Research & reports

Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.

3 results

• Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment of Urban Wastewater Reuse: Successes, Persistent Pitfalls, and a Practical Path Forward

  2026

  Eleonora Santos, Zeeshan Arshad · Sustainability · Global

  This critical narrative review synthesized evidence from 25 peer-reviewed studies on Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) applications in urban municipal wastewater reuse. While positive outcomes were reported under specific conditions like low-carbon energy grids and short transport distances, persistent methodological pitfalls were identified. These include weak pillar integration, an underdeveloped social dimension, inconsistent system boundaries, and insufficient consideration of absolute sustainability.

  Methodological critiqueClimate changeOrganic cyclePolicy
  Read source →DOI: 10.3390/su18147291

• Evaluation Methodologies for Circular Economy in Municipal Composting and Urban Agriculture: a Literature Review with Focus on Latin America

  2025

  Sofía Aguado, Helena Cotler, Marta Astier, Alejandro Padilla‐Rivera · Circular Economy and Sustainability · Latin America

  This literature review examined methodologies applicable to municipal composting systems linked to urban agricultural production, with a specific focus on the Latin American context. It revealed a lack of structured methodologies to assess the circularity of municipal organic waste management systems and their connection with urban agriculture, particularly in heterogeneous contexts like Latin American cities, despite numerous existing evaluation methods. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is commonly used but often prioritizes environmental impacts, neglecting social, economic, and circularity dimensions.

  Methodological critiqueCompostOrganic cycleEconomicsClimate change
  Read source →DOI: 10.1007/s43615-025-00582-8

• Understanding Multiple Ecosystem Services of Urban Agriculture Across Scales

  2023

  Jiangxiao Qiu, Hui Zhao · EDIS · Global

  This overview identified eight ecosystem services generally attributed to urban agriculture, including food production, microclimate regulation, stormwater retention, and social-cultural values. However, the study found that quantitative evidence for many of these ecosystem services, especially intangible ones, is scarce. It suggests that while urban agriculture could be integral to green infrastructure, further consideration is needed for types, technology, management, and potential tradeoffs.

  Methodological critiqueBiodiversityClimate changeHealthOrganic cyclePolicyCommunity
  Read source →DOI: 10.32473/edis-fr461-2023