Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
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Pendampingan Kelompok Tani dalam Budidaya Hidroponik di Kota Surabaya, Indonesia
2026Firli Alya Rahma, Tri Budiarto, Agief Julio Pratama, Henry Kasmanhadi Saputra · JURNAL PENYULUHAN PEMBANGUNAN · Indonesia (Surabaya)
This study in Surabaya, Indonesia, investigated hydroponic cultivation among two farmer groups, Kelompok Tani Anggrek (19 members) and Kelompok Tani Sawi (14 members). It found that the farmer groups were not yet optimal in hydroponic cultivation due to a lack of understanding, minimal assistance, and improper use of fertilizers and seeds. However, knowledge among the farmer groups increased by 51.52% due to extension activities, and most respondents agreed that hydroponics is a suitable solution for food security and that assistance had a positive impact.
Limited or null effectFood educationCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceBuilding Resilience to Food Insecurity in Bulawayo City, Zimbabwe: Lessons for Best Practice
2026Thulani Dube, Bright Chisadza, Nkululeko Mpofu, Abel Mungure, Nancy N Manase · Journal of Hunger & Environmental Nutrition · Zimbabwe (Bulawayo)
A study in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, investigating urban food insecurity resilience strategies through 200 household surveys, found that 50.5% of households experienced food insecurity, primarily driven by hyperinflation and unemployment. Current interventions, including urban agriculture, showed mixed effectiveness due to fragmented coordination and rural-biased programming, indicating governance challenges.
Governance failureFood sovereignty & justicePolicyCommunityEconomicsUrban Farming Microinterventions: Design-Led Case Studies from Poland
2026Aleksandra Nowysz, Łukasz Szczepanowicz · Sustainability · Poland
This paper examines the effectiveness of urban farming microinterventions through three design-led case studies in Poland. The cases include "Blooming Structure" (2018, Warsaw), a temporary hydroponic installation; "Micro-cultivation" (2018, Warsaw), a shopfront vertical demonstration farm; and "Micro-cultivation 2" (2019), modular cultivation furniture. The analysis combined project documentation with practice-based observations, applying five interpretive dimensions: spatial fit, technical feasibility, communicative legibility, replicability, and social programming. Findings indicate that successful microinterventions align legible cultivation infrastructure with high visibility, accessibility, and participatory formats that support skills transfer and copying-based scaling. Limitations of this study include the small sample size and its concentration on projects from Poland.
DIYCommunityFood educationDigital agricultureDesafios sobre os resíduos orgânicos em áreas urbanas:
2026Mayara Grazielle Consentino Ferreira da Silva, Karina Amendola da Silva Guimarães, Monique das Neves Silva · Revista Tamoios · Global
This paper discusses the challenges and benefits of composting organic waste in urban areas, examining community urban agriculture experiences, a university campus, and corporate environments. Community composting in urban agriculture showed that community involvement is crucial for success, fostering socio-environmental coexistence and low-cost use of degraded urban areas. However, composting on a university campus proved difficult to implement due to a lack of dedicated labor, despite student engagement.
CompostCommunityOrganic cycleHydroponics for Food Self-Sufficiency in an Urban Pesantren: Evidence of Reduced Vegetable Expenditure and Improved Student Competencies
2026Dwi Budi Santoso, Dynda Fadhlillah Aulia · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Indonesia
In an urban pesantren in Indonesia, a one-year community service program developed a hydroponics-based urban farming model to enhance food self-sufficiency and improve students' practical agribusiness skills. 22 participants completed the program. The hydroponic unit produced an estimated 96–104 kg of leafy vegetables annually, contributing an estimated annual food savings of Rp1.7–1.9 million. Competency assessment scores for participants also improved from an average of 52 to 82.
Food educationFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsCommunityGrowing food and radical hope in Glasgow: A review of The Practice of Collective Escape
2026Rose Jennings · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · United Kingdom (Glasgow)
Helen Traill's book, "The Practice of Collective Escape," presents ethnographic work over six years in Glasgow, Scotland, following two community growing sites. The book critically examines urban agriculture projects as "Petri dishes for individual and community transformation," exploring concepts of inclusion, individual escape, and political activism, and highlighting social complexities and issues of inclusion and exclusion.
Equity & displacementCommunityPolicyHealthFood sovereignty & justice‘It's a Gender Issue’: Women Farmers in Community‐Supported Agriculture
2026Guilherme Raj, Giuseppe Feola, Irina Velicu · Sociologia Ruralis · Portugal
Case studies of three women farmers in two Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) initiatives in Portugal used data from semi-structured interviews and participant observation. The study demonstrated that while CSA initiatives are conducive to women farmers’ emancipation, the absence of collective efforts to address unequal gender relations hinders their transformative potential. CSA initiatives tend to overlook power imbalances emerging from their internal micro-politics and neglect the ambivalent effects shaping their transformative efforts.
Equity & displacementCSA & TeikeiCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceA(GR)TECTURE: Designing an Agricultural Learning Facility to Energize Food Production in the Urban Areas of Dominica
2026Kendel Constant · DigitalCommons - Kennesaw State University (Kennesaw State University) · Dominica
This thesis explores improving Dominica's urban agricultural sector, examining challenges like hurricanes, landslides, temperature shifts, limited adoption of advanced farming techniques, an aging farmer population, and soil erosion. The proposed Agricultural Learning Facility aims to address these issues by leveraging smart farming methods and enhancing traditional practices. However, the proposed greenhouse and hydroponic systems cannot completely replace traditional farming practices, but rather help increase food production.
Governance failureFood educationCommunityClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceEcological landscape planning in earthquake-prone regions: Integrating agriculture, water systems and green ınfrastructure
2026ŞEVVAL KARATAŞ, Mustafa Artar · Scientific Works · Global
This study, based on a literature review, examines ecological landscape planning approaches for enhancing urban resilience in earthquake-prone regions. It proposes integrating agricultural areas, water systems, and green infrastructure as complementary ecological components within a holistic planning model. The findings indicate that this integrated approach enhances ecological integrity, supports biodiversity, regulates surface water, reduces the urban heat island effect, and strengthens communities' adaptive capacity in post-disaster phases.
Climate changeCommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyGrowth and Yield Responses of Dragon Fruit to Diverse Growing Media in Rooftop Gardens
2026Md. Monirul Islam, Joydeb Gomasta, Md. Abdul Quddus, Asma Anwari, A. K. M. Saiful Islam, Md. Torikul Islam · New Zealand Journal of Crop and Horticultural Science · Global
A two-year pot experiment was conducted from 2020 to 2022 on the roof of a four-story building to identify an optimal growing medium for dragon fruit cultivation on rooftops. Seven different combinations of soil, cocodust, biochar, and vermicompost were evaluated, with the medium comprising 80% cocodust and 20% vermicompost (T2) showing the highest branch count, fruit count, fruit weight, and yield in the second year. T2 also improved edible portion, TSS, and vitamin C contents, and exhibited the highest benefit-cost ratio (4.17).
DIYCommunityEconomicsValerie Dumser
2026Valerie Dumser, Emma Kudelka · Digital Commons at Illinois Wesleyan University (Illinois Wesleyan University) · United States (Bloomington)
This oral history interview explores the history and evolution of the West Bloomington Revitalization Project (WBRP), co-founder Valerie Dumser's experiences living in and serving the West Side community, and the longstanding partnership between Illinois Wesleyan University and the WBRP. Dumser founded the WBRP Community Garden and has remained actively involved in the organization's growth and development.
CommunityFood educationPolicyFloodable Park Landscape Model as Adaptive Infrastructure: Integrating Blue-Green Technology and Community Education for Urban Flood Mitigation in Bandar Lampung, Indonesia
2026Ina Winiastuti Hutriani, Muhammad Saddam Ali, Zulvita Amanda, Susan Krisanti, Bagas Arianto, Cindy Romauly Elysabeth Manurung, Muhammad Arya Wibowo, Luthfie Adli Wistoro · Research in Education Technology and Multiculture · Indonesia (Bandar Lampung)
This study proposes a floodable park landscape model integrating blue-green infrastructure with community education programs for urban flood mitigation in Bandar Lampung City, Indonesia. Focusing on Barunaria Field in Panjang District, field surveys and resident interviews identified low infiltration capacity, high runoff coefficients, acidic soil, waste accumulation, and noise pollution as contributing flood factors. The proposed modular design integrates rain gardens and permeable pavements with social and agricultural zones, including urban farming, functioning for recreation and food production during dry periods and as a retention system during the rainy season.
Climate changeCommunityFood educationSupply chains, marketing channels, and distribution networks
2026Sylvie Ayimpam · · Congo (Kinshasa)
This chapter maps the multi-scalar supply chains feeding Kinshasa's markets, detailing how small retail functions as a nodal point. It traces historical and contemporary provisioning of local foodstuffs via road and river routes into urban wholesale hubs, examining peddlers, brokers, and 'ghost markets' that circumvent taxation. Distribution in Kinshasa is characterized by hybrid, shifting chains of intermediation combining logistical improvisation, social brokerage, and regulatory avoidance.
EconomicsUrban–rural linkagePeri-urban agricultureFood sovereignty & justiceExploring Motivations, Crop Diversity and Socioeconomic Benefits of Home Gardening: A Case Study of Urban Agriculture in Rimuka, Kadoma District, Zimbabwe
2026D Machoko, N Soboksa, M Zuma, X Mbhenyane · African Journal of Food Agriculture Nutrition and Development · Zimbabwe
This qualitative case study, conducted in June and July 2022 in Rimuka, Kadoma District, Zimbabwe, explored motivations, crop diversity, and socioeconomic benefits of urban home gardening among thirty purposively sampled households. It found more women participate than men, kale is a year-round staple despite water scarcity, and primary water sources are family wells and public boreholes. Most gardeners started due to food shortages or pandemic fears, and while many do not sell produce, they earn significant income from off-farm activities.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsUrban Gardening in der Sozialen Arbeit und in Bildungseinrichtungen – ein Leitfaden aus dem Wassermelonengarten
2026Juliane Forßmann · OPUS der Technischen Hochschule Augsburg · Global
This guideline extracts successful urban gardening strategies and effective pedagogical interventions from a three-year social community garden project, "Wassermelonengarten," located on the grounds of a family collective accommodation for refugees. The garden served as a laboratory for social work students and residents to explore simple, cost-effective urban gardening techniques and group relationship and project design, aiming to improve the quality of life for all involved. The guideline is intended as a resource for those developing urban gardening projects in social work and educational settings, focusing on strengthening social cohesion and preserving healthy soils and biodiversity.
CommunityFood educationWelfareBiodiversityPhenotypic Characterization of Salmonella and Escherichia coli Strains Isolated from Wastewater and Market Gardening Crops Along the River Chari in N’Djamena, Chad
2026Djim-adjim Tabo, Fissou Henry YANDAI, BONGO NARE Ngandolo, GRANIER Sophie, ABAKAR Brahim, MILLEMANN Yves · European Journal of Nutrition & Food Safety · Chad
A study in N'Djamena, Chad, isolated Salmonella and Escherichia coli from wastewater discharged into the Chari River and from market garden crops irrigated with it. E. coli was found in 29.66% of wastewater samples and Salmonella sp. in 19.49%, with raw vegetables showing very high contamination. Wastewater results exceeded WHO standards, indicating that re-use of this wastewater for market gardening is not recommended due to significant contamination risks.
Contamination & food safetyHealthMultifunctional zoning optimization of agricultural land use by coupling Bayesian belief network with density peaks clustering – a case study in Guangdong, China
2026Hao Yang, Zijin Wang, Yueming Hu, Zhengxi Tan, Runyan Zou, L. Wang, Xiaoyun Mao · International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability · China (Guangdong)
A study in Guangdong Province, China, coupled a Bayesian belief network with density peaks clustering to analyze agricultural land resources. The research identified significant synergies between food production function and other functions, but also a trade-off with food cleanliness. Consequently, Guangdong agricultural land was zoned into five functional zones.
Environmental trade-offsPolicyEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceUrban–rural linkagePelatihan Augmented Reality untuk Memperkuat Peran Karang Taruna Bumijo Kulon
2026Ibnu Siswanto, Ayu Sandra Dewi, Purwanto Purwanto, Rhyzal Kukuh Adji Bhimantara · ABDINE Jurnal Pengabdian Masyarakat · Indonesia
In Karang Taruna Tri Yudha Sakti Bumijo Kulon, Indonesia, Augmented Reality (AR) training was conducted to enhance youth digital literacy and technology access. The training involved technical guidance on AR content creation, practical application, and evaluation through pre- and post-tests. Knowledge scores improved from an average of 80.71 on the pretest to 100 on the post-test. 17 participants successfully applied AR in practical activities and developed one promotional media for tourism, arts, culture, and urban farming in Badran.
CommunityFood educationDigital agricultureUrban Agriculture and Participatory Budgeting for Sustainable Cities: Evidence from Vegetable-Related Projects in Warsaw
2026Kinga Kimic, Magdalena Błaszczyk · Sustainability · Poland (Warsaw)
This study identified and assessed vegetable cultivation projects submitted to the Warsaw Participatory Budget (WPB) between 2015 and 2023. The research classified projects into six types and evaluated them across social, functional, ecological, and economic dimensions. The results showed that vegetable-related projects in the WPB were decidedly niche, with only 101 initiatives submitted and 31 implemented, primarily focusing on education for children rather than direct food access.
Limited or null effectPolicyCommunityEconomicsClimate changePemberdayaan Masyarakat Urban Melalui Pemanfaatan Limbah Organik Menjadi Pupuk Serta Pangan Melalui Integrasi Maggot BSF Dan Ayam Di Kampung Telolet Om, Karangbesuki, Malang
2026Sri Suhartini, Bambang Susilo, Gabryna A Auliya Nugroho, Christina Wahyu Kartikowati, Ni’matul Izza, Riris Waladatun Nafi’ah, Ainur Ainur Rohma, Andhika Putra Agus Pratama · JAPI (Jurnal Akses Pengabdian Indonesia) · Indonesia (Malang)
In Kampung Telolet Om, Malang, Indonesia, a circular economy program integrating Black Soldier Fly (BSF) larvae and laying hens was implemented for 20 residents to address organic waste and food insecurity. The program processed household organic waste into BSF larvae feed, substituted chicken feed, produced organic fertilizers, and applied them to urban farming. Pre- and post-tests showed participants' knowledge increased from 44.12% to 53.82%, successfully reducing organic waste volume and producing food products.
CommunityOrganic cycleFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsStrategic Directions for Regenerative Urban Tourism in North Jakarta: An SLR-FGD and TOWS-Based Assessment
2026Dewi Gita Kartika, Ismayanti Ismayanti, Emilia Agustina, Fernando Adiputra Kadajaya Bos · E-Journal of Tourism · Indonesia (Jakarta)
This study examined how regenerative urban tourism can be strategically developed in North Jakarta, Indonesia, using a systematic literature review, focus group discussions with stakeholders, and TOWS analysis. North Jakarta was found to have relatively strong internal capacity (IFE = 3.04) and a favorable external environment (EFE = 3.16), placing it in a "grow and build" position. Strategic priorities include developing eco-tourism and urban farming based on community greening initiatives, strengthening cultural and heritage-based tourism, enhancing MSME digital capacity, and addressing environmental and infrastructure constraints like waste management and flooding.
CommunityEconomicsPolicyPotentially Toxic Elements in Foods Consumed in Uganda: Occurrence, Dietary Exposure, and Public Health Risks
2026Gabson Baguma, Gadson Bamanya, Allan Gonzaga, Hannington Twinomuhwezi, Barnabas Mubangizi, Eric Niringiyimana · Pollutants · Uganda
This review synthesized literature on the occurrence of cadmium, chromium, nickel, lead, and arsenic in foods consumed in Uganda. Contamination was concentrated in mining-influenced agricultural areas, wastewater-irrigated farms, municipal dumpsites, industrial corridors, and urban food markets, with vegetables, cereals, livestock products, fish, and street-vended foods exhibiting the greatest contamination burdens. Lead and cadmium most frequently exceeded WHO/FAO, Codex Alimentarius, and Ugandan food safety limits, and children consistently showed higher dietary exposure than adults.
Contamination & food safetyHealthUrban–rural linkageKokspilleri i kolonihaver: en kulegravning
2026Hikoline Hylleborg Erlandsen · Arbejderhistorie - tidsskrift for historie kultur og politik · Denmark (Copenhagen)
This article explores the little-known practice of digging for coke residues ("pillekoks") in Copenhagen allotment gardens during WWI and WWII. Using ethnological surveys from the 1970s and contemporary newspapers, the study shows this was a widespread practice with significant yields. Individual allotment owners could gather enough pillekoks with a value equivalent to several weeks’ wages, easing fuel scarcity and improving daily life during wartime.
CommunityEconomicsEarly Detection of Escherichia coli Producing Extended Spectrum Beta Lactamase (ESBL) in Cattle Farm Waste from Urban Jakarta
2026Aulia Maulida, Syafitri Jumianto, Riris Lindiawati Puspitasari, S.Si., M.Si · Prosiding Seminar Nasional Pemberdayaan Masyarakat (SENDAMAS) · Indonesia (Jakarta)
This study examined cattle manure from an urban farm in South Jakarta for the presence of Escherichia coli resistant to third-generation cephalosporins. Using total plate count, selective culture, Gram staining, and biochemical identification, presumptive ESBL-producing E. coli strains were detected. Bacterial growth on cefotaxime-supplemented media indicated phenotypic resistance, demonstrating that urban cattle manure may serve as a reservoir of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
Contamination & food safetyHealthOrganic cycleIrrigação Inteligente em Hortas Urbanas
2026Luiz Arthur Malta Pereira, A. Lindner, Käthery Brennecke, Marco Antonio de Andrade Belo, Amanda Prudêncio Lemes · Revista de Tecnologia & Gestão Sustentável · Global
This study developed a low-cost, intelligent irrigation device for urban gardens, integrating soil moisture sensors and real-time weather data to optimize water use. The prototype, built on an ESP8266 platform with C++ programming, was initially tested in a laboratory, confirming satisfactory operating conditions. The system aims to reduce water waste and promote sustainability in urban agriculture, with future validation planned for commercialization.
Digital agricultureClimate change