Research & reports

Heru Purwandari, Arabella Faiza Mardhiyah Husni Putri · Journal of Social Science and Human Ecology · Global

This research investigated the correlation between KWT (women farmer groups) participation and the sustainability of the KRL Katulampa waste management program, which incorporates urban farming using processed waste. A census of all KWT Berkah members was conducted using questionnaires and in-depth interviews. The study found a correlation between KWT community participation and the program's sustainability, but noted that urban farming needs to be complemented by other activities to ensure significant economic benefits beyond social advantages.

Sriyanto Sriyanto, Eva Banowati, Edi Kurniawan, Fikri Amrullah, Ervando Tommy Al-Hanif · Society Jurnal Pengabdian dan Pemberdayaan Masyarakat · Indonesia (Karimunjawa)

This participatory urban farming program in Karimunjawa, Indonesia, aimed to improve community welfare and food security by empowering village women and youth to utilize their yards. Through socialization, training, and mentoring in techniques like polybag farming and composting, the program increased community farming skills. Evaluation via surveys, interviews, and observations showed most participants successfully applied techniques, producing food for consumption and experiencing economic benefits and improved food availability.

Shanurasab K Nadaf, VR Yadahalli, Bebijan Nadaf · International Journal of Advanced Biochemistry Research · Global

This review explores the motivations and practical strategies for growing food in small urban spaces, addressing challenges like limited space and poor soil. It discusses techniques such as vertical gardening, container planting, hydroponics, and raised beds, along with crop selection and resource optimization. The article also examines challenges, success stories, and the role of technology in making urban gardening accessible.

Maria de Nazareth Oliveira Maciel, Luann Yago Oliveira Maciel · Aracê. · Global

This descriptive review study examined whether urban agriculture aligns with SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) of Agenda 2030 and generates social benefits for producers, analyzing articles published from 2019 to 2022 from Scielo, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. The results showed that urban agriculture aligns with SDG 12, generating ten main social benefits, including improved quality of life, social inclusion, food security, and promotion of mental and physical health.

Kassa Moges Tareke · Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · Ethiopia (Addis Ababa)

This study examined the impact of conditional cash transfers (CTs) from a safety net program on financial inclusion, urban agriculture participation, and food security among 278 women beneficiaries in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, since 2017. After receiving CTs, 94% of respondents owned bank accounts and participated in urban agriculture as an additional income source, improving access to savings, credit, mobile banking, financial advice, and farm incomes. However, 61.5% (171) of women households were food insecure, indicating that while the program moderately improved financial inclusion and slightly increased food-secured women, its overall contribution to food security remains inadequate.

Pierluigi Siano, Isam Shahrour, Silvano Vergura · Journal of Urban Development and Smart Cities · Germany

This study presents a participatory Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) framework for evaluating urban agriculture in compact cities, based on a two-stage German case design. A European expert survey (35 responses) identified priority sub-criteria, and a German stakeholder survey (141 responses) weighted these criteria. The AHP structure prioritized the environmental dimension (42%), with biodiversity receiving the highest priority and food quality and safety the lowest.

Florien Misago, Isaac Nzayisenga, Henri Jacques Ngirinshuti, Leon De Pere Irakoze, Richard Mind’je · East African Journal of Agriculture and Biotechnology · Rwanda (Kigali)

This study evaluated the potential of rooftop and wall-based urban agriculture to enhance food security in Gasabo District, Kigali, Rwanda. It used GIS and remote sensing to map suitable spaces and assessed 400 household heads using the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS). Findings showed that 41.5% of households experienced moderate to severe food insecurity, and approximately 32% of rooftops and walls were structurally appropriate for urban agriculture. While 57.8% of households expressed willingness to adopt rooftop or wall gardening, 67.4% cited structural and financial constraints.

Ibnu Akmal Khuluqi, Muhammad Azhari, Rahmawati Munir · TRANSFORM Journal of Tropical Architecture and Sustainable Urban Science · Indonesia (Bontang Baru)

A qualitative case study in Guyub Rukun RT 18, Bontang Baru, Indonesia, investigated the implementation of urban farming. The study found that urban farming improved local food security, strengthened social ties, and was supported by CSR funds. However, it faced challenges such as limited technology and resources, which were overcome through manual adaptation and cross-sector collaboration.

Rahmawati Setiyani, Esti Dwi Rahmawati · MESTAKA Jurnal Pengabdian Kepada Masyarakat · Indonesia

This community service activity in Indonesia aimed to improve digital marketing literacy among members of the Sugih Waras Women's Farmers Group. The activity involved delivering materials on agricultural commodity production and digital marketing, followed by interactive discussions and evaluations. Results indicated an increase in knowledge among members, who committed to continuing the activity to support food security.

Gokulakrishnan G, Navaneetha Krishnan T, Tamilselvan D, S Sanjeevkumar, Devaganesh A, Janani N, K. Arunadevi, Balaji Kannan · Madras Agricultural Journal · Global

This review explores vertical farming, a method that uses stacked layers in controlled environments for year-round crop production with reduced resource use. It assesses the environmental and economic advantages of vertical farming, while critically examining its limitations, including high energy demands and limited crop diversity. The study highlights that despite its potential, vertical farming faces challenges regarding economic viability due to high energy consumption.

Luh Kadek Pande Sri Astrini, Suluh Dewanto · Agricultural Power Journal · Indonesia

This study analyzed the adoption of verticulture technology within sustainable horticultural systems in major Indonesian production centers, including West Java, East Java, and North Sumatra. Using a descriptive quantitative approach with secondary data, field surveys, and semi-structured interviews, results showed verticulture enhances land-use efficiency by up to 85%, reduces water consumption by 60%, and decreases reliance on synthetic chemical fertilizers by 70%. The technology also contributes to production stability and food security, achieving an average return on investment within 3.5 years.

Agustin Windianingsih, Wiwin Wiwin, Tanti Febrianti · Journal of Finance and Business Digital · Global

This research investigated the potential of urban agriculture to overcome food crises and impact food security. Using a mixed-methods approach (quantitative and qualitative), the study found that people practicing urban farming are supported in terms of urban farming skills, food security, creation of green open spaces, entrepreneurial opportunities, fulfillment of nutritional needs, enjoyment of fresh crops, creation of community bonds, educational benefits, and awareness for mental health and the environment.

Sadika Dipannita, Md. Taj Uddin, Nanda Dulal Kundu, Syed Walik Akib · Journal of the Bangladesh Agricultural University · Bangladesh (Dhaka)

This study evaluated the economic viability of rooftop gardening for income generation in Dhaka, Bangladesh, sampling 60 gardeners from various areas. It found rooftop vegetable gardening to be economically viable with a benefit-cost ratio of 1.32, though income from it was not substantial compared to total income. Significant factors affecting gross return included gardener age and costs of seeds, pesticides, and water, while challenges identified were low soil quality and limited equipment.

Bianca Elzenbaumer, Flora Mammana, Carmen Gonzalez Miranda, Irene Manfrini · Local Environment · Italy

This paper explores grassroots infrastructuring supporting communal learning projects focused on caring food practices, from the perspective of practitioners at La Foresta community academy in the Italian Alps. It presents four interdependent activities—a community garden, a participatory drinks initiative, a mobile bread oven, and a forest school—demonstrating how food fosters community economies and empowers eco-social transformation.

Seliwati, Candra Mecca Sufyana, Widwi Handari Adji, Ridwan Nurzaman, Agung Rifaldi, Ulfa Majdina · PADMA · Indonesia (Bandung)

In Maleer Village, Bandung City, Indonesia, healthy food supply is a challenge due to limited land and agricultural knowledge. To address this, a smart hydroponic system based on IoT sensors (temperature, humidity, pH, TDS) was developed. This system aims to improve the efficiency of hydroponic cultivation through real-time monitoring and automated watering and nutrient supply, empower local communities with technology and urban agriculture skills, support local food security, and enhance economic productivity.

Talent Moyo, Chipo Hungwe, Faith Zengeni · · Zimbabwe (Bulawayo)

This chapter examines urban resilience within the New Urban Agenda (NUA) using three pillars—adaptive capacity, absorptive capacity, and transformative capacity—in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. In Zimbabwe, urban resilience has been promoted through urban agriculture programs and efforts to regulate and capacitate informal economic activities. The qualitative case study argues that urban resilience primarily benefits individual urban citizens through livelihood creation, expanded livelihood portfolios, skills and knowledge development, meeting basic needs, and community support.

Bernd Bonfert · Environment and Planning D Society and Space · Europe

This article investigates the role of 'commons networks' in organizing and scaling a commons-based economy, focusing on community-supported agriculture and energy communities in the UK, Germany, Sweden, the Netherlands, and Belgium. Data was collected from qualitative case studies using interviews, observation, and document analyses. The study reveals a trend towards centralization in network governance, different scaling approaches between the food and energy sectors, and challenges of commodification and institutionalization.

Roghayyeh Khabbazi · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Iran (Tabriz)

This mixed-method study aimed to identify drivers influencing the development of a nature-oriented urban landscape with an emphasis on urban agriculture in Tabriz metropolis, Iran. Data analysis used the partial least squares model in Smart-pls software and content analysis. Findings showed that management, laws and regulations, economic, social, physical, and design components, respectively, had the greatest impact on nature-oriented urban landscape development with urban agriculture. Key sub-components included developing a strategic plan, forming partnerships, developing binding laws to prevent the destruction of urban garden lands, reviewing agricultural laws to support urban agriculture, and using modern agricultural equipment.

April Tiodora Manik · Jurnal Ilmiah Mahasiswa Ekonomi Akuntansi · Asia

This quantitative study examined the implementation of Indonesia's Law Number 11 of 2020, particularly the 20% community plantation development facility (palm oil plasma), by seven oil palm plantation companies from 2019 to 2023. Statistical tests concluded that these seven companies had not properly applied the palm plasma system, indicating a failure to implement the law. Potential reasons include financial constraints, lack of infrastructure, limited stakeholder support, unclear guidelines, land acquisition difficulties, and weak coordination.

Kejela Gnamura, Michael Akwasi Antwi, Abenet Belete · Research of Economic and Financial Problems · Ethiopia (Addis Ababa)

This mixed-methods study in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, compared 446 households (223 displaced and 223 non-displaced) to investigate the effects of urbanization-induced displacement on economic capital and food security. Evicted households showed a 72.7% lower likelihood of achieving economic capital security and 93.4% reduced odds of maintaining food security compared to non-evicted households, indicating significant negative differences.

Madeleine Pries, Walther Zeug, Daniela Thrän · Cleaner and Responsible Consumption · Germany (Leipzig)

A Holistic and Integrated Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (HILCSA) was applied to a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) initiative in Leipzig, Germany, supplying seven fruits and vegetables to schools, comparing it to a conventional food market. Based on 82 indicators, the CSA showed 63% fewer sustainability risks and a positive contribution to SDGs, with replacing conventional supply for 200 pupils avoiding 1 ton of CO2 equivalents annually. However, the CSA had significantly lower yields than conventional production, despite similar water, land, and energy uses per hectare, and spent mushroom substrate caused the highest upstream impacts.

Tibor Farkas, Róbert Barna, Gábor Koncz · European Countryside · Hungary

Allotment gardens in Hungary play a significant role in agriculture, society, environmental preservation, household economy, and sustainable development. The Hungarian government's allotment garden development program in 2018, 2019, and 2021 received 540 applications, and this study assessed their current status, characteristics, results, impacts, and future needs through an online questionnaire administered in 148 settlements. The most important future goal for applicants was found to be the development of various infrastructures, such as roads and ditches, and the creation of public utilities, including electricity and water supply.

Christina Frendo · Urban Geography · Canada (Montréal)

This study analyzed how urban agriculture contributes to green gentrification in Montréal. Based on interviews with planners, developers, and community actors, and discourse analysis of municipal policy documents, it showed that ecological initiatives are prioritized over housing, and sustainability fixes reconcile progressive rhetoric with growth imperatives, leading to policy trade-offs that undermine housing affordability. These findings reveal how progressive governments reproduce structural injustices through their ecological transition agendas within the context of a housing crisis.

Shamir Abujder · AGRO - ECOLÓGICA · Bolivia (Sucre)

This study analyzed the market dynamics of fresh organic products in urban districts of Sucre, Bolivia, examining their potential to strengthen food security and foster sustainable enterprises. The research focused on two groups: consumers and producers/marketers, within the context of urban and peri-urban agriculture. Using a qualitative descriptive approach, it aimed to provide knowledge on the economic viability of commercializing fresh organic products and contribute to citizen knowledge on responsible and healthy consumption aligned with agroecology.

Ahmad zanganeh, ُSara Abbasi, Tajulddin Karami · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Iran

In Zanjan City, Iran, recent rapid urban development has led to the conversion of agricultural lands and surrounding green spaces into gray urban infrastructures like roads, parking lots, and buildings, resulting in a significant reduction of green open spaces. This land transformation poses current challenges and threatens the city's future. This study explores the critical role of urban green infrastructure in enhancing Zanjan's sustainability and resilience, emphasizing the urgent need for strategic planning to address ecological, economic, and social challenges from unbalanced development.