Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
155 results(2 / 7)
The Role of Urban Farming in Enhancing Food Security and Sustainability in Lagos Metropolis: A Stakeholder Analysis
2025S Aliyu, Okhimamhe A. A, I. M. Sule · International Journal of Research and Innovation in Applied Science · Nigeria (Lagos)
This study explored the role of urban farming in enhancing food security and sustainability in the Lagos Metropolis through focus group discussions and quantitative surveys with various stakeholders, including policymakers, urban farmers, and community members. Findings suggest urban farming's potential to reduce food transportation distances, enhance local food production, and mitigate climate change impacts. However, challenges such as land demands and gender disparities persist, necessitating integrated policy approaches and targeted educational programs.
Equity & displacementFood sovereignty & justiceClimate changeCommunityPolicyPeri-urbanization and smallholder farmers’ socio-economic marginality in peri-urban Addis Ababa
2025Girma Mulu Alemu, Sophie Schramm, Wilbard Kombe · Cogent Social Sciences · Ethiopia (Addis Ababa)
This qualitative study in peri-urban Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, explored the impacts of peri-urbanization on smallholder farmers' socio-economic conditions. The research found that peri-urbanization leads to the erosion of capital assets, with dwindling agricultural land causing tenure insecurity and disrupting livelihoods. This process exacerbates smallholder farmers' marginality by weakening social ties and mutual support systems.
Equity & displacementPeri-urban agriculturePolicyEconomicsCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceCidade-Campo no Brasil: dinâmicas e contradições
2025Paulo Ricardo Santos Miranda · Revista Mutirõ Folhetim de Geografias Agrárias do Sul · Brazil
A collection of 13 chapters explores the interactions between city and countryside in Brazil, critically examining how capital traverses urban and rural territories, promoting expropriation and spatial reconfigurations. Studies on Uberlândia, Montes Claros, São Paulo, and the North and Northeast regions highlight land conflicts, peripheral industrialization, urban agriculture, and peasant resistance. The work emphasizes the ambiguous role of the State.
Equity & displacementUrban–rural linkageCommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyEffect of Forced Eviction and Land Grabs on Household Economic Capital Security of Displaced Pre-Urban Farmers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
2025Kejela Gnamura, Michael Akwasi Antwi, A Belete · Land · Ethiopia (Addis Ababa)
This mixed-methods study investigated the effects of urbanization-induced displacement on economic capital security by comparing 223 evicted and 223 non-evicted peri-urban farming households in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Logistic regression and thematic content analysis revealed that evicted households are approximately 72.7% less likely to achieve economic security compared to non-evicted households. The study concluded significant differences in household economic capital security between the two groups.
Equity & displacementPeri-urban agricultureEconomicsPolicyCommunityWelfareIn full bloom
2025Susanne Berliner · · Global
This narration observes a community garden as a space of social diversity, functioning as a "cosmopolitan canopy" where people from different backgrounds interact. While a cosmopolitan spirit exists, the garden is not neutral; its permeable boundaries and internal segregation indicate it is permeated by power dynamics and control.
Equity & displacementCommunityHealthPolicyWelfareUrban Planning Policies and Architectural Design for Sustainable Food Security: A Case Study of Smart Cities in Indonesia
2025Rafi Haikal, Thoriqi Firdaus, Herdis Herdiansyah, Rizqi Shafira Chairunnisa · Sustainability · Indonesia
This study investigated the relationship between urban planning policies and architectural design in fostering sustainable food systems in 75 smart cities in Indonesia, using a mixed-methods approach. Key findings revealed that food security is significantly undermined by the Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP), indicating distributional inequalities, high food expenditure, and a lack of clean water. Conversely, access to electricity improves resilience.
Equity & displacementPolicyEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceMulheres e Agroecologia no Município de São Paulo. Um estudo sobre agricultura em territórios periféricos
2024Clara Camargo · Revista Latino-americana de Geografia e Genero · Brazil (São Paulo)
This study investigates the socioeconomic profile and agroecological production strategies of female urban farmers in São Paulo's peripheral territories, using Feminist Economy Theory and Ecofeminism perspectives. It highlights that while these women are crucial for food security and green spaces, they remain largely invisible in economic theories and have limited access to public policies due to their non-generation of direct monetary income. The methodology included participant observation in RAPPA meetings, semi-structured interviews, and guided tours of women-led production units.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyEconomicsRénover Cleveland : démolition, racisme et agriculture urbaine dans l’Amérique abandonnée
2024Pierric Calenge, Maie Gérardot · Métropolitiques · United States (Cleveland)
The work by Max Rousseau and Vincent Béal illuminates the ambiguities of a policy that organizes urban decline and racial segregation in Cleveland. This policy promotes urban degrowth and racial segregation, balancing algorithmic management and urban greening. The study focuses on the Rust Belt region, which experiences de-urbanization marked by the subprime crisis, racism, and segregation.
Equity & displacementCommunityPolicyEconomicsUrban–rural linkageFood sovereignty & justiceHealthWelfareClimate changeBiodiversityFood educationElderlyFood lossOrganic cyclePollinatorsHeirloom & landraceFood miles & supply chainCSA & TeikeiPeri-urban agricultureDigital agricultureDIYCompostFood educationWelfareElderlyFood lossOrganic cycleCommunityBiodiversityPollinatorsPolicyHealthEconomicsHeirloom & landraceUrban–rural linkageFood miles & supply chainCSA & TeikeiPeri-urban agricultureClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceDigital agriculturePlanning for Equitable Urban Agriculture: Opportunities and Quandaries
2024Samina Raja · Urban agriculture · United States
Urban agriculture initiatives in US cities face complications, including information asymmetry and elite capture, which limit their potential for equitable development. This chapter introduces a volume exploring the opportunities and quandaries in addressing questions of equity in the research, pedagogy, and practice of planning for urban agriculture.
Equity & displacementPolicyCommunityHealthCodification and Inclusivity of Landmark Urban Agriculture Initiatives in Madison and Dane County, Wisconsin
2024Micaela F. Lipman, Marcia Caton Campbell · Urban agriculture · United States (Wisconsin)
This chapter examines local government food systems policy and planning in Madison and Dane County, Wisconsin. Despite a history of regulatory innovation in urban agriculture, the city and county have been slow to address food injustices in local food systems planning and policy development. The study highlights local government collaboration with the nonprofit sector and how codification of goals supports or hinders urban agriculture.
Equity & displacementPolicyCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceHealthSpatial Accessibility Disparities and Users’ Opinion Assessment of Khartoum State Public Green Spaces
2024Ahmed Alhuseen, H. M. A. M. Omer, Eva Pauditšová, Hussein M. Sulieman, Mária Kozová, Pavel Cudlín · · Sudan (Khartoum)
A study assessed spatial accessibility disparities and users' opinions regarding public green spaces (UGSs) in Khartoum State, Sudan. Using GIS and questionnaires, it evaluated potential accessibility to 44 urban parks, community gardens, and city forests within 5, 10, and 15-minute travel intervals. Results showed inequitable access opportunities to UGSs, primarily favoring first-class residential areas. Within a 5-minute walking interval, the UGSs service zone covered less than 1% of the population. User opinion assessment revealed that 80% of parks required entrance fees, and the study concluded that UGS accessibility does not correspond to international quality of life indices.
Equity & displacementCommunityUrban–rural linkageHealthPolicyUsing Cellphones for Visualizing the Social and Environmental Relations of Community Gardens
2024Mitchell McLarnon · · Global
This chapter describes the practice, processes, and ethical tensions of using cell phones for visual data collection, representation, and analysis in school/community garden research projects. The findings suggest that while gardens and cell phones have the potential for enhancing experiential learning, increased well-being, and ecological awareness, their use needs to be highly contextualized within critical discussions related to settler colonialism, consumerism, neoliberalism, and (green) gentrification.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood educationBiodiversityClimate changeHealthPolicyUrban Green Spaces and Healthy Living: A Landscape Architecture Perspective
2024Alessio Russo · Urban Science · Global
This paper synthesizes existing literature to examine the essential role of urban green spaces in fostering healthy living, emphasizing their strong positive associations with physical, mental, and social wellbeing. It discusses the importance of designing attractive and accessible green spaces that encourage physical activity and mental health, and the potential of local food production for diet improvement. The study also highlights disparities in access to quality green spaces, particularly between the Global North and South, advocating for equitable design strategies.
Equity & displacementHealthCommunityEconomicsPolicyLand for Livelihoods
2024Ricardo Jacobs · Oxford University Press eBooks · Global
This chapter argues that rapid urbanization and global capitalism are destroying established livelihoods faster than creating new ones, leading to a growing surplus population. Dispossessed rural classes are reproducing themselves in urban spaces and converging with wage laborers to create agricultural livelihoods in cities of both the global South and North. This makes urban agriculture an important arena for land struggles and a livelihood option, shaping urbanization and socioecological relations.
Equity & displacementEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceUrban–rural linkagePolicy“It's about how you use your privilege”: Privilege, Power, and Social (In)justice in Berlin's Community Food Spaces
2024Ophélie Véron · Antipode · Germany (Berlin)
This paper, based on activist ethnography in Berlin's community gardens, people's kitchens, and co-operative projects, explores how community food spaces reproduce, exacerbate, or dismantle power relations and socio-environmental injustices. It systematically examines exclusion and inclusion dynamics, arguing that diversity alone is not a sufficient indicator of social equity and can overshadow forms of injustice. The study exposes the complex, dual nature of Berlin's food activist landscape, where privilege and power contribute to social inequities.
Equity & displacementCommunityPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceInvestigating 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 educationPolicyUrban 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 & displacementPolicyCommunityEconomicsHealthGREEN INFORMALITIES AS SOCIALLY JUST ECOLOGICAL INFRASTRUCTURE: Enduring with Dignity at the Edges of Resilient Development in Dhaka
2024Efadul Huq · International Journal of Urban and Regional Research · Bangladesh (Dhaka)
This article argues that in the global South, ecological infrastructure often displaces marginalized urban dwellers by erasing existing informal agricultural practices, or "green informalities." Based on research with urban farmers facing eviction in Dhaka, Bangladesh, it highlights that these green informalities are crucial for understanding grassroots practices and collective power-building. The study advocates for recognizing the political and affective dimensions of informal urban agriculture as a socially just ecological infrastructure that prioritizes justice and dweller agency.
Equity & displacementFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityWelfarePolicyEconomicsInvestigating the role of women producers in alternative food networks implementing organic farming in Berlin Brandenburg
2024Faiza Darkhani · Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · Germany (Berlin)
A qualitative content analysis of interviews with active female respondents in community-supported agriculture, food cooperatives, and self-harvest gardens in Berlin Brandenburg revealed challenges faced by women in alternative food networks. Interviewees expressed optimism but emphasized the need for increased governmental support and community engagement, and the data highlighted demands for gender equality improvements and support mechanisms.
Equity & displacementCommunityCSA & TeikeiPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceHandmade Spaces: Creative Placemaking in a Local Neighborhood
2024Silvia Gullino, Heidi Seetzen · · United Kingdom (London)
This ethnographic research in a former Victorian square in South London examined how residents transformed derelict spaces, including creating two community gardens, over three decades. The study found that while informal, bottom-up practices shaped a vibrant urban culture, the neighborhood is now undergoing progressive gentrification. This gentrification reflects trends in other London neighborhoods, posing challenges to community initiatives.
Equity & displacementCommunityPolicyA 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 & justicePolicyEconomicsGreen Informalities as Socially Just Ecological Infrastucture: Enduring with Dignity at the Edges of Resilient Development in Dhaka
2024Huq, Efadul · Smith ScholarWorks (Smith College) · Bangladesh (Dhaka)
Research in Dhaka, Bangladesh, indicates that ecological infrastructure often erases existing informal agricultural practices, leading to the displacement of marginalized urban dwellers. Based on engaged research with a collective of urban farmers facing eviction, this paper argues that green informalities are crucial for understanding grassroots practices and can be appreciated as socially just ecological infrastructure.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyWelfareThe 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 & displacementCommunityPolicyHealthWelfareSchool 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 educationCommunityHealthPolicyHow common is greening in gentrifying areas?
2023Jessica Quinton, Lorien Nesbitt, James J. Connolly, Elvin Wyly · Urban Geography · Canada
This descriptive analysis identified gentrifying areas in Vancouver, Calgary, and Toronto, Canada, from 1996–2006 and 2006–2016, to determine the prevalence of greening interventions. The study found that greening, including parks, cycle lanes, and community gardens, frequently occurred before, during, and after gentrification. These results indicate that greening is common in gentrifying areas throughout the gentrification process, suggesting a need for a broader understanding of the relationship between urban greening and gentrification.
Equity & displacementCommunityPolicyEconomics