Martin, Marjorie Kersten, Nanyombi Lubimbi, Helene Vilme, Forgive Avorgbedor, Angela Odoms‐Young · Community Health Equity Research & Policy · United States (Chicago)
This study interviewed 17 urban growers and local food advocates in predominantly Black communities in Chicago to understand barriers to accessing healthy food through urban agriculture. Key barriers identified were the lack of accessibility to traditional food retailers, the high availability of processed foods, and issues with the cultural acceptability of urban-produced foods. The research highlights significant challenges faced by these communities in accessing healthy food despite urban agriculture's potential.
Equity & displacementHealthCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsEducação para alimentação saudável: experiências com hortas escolares na educação básica
2023Alvorí Ahlert, Tatiane Fátima Nandi · REVISTA DE EDUCACIÓN AMBIENTAL Y SOSTENIBILIDAD · Brazil (Paraná)
A qualitative and quantitative study in schools bordering Lake Itaipu in western Paraná, Brazil, verified the use of school gardens as an environmental education tool. The research applied questionnaires to public elementary, primary, and special education teachers in the region. Findings showed that most teachers favored using school gardens but found it difficult to teach students about their importance due to a lack of technical knowledge on the subject.
Limited or null effectFood educationCommunityHealthPanorama das Leis de Agricultura Urbana no Brasil: Relações com o Planejamento Urbano
2023M. Kühn, Geisa Zanini Rorato, Bruno César Euphrasio de Mello, Carolina Cristófoli Falcão · Ambiente & sociedade · Brazil
This research surveyed federal and state urban agriculture (UA) laws in Brazil to analyze their implications for urban planning (UP). Findings indicate that despite an increase in approved laws, there is no articulated national policy, laws vaguely address UA's interfaces with UP, and they do not objectively tackle territorial challenges faced by UA.
Governance failurePolicyUrban–rural linkageFood sovereignty & justiceSecondary Non-Traditional, Urban Agriculture Students of Color and Their Motivation to Stay in Agriculture: A Study of Retention
2023Callan Hand, D. Barry Croom, James C. Anderson, Ashley M. Yopp, Aaron Golson · Career and Technical Education Research · United States
This phenomenological study investigated the motivations of non-traditional urban agriculture students of color to remain in agriculture. Findings suggest that while systematic instruction in agricultural sciences and positive local youth organization experiences contribute to a favorable perception of agriculture, they do not necessarily lead to a career preference for agriculture among these students. Furthermore, urban students of color perceived that the FFA Organization above the school level is not inclusive of them.
Equity & displacementFood educationCommunityHealth