Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
4283 results(162 / 172)
El riego con aguas de mala calidad en la agricultura urbana. Aspectos a considerar. II. Aguas residuales urbanas Irrigation with low quality in urban agriculture: points to regard. II. Urban waste water
2007F Ortega Sastriques, Rosa Orellana Gallego · · Global
Due to high prices and limited availability of drinking water in many cities, urban agriculture will require the use of alternative water sources. Groundwater and surface currents near cities are typically polluted, and this paper points out aspects to consider for safe irrigation using sewage water.
Contamination & food safetyHealthOrganic cycleClimate changeAmbivalent landscapes—wilderness in the urban interstices
2007Anna Jørgensen, Marian Tylecote · Landscape Research · Global
This paper explores the origins of ambivalent responses to contemporary urban landscapes, proposing that post-modern wilderness can be found in urban interstices. These include woodlands, abandoned allotments, river corridors, and derelict sites where spontaneous vegetation growth occurs. Such interstitial wilderness landscapes are identified as having important functions and being rich in meaning, with implications for understanding nature-human relationships and for urban landscape planning.
CommunityBiodiversityUrban–rural linkagePolicySELECCIÓN PARTICIPATIVA DE VARIEDADES Y EXPERIMENTACIÓN CAMPESINA EN AGRICULTURA URBANA EN EL CULTIVO DEL PLÁTANO (Musa spp.)
2007María de los A Pino, Loracnis Hernández, María E Dominí, Arturo Ocampo Ramírez, Z. Terán, Eduardo Calves · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Cuba
This study in San José de las Lajas and Arroyo Naranjo, Cuba, aimed to assess if participatory variety selection and farmer experimentation could introduce, adopt, and disseminate plant biodiversity in urban banana cultivation. Results demonstrated the potential of participatory methodologies to introduce and adopt materials from an agrobiodiversity fair, with selection differences based on criteria and municipal contexts. This provided initial evidence for such urban cultivation experiences.
CommunityBiodiversityHeirloom & landraceInventory of water management practices in Harare, Zimbabwe
2007Innocent Nhapi · Water and Environment Journal · Zimbabwe (Harare)
This paper investigated the sustainability of urban water cycle practices in relation to water quantity and quality management in the Chivero catchment, the main water supply for greater Harare, Zimbabwe. Data on population, water supply, water and wastewater treatment, and river flows were collected from urban councils and government departments to assess consumption, wastewater generation, treatment, disposal, river flow trends, raw water abstractions, and demand patterns. Results showed that the current situation is unsustainable, with water quantity soon to be a problem at current consumption levels and water quality already problematic, especially regarding nutrient levels.
Organic cyclePolicyPLANTAS DE BAJO PORTE MÁS UTILIZADAS PARA SETOS EN LA AGROSILVICULTURA O EN LA SILVICULTURA URBANA Y PERIURBANA
2007Valeria Olivera · · Cuba (City of the Havana)
This study surveyed producers in urban and peri-urban agriculture settings in Cuba to identify low-growing plant species commonly used for hedges in agroforestry systems. The surveys revealed 13 species across 9 families utilized as hedges. In the City of Havana, Marpacifco (Hibiscus rosasinensis), Bugambilia (Bougainvillea glabra), and Muralla (Murraya paniculata) were most frequently used, while in rural areas, Cardona (Euphorbia lactea), Tuna (Opuntia dillenii), and Itamo real (Pedilanthus tithymaloides) were more common.
DIYUrban–rural linkagePeri-urban agricultureBiodiversityFood and Nutritional Security of Children of Urban Farmers in Kampala, Uganda
2007Fiona Yeudall, Renée Sebastian, Donald C. Cole, Selahadin Ibrahim, A. Lubowa, Joyce K. Kikafunda · Food and Nutrition Bulletin · Uganda (Kampala)
A cross-sectional survey of 296 households in Kampala, Uganda, examined the impact of sociodemographic and farming variables on household food security and nutritional security of children aged 2-5 years. Household food security score was significantly positively correlated with the number of tropical livestock units, dietary diversity, percentage of energy from animal-source foods, and weight-for-age z-score. Consumption of animal-source food was negatively associated with C-reactive protein level, which was negatively associated with hemoglobin level, and hemoglobin was positively associated with weight-for-age z-score.
HealthWelfareFood sovereignty & justiceAPLICACIÓN DE MÉTODOS PARTICIPATIVOS PARA LA DIVERSIFICACIÓN DE CULTIVOS EN LA AGRICULTURA URBANA
2007Loracnis Hernández, María de los A Pino, Elein Terry · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Cuba (San José de las Lajas)
This study in San José de las Lajas, La Habana province, aimed to apply participatory methodologies to support traditional extension methods in urban agriculture and address farmers' problems with access to seed diversity and management knowledge. Three Agrobiodiversity fairs allowed producers to select preferred varieties of plantain, tomato, chili, and pepper, with FIAT-01 plantain, Amalia tomato, and Comandante Largo pepper being highly selected. A second stage focused on farmer schools and peasant experimentation for beans, which increased varietal diversity and promoted the dissemination and adoption of new varieties.
CommunityBiodiversityFood educationCARACTERIZACIÓN DE LA DIVERSIDAD DE CULTIVOS CON VISTAS A LA ADOPCIÓN DE NUEVAS ESPECIES Y/O VARIEDADES DE FLORES DE CORTE EN DIFERENTES SISTEMAS PRODUCTIVOS DEL MUNICIPIO SAN JOSÉ DE LAS LAJAS
2007Ania Yong, Eduardo Calves, Bárbara Benítez · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Cuba (San José de las Lajas)
A diagnostic study was conducted to characterize crop diversity in gardens, plots, and patios in the North, South, and Jamaica districts of San José de las Lajas, Cuba. The main crops established in the different production systems were vegetables, followed by fruit trees and flowers. Knowledge regarding cut flower production technologies was found to be insufficient, and surveys revealed that 80% of producers were over 60 years old.
CommunityElderlyFood educationProblemática urbanística y agraria del huerto (s. III-II AC.)
2007Rosalía Rodríguez López · Revista General de Derecho Romano - ISSN 1697-3046 · Global
This is a historical and legal study of the garden (hortus) in Rome during the third and second centuries BC, examined in terms of the development of urban building practice. In the "Italic house," the garden formed part of the dwelling's architecture, with the compluvium-impluvium serving as a cistern supplying water to both the house and the garden. The ager publicus assigned to veterans often consisted of such small plots that it was effectively an intensive urban vegetable garden attached to a house. Cato's agronomic treatise distinguishes between the suburban garden and the garden attached to the villa (a farming estate), marking a further step in the development of the concept of the hortus.
CommunityUrban–rural linkagePolicyIMPACTO DE LOS PRODUCTOS BIOLÓGICOS SOBRE EL NÚMERO DE BACTERIAS Y HONGOS EDÁFICOS Y LA PRODUCTIVIDAD DEL PIMIENTO EN LA AGRICULTURA URBANA
2007Pedro Antonio Rodríguez-Fernández, Sergio Antonio Silva-Soria · Redalyc (Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México) · Global
In an intensive home garden under urban agriculture conditions, a two-factor, fully randomized design with six treatments and four replicates tested three levels of partially weathered manure (0, 10 kg/m2 sheep manure, 10 kg/m2 cattle manure) with and without foliar humus (10 kg/ha) on soil bacteria and fungi counts and on productivity of pepper (Capsicum annuum L., variety Espanol 16). Analysis of variance and Tukey's test showed that 10 kg/m2 of either manure combined with foliar earthworm humus was the best treatment, increasing fruit yield, lowering cost per unit weight and raising profitability.
Organic cycleSOBRE LA EXISTENCIA DE MANEJOS GUARANÍES EN LOS HUERTOS HORGÁNICOS COMUNITARIOS DE LA CIUDAD DE ROSARIO EN EL SUR DE SANTA FE. ARGENTINA
2007Carla Ellen Lima Lemos, Eduardo Sevilla Guzmán · REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE AGROECOLOGIA · Argentina
A research note from Rosario, in southern Santa Fe province, Argentina, focused on migrant groups who moved to Rosario from Argentina's northern provinces over the past twenty years, some from the historical Guaraní cultural sphere, bringing agricultural work experience along with their language. Building on a history of resistance to industrial models of nature management through the Ligas Agrarias and, after repression under military dictatorship, work in traditional subsistence gardens within popular cooperativism, the paper sets out to open a line of research at CEPAR testing the hypothesis that Guaraní management forms exist in Rosario's community organic gardens. If supported, this could be termed a "Rosario agroecological gardening style"; the urban agriculture model that has taken shape is described as arising from the interaction between immigrant groups' knowledge and modern conventional agronomic technique.
CommunityOrganic cycleDIYFood educationTrust in markets: Economies of regard and spaces of contestation in alternative food networks
2007· · Global
A discussion piece describes the growth of new forms of food retailing in Europe and North America in which fresh, high-quality produce is sold directly by producers. The most visible example is the rise of farmers' markets in urban locations, alongside a revival of street and municipal markets and new arrangements such as farm shops, box schemes, community-supported agriculture and cooperative bulk purchasing. It characterizes the shared feature of these initiatives as reconnecting food producers and consumers directly, in relationships largely severed by the dominance of corporate multiple retailers, and notes that "alternative food networks" is the term commonly used to cover this range of forms. No empirical data is presented.
CSA & TeikeiCommunityEconomicsThe Earthscan Reader in Rural-Urban Linkages / Rural-Urban Interaction in the Developing World
2006Tacoli, C. (ed.) · Routledge / IIED · Global
A landmark edited collection on rural-urban interaction in the developing world, analyzing—through many cases—the flows of people, goods, capital and information and the asymmetric power relations between countryside and city.
EconomicsPolicyWastewater use for urban and peri-urban agriculture.
2006Stephanie Buechler, Gayathri Devi Mekala, B. Keraita · Victoria University Research Repository (Victoria University) · Global
This 2006 global study from Victoria University discusses wastewater use in urban and peri-urban agriculture for crop production and aquaculture, noting its role in generating livelihoods and providing cheap produce. However, the study emphasizes that clear policy guidelines and careful research are needed to prevent potential negative impacts on human health and the environment from wastewater reuse.
Contamination & food safetyUrban–rural linkagePeri-urban agricultureHealthPolicyEconomics‘Dig In’ to Social Capital: Community Gardens as Mechanisms for Growing Urban Social Connectedness
2006Jonathan Kingsley, Mardie Townsend · Urban Policy and Research · Australia (Melbourne)
A small qualitative study of members of the 'Dig In' community garden in Melbourne, Australia, explored the social capital benefits of urban community gardens. The study found that garden membership offers benefits such as increased social cohesion, social support, and social connections. However, these benefits do not necessarily extend beyond the garden setting, especially in the early stages of development.
Limited or null effectCommunityHealthCities farming for the future : urban agriculture for green and productive cities
2006R. van Veenhuizen · Issue Lab (Candid) · Global
This publication defines urban agriculture as growing plants and raising animals for food within and around cities, along with related processing and marketing. It notes increased attention from development organizations and authorities in developing countries due to urban agriculture's role in poverty alleviation, food security, waste management, and greening. The work presents the "state of the art" of sustainable urban agriculture development, indicating progress since earlier major publications.
Food sovereignty & justiceCommunityPolicyEconomicsClimate changeThe Effect of Land Use on Soil Health Indicators in Peri‐Urban Agriculture in the Humid Forest Zone of Southern Cameroon
2006Adolphe Monkiédjé, Michael Spiteller, D. Fotio, Premasis Sukul · Journal of Environmental Quality · Cameroon (Yaounde)
This study evaluated the effect of different land uses on soil health indicators in peri-urban agricultural areas of Yaounde, Cameroon, by comparing five tilled sites with native forest land. While most cropped land showed higher levels of many soil health indicators, cultivation of crops like corn and sugarcane significantly impacted native soil quality. Specifically, phenol oxidase, microbial biomass C/organic C, and microbial biomass C/microbial biomass P were negatively affected, indicating negative management impacts on soil health.
Environmental trade-offsPeri-urban agricultureOrganic cycleClimate changeURBAN FARMING AND MALARIA RISK FACTORS IN A MEDIUM-SIZED TOWN IN COTE D’IVOIRE
2006Barbara Matthys, Penelope Vounatsou, Giovanna Raso, Andres B. Tschannen, EMMANUEL GBEDE BECKET, Laura Gosoniu, Guéladio Cissé, Marcel Tanner, ELIÉZER K. N’GORAN, Jürg Utzinger · American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene · Côte d'Ivoire
This study investigated malaria risk factors in urban farming communities in a medium-sized town in Côte d'Ivoire, conducting two cross-sectional surveys among 112 households across six agricultural zones. The overall prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum was 32.1%. Findings indicate that specific crop systems and agricultural practices may increase the risk of malaria in urban settings of tropical Africa.
Environmental trade-offsHealthUrban–rural linkageThe No. 1 Ladies' Poultry Farm: A feminist political ecology of urban agriculture in Botswana
2006Alice J. Hovorka · Gender Place & Culture · Botswana
This research draws on a feminist political ecology perspective to demonstrate that agrarian restructuring and rural-urban transformation in Botswana offer women opportunities to renegotiate their marginalized positionality within the commercial urban agricultural sector in Greater Gaborone. Men and women participate in equal numbers, and both perceive this sector as offering new and accessible avenues for economic and social advancement. Although there is continuity of women's social and economic disadvantage relative to men from rural to urban contexts, women are actively making claims on land and capitalizing on their traditional roles and responsibilities associated with poultry production.
CommunityEconomicsUrban–rural linkageFood sovereignty & justiceReview of 'Food + the City'
2006Paul Knox Clarke · Ulster University Research Portal (Ulster University) · Global
This is a review of the AD special edition focusing on the relationship between food, the city, and urbanism. It discusses concepts such as markets, community gardens, Asian cities, food mapping, and historical precedents.
CommunityUrban–rural linkageEconomicsAgricultura urbana en Ciego de Ávila. El caso del municipio montañoso de Florencia
2006Ángela Borroto, Águeda C. Arencibia, J.L. López, Liliam J. Leyva, Carlos Mazorra, Gladys E. Dopico, R. Maurelo, A. Caraballoso · Pastos y forrajes · Cuba (Florencia)
This two-year study characterized animal production in urban agriculture in Florencia municipality, Cuba, by examining 32 randomly selected household backyards across two popular councils. Findings showed that 85% of households involved family members of all ages, with backyard animal rearing serving as a supplementary activity rather than a primary livelihood. Traditional management methods and local resources predominated in feeding practices, contributing 18% to the municipal family basket's protein needs and over 1 kg of protein per capita annually, thus potentially enhancing food security.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsGendering the Urban Agriculture Agenda 1
2006Alice J. Hovorka, Damell Smith, R. van Veenhuizen · · Global
This article argues that a gendered perspective on urban food security is essential to understand dynamics shaping food production and marketing in urban centers. It highlights that failing to explore women's distinct roles risks leaving gender inequities and food supply hindrances unaddressed, countering the invisibility of women's work often assumed as automatic domestic duties. The article emphasizes women's significant role in domestic food supply, even in societies with minimal household food production, citing examples like Latin American women organizing to address urban hunger.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceWelfareMalaria Prevention in Kigali Community Gardens: A Case Study of Community Health Volunteers
2006Kigumure Buhindwa · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · Rwanda (Kigali)
This study investigated malaria prevention activities in Kigali community gardens, Rwanda, through Community Health Volunteers (CHVs). A mixed-method approach, combining qualitative interviews and quantitative surveys, collected data on CHV activities and health outcomes. CHVs conducted weekly health screenings, reaching approximately 80% of the targeted population, and malaria prevalence dropped by 25% after six months. However, challenges included limited resources and inadequate training for CHVs, indicating that sustained support and additional training are necessary for long-term impact.
Governance failureHealthCommunityUso de las aguas residuales para el riegode cultivos agrícolas, en la agricultura urbana
2006Astrid Mendez, Paulo Cseri Ricardo, P Jeny Pérez, Callejas Hernández, Osvaldo Campos · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Cuba
This introductory study in Arroyo Naranjo municipality, Cuba, examined the use of Luyanó effluent wastewater for irrigation in urban agriculture. The wastewater was classified as low contamination based on BOD5 and COD values and posed no toxic contamination risk to soil or environment. However, it should not be used without prior treatment for direct consumption crops due to its microbial load. Experimental plots with carrot, radish, and marigold showed high agricultural yields, and radish harvests had no bacterial contamination.
Contamination & food safetyOrganic cycleHealthCommunityA Comparison of Urban Agriculture between Countries and its Development in China
2006Wang Lijuan · · Global
This paper examines urban agriculture (UA) as a phenomenon linked to urban development, noting significant differences between developed and less developed nations due to economic development stages. It classifies these differences into five aspects based on UA theory and practice. The paper concludes by proposing countermeasures for achieving sustainable UA, specifically considering the status of UA in China.
Urban–rural linkagePolicyEconomics