Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
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724 results(14 / 29)
EDUCAÇÃO AMBIENTAL NA ESCOLA BÁSICA
2021Renata Michelli Ferretti, Reis Friede, Maria Geralda de Miranda · Revista da Seção Judiciária do Rio de Janeiro · Global
This study, part of the AMBENAP project, discusses environmental education implemented through school gardens in basic education schools. Using problematization theory, the research concluded that school gardens enable students to learn practical environmental care and influence their actions.
Food educationCommunityBiodiversityGirls’ boarding schools’ gardens in the Age of Enlightenment
2021Varvara V. Ponomareva · Moscow University Anthropology Bulletin (Vestnik Moskovskogo Universiteta Seria XXIII Antropologia) · Russia
This study, using a historical typological method, examined the gardens of girls' boarding schools within the Mariinsky Establishment in 18th-century Russia as a vehicle for children's healthy physical upbringing. Influenced by scholars like John Locke, innovative physical education principles, supported by the Russian state, were integrated into the daily life of boarding schools. By the end of the 19th century, doctors oversaw school outdoor spaces, noting the positive effects of fresh air exercise and swimming on children.
Food educationHealthCommunityAgroecología situada: contexto, proceso y masificación del Programa de Formación en Agroecología en Venezuela
2021Olga Domené-Painenao, Francisco Herrera · Desenvolvimento e Meio Ambiente · Venezuela
In Venezuela, the Bolivarian Revolution since 1999 has seen the unfolding of harsh class and food system contradictions. While the Program Degree in Agroecology (PDA) at the Bolivarian University of Venezuela has trained over a thousand graduates who contribute to agroecological scaling and urban agriculture, the abstract highlights the persistent "harsh class and food system contradictions" within the country. This indicates ongoing equity challenges despite agroecological efforts.
Equity & displacementFood sovereignty & justicePolicyCommunityFood educationAssessment and STEM
2021Anne Forbes, Vinesh Chandra, Linda Pfeiffer, Rachel Sheffield · Cambridge University Press eBooks · Australia
This textbook, "STEM Education in the Primary School," introduces pre-service teachers to STEM theory, skills, and practice via a project-based learning approach. It integrates STEM elements with the Australian Curriculum using a school garden project case study and explores popular STEM topics with age-appropriate examples. The text connects current STEM education research to teaching practice, supported by questions, information boxes, and real-world scenarios.
Food educationCommunityA youth perspective ongreen local urban futures
2021Joshua Amponsem, Nathalie Sänger, Marie-Claire Graf · Edward Elgar Publishing eBooks · Global
This chapter presents youth perspectives on opportunities and barriers for green urban transformation (GUT) in urban centers. It highlights best-practice examples from Germany and Ghana to promote self-sufficient urban food production and zero-waste communities. The discussion focuses on overcoming barriers through youth governance, a post-COVID green recovery pathway, and making GUT knowledge accessible to young people.
CommunityClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceFood educationHealth
2021Anne Forbes, Vinesh Chandra, Linda Pfeiffer, Rachel Sheffield · Cambridge University Press eBooks · Australia
This textbook, "STEM Education in the Primary School," introduces pre-service teachers to STEM theory, skills, and practice using a project-based learning approach. It integrates STEM elements with the Australian Curriculum through a school garden project case study, exploring topics like health, shelter, and space with age-appropriate examples. The text connects current STEM education research to teaching practice, covering assessment, learning spaces, and community.
Food educationCommunityTrend Analysis of Grow-Your-Own Using Social Network Analysis: Focusing on Hashtags on Instagram
2021Yumin Park, Yong-Wook Shin · Journal of people, plants, and environment · Global
A study analyzed the trends and network structure of 'grow-your-own (GYO)' activities by collecting 6,388 Instagram posts containing '#gyo' and '#growyourown' hashtags from June 13, 2020, to April 13, 2021, using social network analysis. The results showed that users expressed preference and interest in GYO through various word combinations, positive emotions and pride through gardening-related hashtags, and participated in urban gardening, indicating trends towards self-sufficiency and sustainable living.
DIYHealthCommunityFood educationEdible Green Infrastructure for Urban Regeneration and Food Security: Case Studies from the Campania Region
2020Alessio Russo, Giuseppe T. Cirella · Agriculture, 10(8), 358 · Global
An empirical study analyzing ten edible green infrastructure (EGI) urban-regeneration case studies in Italy's Campania region through the lens of community development, involvement and education. It documents how citizen-engaged urban gardens contribute to public health (stress reduction, physical activity) and the regeneration of derelict land, with sustainability strengthened by far-sighted urban planning across all five provinces.
CommunityHealthFood educationWelfareEconomicsPeri-urban agriculture as quiet sustainability: Challenging the urban development discourse in Sogamoso, Colombia
2020Feola G., Suzunaga J., Soler J., Wilson A. · Journal of Rural Studies · Colombia (Sogamoso)
Drawing on a survey of 160 peri-urban farming households in Sogamoso, this study applies the concept of 'quiet sustainability' to challenge dominant urban development discourses that frame peri-urban agriculture as backward, demonstrating its role in strengthening social cohesion and environmental sustainability.
CommunityPolicyWelfareFood educationCOVID-19 Outbreak and Urban Green Space, Food Security, and Quality of Life: Case of Urban Home Gardens in Kandy, Sri Lanka
2020Dissanayake L., Dilini S. · Open Journal of Social Sciences · Sri Lanka (Kandy)
A questionnaire-based study in the Kandy municipal area found that urban home gardens significantly contributed to household food security and quality of life during COVID-19 lockdowns, with social well-being and mental health benefits highlighted across all satisfaction levels.
HealthCommunityFood educationWelfareDesign as Interface
2020Yutaka Sho, James Setzler · · Rwanda
This chapter describes the work of General Architecture Collaborative (GAC), a nonprofit firm operating in Rwanda since 2008, which aims to make architecture accessible to traditionally excluded communities. GAC collaborates with local partners to invest in communities, exemplified by a health center that uses open spaces for community gardens and a demonstration kitchen for healthy eating workshops. This work highlights GAC's role as an interface within the international development industry's building culture.
CommunityFood educationHealth"Don't Just Come for Yourself": Understanding Leadership Approaches and Volunteer Engagement in Community Gardens
2020Jeffrey Gilbert, Christina Chauvenet, Brett C. Sheppard, Molly De Marco · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · Global
This study investigated leadership styles and volunteer engagement in community gardens through interviews with 13 garden managers and six focus groups with 48 volunteers. Findings revealed that managers struggled to recruit and retain volunteers capable of maintaining gardens. Garden managers exhibited either collaborative or directive leadership styles, both of which were acknowledged and appreciated by participants.
Governance failureCommunityHealthFood educationAquaponics Textbook for Higher Education
2020Ranka Junge, Nadine Antenen, Morris Villarroel, Tjaša Griessler Bulc, Andrej Ovca, Sarah Milliken · Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften digital collection (Zurich University of Applied Sciences) · Global
The Aquaponics Textbook for Higher Education accompanies the Aqu@teach Aquaponics Curriculum, intended for tertiary level teachers introducing basic aquaponics to students. The curriculum comprises 150 hours of student workload (5 ECTS) and is divided into 15 modules, covering topics such as aquaponic technology, aquaculture, hydroponics, and urban agriculture.
Food educationDigital agricultureEl huerto escolar: una herramienta pedagógica para la conciencia medioambiental del alumnado
2020Gutiérrez Sánchez-Osorio, Maria Lúcia · · Global
This work explores the school garden as a program for environmental education in early childhood and primary stages. It outlines specific environmental activities integrated into various courses, using garden tasks as a central theme. Through these activities, students actively learn about current environmental problems and discover alternatives for sustainable development.
Food educationClimate changeCommunitySchool gardening activities as contextual scaffolding for learning science: participatory action research in a community school in Nepal
2020Kamal Prasad Acharya, Chitra Bahadur Budhathoki, Birgitte Bjønness, Bhimsen Devkota · Educational Action Research · Nepal
This participatory action research in a community school in Nepal's Chitwan district investigated school gardening as a contextual scaffold for science learning among sixth and seventh graders. Initial barriers included time allocation and curriculum integration, but students, teachers, and parents later reported active engagement. Overall, school gardening activities positively affected students' understanding of scientific concepts.
Food educationCommunityStart me up! Food biodiversity and youth-led innovations
2020Eliot Gee, Hyun-Ju Lee · · Global
Gee and Lee explore the incorporation of local food biodiversity into food and agriculture innovations, with attention to emerging youth-led practices. The chapter highlights opportunities and challenges of mobile apps, urban agriculture, and youth movements. These varied examples are assessed to suggest how social and technological innovative approaches can be leveraged to ensure fair and effective promotion and protection of local food biodiversity across the producer–consumer spectrum.
BiodiversityFood educationCommunityKatakin kōṃṃan jikin kallib ilo jikuul – Republic of the Marshall Islands School Learning Garden Program
2020Koh Ming Wei, Samuel Bikajle · · Republic of the Marshall Islands
This paper describes the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) School Learning Garden Program, which adapts the Ku Aina Pa teacher training program from Hawai‘i. The program focuses on using learning gardens as outdoor labs for interdisciplinary environmental education, opening new avenues for teaching and learning in the RMI.
Food educationCommunityClimate changeLas huertas educativas como instrumento pedagógico, para la aplicación y fortalecimiento de las políticas de educación ambiental, en la red de huertas educativas de Bogotá
2020Acuña Caro, Camilo Andrés · · Colombia (Bogota)
This applied research aimed to demonstrate the role of the Bogota Botanical Garden's Network of School Vegetable Gardens in applying and strengthening environmental education policy. Using a diagnostic-based methodological framework, the study examined objectives, thematic lines, and practices of participating school gardens. The findings are intended to provide proposals and recommendations for implementing future school gardens as pedagogical instruments for environmental education.
Food educationPolicyCommunitySchool gardens
2020Julian Gonsalves, Danny Hunter, Nina Lauridsen · · Global
School garden programs have been a popular development intervention over past decades, with objectives varying from teaching improved farming skills and supporting community food production to demonstrating agricultural practices in developing countries. This chapter provides a history of school gardens and an overview of their multiple benefits. These benefits include enhanced understanding of agriculture and nutrition, improved farming and livelihood skills, positive behavioral changes towards food, agrobiodiversity conservation, understanding climate change impacts, enhanced academic performance, empowerment of girls and women, cultural reconnection for indigenous children, and addressing schoolchildren's mental health.
Food educationCommunityHealthBiodiversityClimate changeNudging children toward healthier food choices: An experiment combining school and home gardens
2020Pepijn Schreinemachers, Ghassan Baliki, Rachana Manandhar Shrestha, Dhruba Raj Bhattarai, Ishwori Prasad Gautam, Puspa Lal Ghimire, Bhishma P. Subedi, Tilman Brück · Global Food Security · Nepal
A one-year cluster randomized controlled trial in Nepal (2018-2019) with 779 schoolchildren (8-12) and their caregivers across 30 schools tested the impact of combining school and home gardens on food choices. The intervention increased caregivers' food and nutrition knowledge by 26%, agricultural knowledge by 5%, liking for vegetables by 10%, and home garden productivity by 15%. For children, it had no effect on food and nutrition knowledge but increased their liking for vegetables by 6%, healthy food practices, and vegetable consumption by 15-26% across different periods.
Food educationDIYHealthCommunityROLE OF EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING IN ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION
2020Monika Bajaj · · Global
This chapter explores the role of experiential learning in environmental education, noting that traditional methods often lack personal engagement. Experiential learning, through direct, hands-on experiences, aims to foster ecological literacy, emotional connections to nature, critical thinking, and sustainable behaviors. The chapter discusses its principles, alignment with environmental education goals, and ability to enhance understanding of ecological systems, promote interdisciplinary thinking, and encourage civic engagement.
Food educationCommunityBiodiversityFoundation Pierre Smith Mondelus, a Case Study
2020Charoni Eugenia · · Haiti
A case study was conducted on the two-year efforts of the nonprofit Foundation Pierre Smith Mondelus to address illiteracy in the Milot commune, northern Haiti. The foundation offers eight programs, including literacy, education, and a community garden. Based on observations, testimonies, and test scores, the literacy and education programs were shown to have practical and sociopsychological impacts.
CommunityWelfareFood educationInterdependence
2020Peter Loxley · · Global
This chapter presents three topics to help teachers guide children in understanding the scientific concept of interdependence, observable in school gardens and other outdoor learning areas. It outlines a progression from Key Stage 1, where children explore plant growth conditions and animal feeding, to lower Key Stage 2, focusing on plants as food producers and food chains/webs, and finally to upper Key Stage 2, where students learn about dependence and competition for resources within ecosystems. Subject knowledge for teaching this concept is provided.
Food educationCommunityBiodiversityHow Healthcare Organizations Are Facilitating Access to Fruits and Vegetables in Their Patient Populations: A Systematic Scoping Review
2020Susan Veldheer, Christina Scartozzi, Amy Knehans, Tamara K. Oser, Natasha Sood, Francis Puleo, Joie Cooper, Daniel R. George, Alicia J. Cohen, Renate M. Winkels · Current Developments in Nutrition · Global
This systematic scoping review analyzed 46 manuscripts from 30 studies published between 1990 and 2019 to understand clinical strategies used by healthcare organizations to increase patient access to fruits and vegetables (F&V). Six program models were identified, including garden-based programs and CSA. The overall quality of the included studies was weak due to selection bias and incomplete reporting, with only 6 out of 30 studies including a control group. While some studies showed improvements in dietary intake, objective health markers such as blood pressure and BMI had mixed results.
HealthWelfareFood educationCommunityCharacteristics of successful primary school-based experiential nutrition programmes: a systematic literature review
2020Karen Charlton, Teagan Comerford, Natika Deavin, Karen Walton · Public Health Nutrition · Global
This systematic literature review identified key characteristics of successful experiential nutrition interventions aimed at changing nutrition-related cognitive and behavioral outcomes in primary schoolchildren. From 3800 articles identified across five databases (CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, Medline, Academic Search Complete), 67 were eligible, and 42 were defined as successful. Nutrition education (when combined with taste testing), cooking-related activities, and gardening interventions increased children's willingness to taste unfamiliar foods, improved their cooking and food preparation skills, and increased nutritional knowledge.
Food educationHealth