Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
594 results(11 / 24)
Agricultura urbana e divulgação científica: quando a extensão tem em seu horizonte a mobilização social, a reflexão política e o enfrentamento de problemas sociais
2020Cristiana Guimarães Alves, Bráulio Silva Chaves, Lucas Araújo Dutra Rodrigues · Cadernos de Agroecologia · Brazil
In August 2017, the CEFET-MG Project "Cabana do Pai Tomas. to the Aglomerado da Serra: links between science, technology and education" in Brazil conducted activities to connect science, technology, and education. As part of this project, a ten-module Agroecology Course was offered, providing training to residents of Casa da Cabana, CEFET-MG students, and the general public on knowledge related to urban agriculture, food security, agroecology, the creation and maintenance of urban gardens, and social technologies.
CommunityFood educationFood sovereignty & justiceRECOMENDAÇÕES PARA A VALORIZAÇÃO DA BIODIVERSIDADE LOCAL A PARTIR DAS PLANTAS ALIMENTÍCIAS NÃO CONVENCIONAIS EM HORTAS COMUNITÁRIAS URBANAS
2020Layssa Kmiecik Layssa Kmiecik, André de Souza Lucca · Revista Gestão & Sustentabilidade Ambiental · Brazil (Curitiba)
This qualitative study, focused on the Cajuru Community Garden in Curitiba, Brazil, aimed to propose recommendations for projects promoting native Unconventional Food Plants (PANCs). Using bibliographic, documentary, field research, and surveys, it generated recommendations for communicating PANCs' qualities and for their sustainable cultivation and responsible consumption in urban community gardens.
CommunityBiodiversityFood sovereignty & justiceThe state of the art of school gardens as a pedagogical tool for the new environmental rationale paradigm in Butanta, Sao Paulo, Brazil
2020Beatriz Sinelli Laham, Francisco Melo Aires, Gabriel Akira Teshima Soto, Gustavo Lopumo Arruda · Brazilian Journal of Development · Brazil (São Paulo)
A mixed-methods approach was used to identify knowledge constructed during the implementation, maintenance, and didactic usage of school gardens in 15 municipal schools in Butantã, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Main difficulties identified were human resources, school staff integration, and financial resources, with a demand for specific training, especially for didactic usage. Access to quality soil posed the primary obstacle for garden maintenance, yet a general perception of positive effects on students' behavioral and pedagogical aspects was observed.
Food educationCommunityFood sovereignty & justice11. Community Gardens and Gentrification in New York City: The Uneven Politics of Facilitation, Accommodation, and Resistance
2020Justin Sean Myers, Prita Lal, Sofya Aptekar · New York University Press eBooks · United States (New York City)
This study traced the complex and contested relationship between food-producing community gardens and gentrification in three neighborhoods in New York City's outer boroughs. These gardens traditionally emerged in response to long-term attempts by City Hall to displace residents of color. The research examines how community gardeners respond to gentrification and the role of community gardens in facilitating, accommodating, or resisting it, discussing implications for realizing food justice.
Equity & displacementCommunityPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceFarming Food and Community
2020Theresa J Beardell · Digital Commons @ Connecticut College (Connecticut College) · United States
Sprout is a community garden and direct-to-consumer farm dedicated to building community and empowering individuals through the shared effort of growing and eating good food. Cultivation at Sprout is led by the conviction that good food is produced in a way that is ethical in both its environmental and social impacts.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceHealthOrganic cycleDiffering Visions of Agriculture: Industrial‐Chemical vs. Small Farm and Urban Organic Production
2020Heather Gray, K. Rashid Nuri · American Journal of Economics and Sociology · United States
This paper argues that industrial-chemical agriculture has abandoned the foundations of healthy agriculture, such as seed diversity and soil preservation, replacing them with genetically uniform crops. In contrast, it states that in the United States, small farms and urban agriculture are providing healthy food and reconnecting city dwellers with the life of the soil.
Food sovereignty & justiceOrganic cycleCommunityFostering Equitable Food Access and Healthy Eating through Social Innovation: A Description of the New Orleans Experience
2020Jacqueline Futch, Brittany Kovacs, Anjali Prasertong, K. O’Malley, Diego Rose · Current Developments in Nutrition · United States (New Orleans)
This 2020 study cataloged innovative food system organizations in New Orleans, USA, through an online survey of 65 directors in fall 2017. The survey found that 82% of organizations were founded after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, with 77% targeting low-income populations. While 69% belonged to coalitions, only 23% reported receiving federal grants, indicating an active NGO sector addressing food and nutrition issues largely without federal support.
CommunityHealthFood sovereignty & justice(Community) garden in the city: Conspicuous labor and gentrification
2020Fatmir Haskaj · Environment and Planning A Economy and Space · United States (New York City)
This article explores the historical context of community gardens in New York and Oakland, California, to understand and contest hegemonic forces in the urban environment. It posits that the work of gardeners is co-opted into a value regime through a process called "conspicuous labor." This process reconfigures the urban poor as productive, passive, and pastoral, contributing to gentrification.
Equity & displacementCommunityPolicyEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceUrban agriculture in the making or gardening as epistemology
2020Michael Granzow, Kevin Jones · Local Environment · Canada (Edmonton)
This paper explores the production of Prairie Urban Farm, an urban agricultural initiative in Edmonton, Canada. Drawing on interviews with regular volunteers and personal reflections, the analysis emphasizes everyday urban agriculture practices, understandings, and motivations, rather than limiting the understanding to official representations. The study pursues tensions between Prairie Urban Farm as a sustainability and food security initiative and more ambivalent understandings.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceFood educationPolicy10. “You Can’t Evict Community Power”: Food Justice and Eviction Defense in Oakland
2020Alison Hope Alkon, Yahya Josh Cadji, Frances C. Moore · New York University Press eBooks · United States (California)
In North Oakland, California, USA, collaborations between food justice organizations and residents, spurred by gentrification, were explored. The partnership and merger of Phat Beets Produce and the Self-Help Hunger Program were analyzed, initiated after a community garden was used in a gentrification advertisement in 2014. While this collaboration created a strong alliance, it was found to be insufficient to resist the structural forces driving gentrification.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyEconomicsFarming While Black: Soul Fire Farms Practical Guide To Liberation on the Land by Leah Penniman and Karen Washington
2020C. K. Cartagena · Southeastern geographer · United States
This paper reviews "Farming While Black: Soul Fire Farms Practical Guide To Liberation on the Land" by Leah Penniman and Karen Washington. The book serves as a step-by-step guide for Black farmers, detailing historical struggles and solutions against oppression and racial discrimination in the farming sector, including cases like Pigford v. Glickman and the over-policing of Ron Finley's property. It offers instruction on obtaining land and resources, farm business plans, land restoration, crop planning, preserving harvests, raising animals, urban farming, and movement building. The book acknowledges obstacles faced by Black farmers and aims to provide a reference for sustaining productive farmland and activism to achieve land autonomy.
Equity & displacementFood sovereignty & justiceWelfarePolicyCommunityAgricultura Urbana e Plantas Silvestres espontâneas: Cultivo e consumo para além do prato.
2020Mariella Camardelli Uzêda · Anais da Semana Científica Johanna Döbereiner · Brazil
This work aims to understand the origins of urban farmers in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and their traditions of cultivating and consuming spontaneous wild plants. It investigates how this knowledge of biodiversity has been preserved over time and influences current cultivation practices in areas like Colonia Juliano Moreira and Guaratiba. The study also explores opportunities to diversify agro-food systems with these wild plants to intensify ecosystem services such as pollination and biological pest control.
CommunityBiodiversityFood sovereignty & justiceOrganic cycleFrom Individual Seeds to Collective Harvests: Urban Agroecology as Political Action
2020Helda Morales, Bárbara Lazcano, Ana Isabel López García · · Mexico
This study compiles experiences from Mexico to explore how individual urban farming acts as an act of resistance. It describes food's role as a "common ground" where various political struggles intersect, including food sovereignty, gender equality, decolonization, climate change activism, indigenous rights, and social justice. The research also analyzes conditions that could facilitate a transition to broader political change and collective action, highlighting how planting actual seeds can yield not only ecological benefits but also social revolution.
Food sovereignty & justiceCommunityClimate changeAgricultura urbana contribui para a segurança alimentar no Brasil? O que nos diz a produção científica dos últimos dez anos
2020Moisés Savian, Mari Inês Caríssimi Boff, Pedro Boff · Cadernos de Agroecologia · Brazil
This study evaluated Brazilian scientific production from 2009 to 2018 on urban agriculture's contribution to food and nutritional security, analyzing 34 selected articles out of 612. It found that while agrobiodiversity is present in urban agriculture areas, pesticide use is a reality in some crop plots. The research suggests urban agriculture must be based on agroecology to avoid environmental contamination and produce healthy food.
Contamination & food safetyFood sovereignty & justiceBiodiversityOrganic cycleHealthHORTA URBANA: UM PROTÓTIPO COMPACTO E MÓVEL / VEGETABLE GARDEN: A COMPACT AND MOBILE PROTOTYPE
2020Luiz Orlando dos Santos, Fernanda Miguel Franco, Wagner da Cunha Siqueira, Arthur Guilherme Schirmbeck Chaves · Brazilian Journal of Development · Brazil (Cáceres-MT)
In Cáceres-MT, Brazil, a compact and mobile urban garden prototype was implemented in two residences with limited space. This system cultivated chives, coriander, and parsley, supplying enough food for a family of approximately 5 people during a 90-day monitoring period. A water reuse system was also integrated, and the mobile garden structure contributed to optimizing small spaces and producing healthy, low-cost food.
DIYFood sovereignty & justiceOrganic cycleBuilding Sustainable Local Food Solutions
2020Jennifer Sumner, Derya Tarhan, John Justin McMurtry · Working paper/Working paper CIRIEC ... · Canada
This paper explores how Indigenous communities in Canada address chronic food insecurity through the social and solidarity economy. Using a case study of the Northern Manitoba Food, Culture and Community Collaborative, it illustrates how local initiatives such as community gardens, greenhouses, and co-operatives contribute to achieving Sustainable Development Goals, particularly zero hunger. The paper emphasizes community ownership, control, and benefits as key aspects of these models.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceWelfareFood educationReconciliation and Resistance from the Ground Up: The Power of Affect in Chicago’s Community Gardens
2020Olivia Lee · Johns Hopkins University eBooks · United States (Chicago)
This study, drawing on affect theory, examines community gardens in Chicago's low-income, primarily Black South Side neighborhoods. It argues that while these gardens offer a spatial break from violence, they appear unable to fully counteract the ongoing marginalization by race and socioeconomic status. The gardens represent a quiet, nascent resistance against neoliberal injustices through intimate human-nature interaction.
Equity & displacementCommunityWelfareHealthFood sovereignty & justiceAgricultura urbana no semiárido: produção de plantas medicinais no sertão baiano
2020Rosy Kátia Souza Gonçalves, Hélder Ribeiro Freitas, Braz José do Nascimento Júnior, Lucas Ricardo Souza Almeida, Isabela Oliveira Leite, Amanda Santos Moura · · Brazil (Juazeiro)
This study mapped plant species cultivated and commercialized in the Community Garden of the Urban Social Center in Bairro Alto do Alencar, Juazeiro/BA, focusing on agroecological urban agriculture's role in medicinal plant production. Results showed that 61% of the 122 garden beds were occupied with medicinal herbs, regularly supplying basil, mallow, mastruz, holy leaf, and tanchagem, among others, to meet local demand. The cultivation of herbs, alongside vegetables, reflects a growing interest in health promotion through agroecological products.
CommunityHealthFood sovereignty & justiceAGRICULTURA URBANA E SOBERANIA ALIMENTAR: UMA REFLEXÃO SOBRE A IMPORTÂNCIA DAS PRÁTICAS SOCIOAMBIENTAIS NA GRANDE GOIÂNIA (GO)
2020Lara Cristine Gomes Ferreira, Stéfanny da Cruz Nóbrega · Revista GeoNordeste · Brazil (Goiânia)
This study explores agroecological urban agriculture in the Greater Goiânia region of Brazil, aiming to qualify the debate on its current relevance, understand the role of socio-biodiversity and food sovereignty, and foster dialogue through socio-environmental education. The methodology included a theoretical-bibliographical review, secondary data collection, and action research at a public school in Goiânia. The findings suggest that agroecological urban agriculture is an alternative to reduce the negative effects of agribusiness and minimize socio-environmental problems, highlighting the importance of family farming and education for food sovereignty and social equality.
Food sovereignty & justiceClimate changeCommunityGrowing Food, Sharing Culture at the Rainbow Community Garden in Winnipeg, Canada
2020Laura Lucas, Fabiana Li · Canadian Food Studies / La Revue canadienne des études sur l alimentation · Canada (Winnipeg)
The Rainbow Community Gardens in Winnipeg, Manitoba, is a community project supporting immigrant and refugee families in growing their own food. This photo essay examines the role of food and community gardens in expressing cultural identity and their possible benefits for community building, skill learning, and growing culturally appropriate foods for health and food security. These benefits gained new relevance due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceHealthFood educationWelfareMAPEAMENTO DE ESPAÇOS URBANOS VAZIOS PARA POSSÍVEL ELABORAÇÃO DE HORTAS COMUNITÁRIAS EM BARBACENA/MG: DESAFIOS E PROPOSIÇÕES
2020Leonardo Mendes da Silva, Vanessa Dutra, Delton Francelino, Natália Oliveira Dias · Enciclopédia Biosfera · Brazil (Barbacena)
Research was conducted in Barbacena, Minas Gerais, Brazil, to identify empty urban spaces and wastelands suitable for community gardens. The study, carried out by the Center for Studies in Urban Ecology, aimed to map these spaces for potential community garden proposals to public and private entities. Ten locations were selected based on specific criteria, and general perceptions were presented to facilitate understanding and dissemination, though the study did not intend to establish planting projects or direct community contact.
CommunityWelfareFood sovereignty & justicePolicyHolistic Pedagogies for Social Change: Reflections from an Urban Agroecology Farmer Training
2020Ana Galvis Martinez, Brooke A. Porter, Paul Rogé, Leah Atwood, Natalia Pinzón Jiménez · · United States (California)
The Bay Area Farmer Training (BAFT) program trained aspiring urban farming practitioners in agroecology, utilizing a pedagogy rooted in humanistic values, social justice, and decolonial and feminist frameworks. An analysis of BAFT from the perspectives of participants and founding educators led to recommendations for educators and program developers. These recommendations include training in restorative justice, cultivating cross-cultural dialogue, building trust, humanizing classrooms, preparing guest speakers, and designing values-centered curricula.
Food educationFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityA study of urban agriculture and its impact on food deserts
2020Jackson Green, Lauren Maunder, Kristina Gulczewski · VTechWorks (Virginia Tech) · United States
This project presents group research on urban agriculture as a tool for revitalizing urban food deserts, utilizing a website. The website provides definitions, explanations, and examples of food deserts, urban agriculture, and their combination. The project also includes an addendum to the Green New Deal, discussing government recognition of urban food deserts.
Food sovereignty & justicePolicyCommunityHealth13. Black Urban Growers and the Land Question in Cleveland: Externalities of Gentrification
2020Justine Lindemann · New York University Press eBooks · United States (Cleveland)
This chapter explores how gentrification in Cleveland, Ohio, impacts Black urban farmers' and gardeners' access to land in disinvested neighborhoods. It examines the ancillary effects of development on alternative land reuse efforts. The study highlights that despite a seemingly endless supply of vacant lots, gentrification negatively affects land access for these communities.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsThe underutilized role of community gardens in improving cities’ adaptation to climate change: a review
2019Mysha Clarke, Melissa Davidson, Monika Egerer, Elsa C. Anderson, Nakisha Fouch · People Place and Policy Online · United States
This paper argues that community gardens should be a prioritized element of green infrastructure to improve cities' adaptation to climate change. Community gardens can reduce urban heat islands, provide ecosystem services, and increase stormwater retention. However, a qualitative analysis of 18 policy documents for Baltimore, Chicago, and New York City, U.S.A., found that green infrastructure for climate change adaptation prioritizes rain gardens, bioswales, and green roofs, but seldom acknowledges the role of community gardens.
Governance failureCommunityClimate changePolicyFood sovereignty & justice