Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
5823 results(171 / 233)
Growing Food and Community: An Exploration of Local Food Initiatives in Cape Town, South Africa
2015Megan Bradley · Syracuse University Libraries (Syracuse University) · South Africa (Cape Town)
A study on local food initiatives in Cape Town, South Africa, explored their role in sustainable community development, focusing on food sovereignty, community capacity, and social capital. Through in-depth interviews, conversations with participants, and observations of community gardens and markets, findings suggested that these initiatives empower community development, both economically and socially, through principles of food sovereignty, social capital, and education.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsFood education물-에너지-식량을 연계한 오목형 옥상녹화
2015Soyoung 백소영Baek, Mooyoung 한무영Han · 한국생태환경건축학회 학술발표대회 논문집 · South Korea (Seoul)
A comparative study of a concave green roof and a normal roof was conducted on building #35 at Seoul National University in Seoul, South Korea. The study aimed to validate the effects on urban flood mitigation, urban heat island reduction, and food production. The concave green roof demonstrated a 60% reduction in peak flow quantity, a 3-hour delay in peak time, and stored 6.7 tons of rainwater per 140 m². A temperature difference of 27 °C was observed, and the 420 m² green roof for urban agriculture is managed by over 30 households near the campus.
Climate changeCommunityBiodiversityFood sovereignty & justiceThe Impact of an Environmental Educational Program of a School Garden on Pupils with Intellectual Disabilities—A Comparative Approach
2015Alexandros Stavrianos, Alexia Spanoudaki · Open Journal of Social Sciences · Greece
This research investigated the impact of a school garden environmental education program on 10 pupils diagnosed with mild to moderate intellectual disability in two Special Education Primary Schools in Greece. Using semi-structured interviews and descriptive statistical analysis to compare two groups of pupils, the study found that students who participated in the program were more familiar with environmental concepts and possessed skills directly linked to Environmental Education than their non-participating peers. Additionally, participating pupils perceived outdoor activities as part of the formal learning process, unlike their peers.
Food educationCommunityHealthPENYUSUNAN STRATEGI PEMASARAN BERDASARKAN PERILAKU KONSUMEN DALAM PEMBELIAN SAYURAN SEGAR (STUDI KASUS : PROYEK PENELITIAN ECO URBAN FARMING INSTITUT TEKNOLOGI SEPULUH NOPEMBER SURABAYA)
2015Hanifah Kurniasari · · Indonesia (Surabaya)
This study, using Voice of Customer and Quality Function Deployment methods, investigated consumer behavior in fresh vegetable purchases around the Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology (ITS) Campus in Surabaya, Indonesia, in relation to the ITS Eco Urban Farming Research Project. Findings indicated most consumers shop frequently at traditional markets, and organic vegetables are not a primary choice due to difficulty in finding them and high prices. The research identified 11 prioritized attributes for organic vegetable purchases and suggested several marketing concepts.
EconomicsCommunityNutrition Education Influences Vitamin A-Related Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Child Caregivers Towards the Production of Orange-Fleshed Sweet Potato in Uganda
2015Josephine Nabugoomu · Journal of Food and Nutrition Sciences · Uganda (Kampala)
This controlled cohort intervention study in Kampala, Uganda, assessed the effect of nutrition education on orange-fleshed sweet potato (OFSP) production and vitamin A-related knowledge, attitudes, and practices of 457 child caregivers. Respondents who received nutrition education had better knowledge of vitamin A and OFSP as a source of vitamin A, and more positive attitudes towards health and child health practices (p<0.05). They also showed significantly higher consumption of vitamin A-rich foods.
Food educationHealthPeri-urban agricultureCommunityFighting insecurity: Experiments in urban agriculture in the favelas of Rio de Janeiro
2015Lea Rekow · · Brazil (Rio de Janeiro)
This paper describes key initiatives in urban agriculture within Rio de Janeiro's favela communities, which are experiencing displacement and destabilization due to rapid urbanization policies. These initiatives aim to create resilient and productive spaces, particularly addressing food and nutrition security amidst socio-economic and security landscape changes.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceHealthWelfareRacism and Capitalism: Dual Challenges for the Food Movement
2015Eric Holt-Giménez · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · Global
This paper argues that the modern food system, shaped by 30 years of neoliberal globalization, has led to unprecedented global inequality, disproportionately affecting people of color. Despite the emergence of a U.S. food movement focusing on various components like urban agriculture, the underlying structures of the corporate food regime continue to control the context of these alternatives, hindering systemic change.
Equity & displacementFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityCSAs and the Battle for the Local Food Dollar
2015Timothy A. Woods, Debra Tropp, Woods, Timothy A., Tropp, Debra · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · USA
This paper explores the strategic positioning of Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) in a changing food market, where competition for the local food dollar has expanded. Drawing on observations from a survey of CSA managers, it documents specific trends in adaptations to the CSA business model. CSA managers generally perceive other CSAs and farm markets as their closest competition.
CSA & TeikeiEconomicsCommunityThe contribution of allotment gardening to health and wellbeing: A systematic review of the literature
2015Chris Genter, Anne Roberts, Janet Richardson, Mike Sheaff · British Journal of Occupational Therapy · Global
A systematic review of 10 selected papers investigated the contribution of allotment gardening to health and wellbeing. Thematic analysis of qualitative and quantitative findings revealed five themes: stress relief, healthier lifestyle, social opportunities, contact with nature, and self-development. The review suggests that allotment gardening impacts health and wellbeing, recommending it as occupational therapy and a health-promoting occupation.
HealthCommunityThe Effects of School Gardens on Children's Science Knowledge: A randomized controlled trial of low-income elementary schools
2015Nancy M. Wells, Beth M. Myers, Lauren Todd, Karen Barale, Brad Gaolach, Gretchen Ferenz, Martha Aitken, Charles Henderson, Caroline C. Tse, Karen Ostlie Pattison, Cayla Taylor, Laura Connerly, Janet B. Carson, Alexandra Z. Gensemer, Nancy Franz, Elizabeth C. Falk · International Journal of Science Education · United States
A randomized controlled trial in 25 low-income elementary schools across four US states (n=3,061 students aged 6-12) examined the effect of a school garden intervention on science knowledge from Fall 2011 to Spring 2013. While science knowledge increased more in the intervention group than in the control group, overall scores remained poor and gains were very modest. A dose-response relationship was observed, where more robust intervention implementations correlated with stronger treatment effects.
Food educationHealthCommunityFood gardening in Lavender Hill, Cape Town: using adoption rates to estimate the perceived benefit
2015Simon Hazell, Victoria Delbridge, Beatrice Conradie · UR UCT Undergraduate Research · South Africa
A study in Lavender Hill, Cape Town, South Africa, interviewed 50 participants in the Mothers Unite programme to assess the benefits and constraints of homestead-based urban agriculture. Despite the potential for food gardening to alleviate food insecurity and free up 11% of household income, two-thirds of the group had not tried it. Barriers to adoption included lack of space and limited cash flow, with respondents showing little concern for water or compost costs.
Limited or null effectFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsCommunityUrban agriculture as embedded in the social and solidarity economy Basel
2015Isidor Wallimann · · Switzerland (Basel)
In 2010, the SEA founded the Urban Agriculture Network Basel Association (UAB) to enhance food production for the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) and the urban space. The UAB aims to strengthen the SSE's focus on local and environmental sustainability and shift Basel's food policy towards "food sovereignty." The network fosters social integration by issuing its own hour-based currency and has contributed to building a pilot Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) producer-consumer coop for solar-powered cheese.
CommunityPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceCSA & Teikei社會生態農業 : 小毛驢市民農園的經歷與思考 : 第一部分 = Community and ecological agriculture : experience and reflection of Little Donkey Farm : part 1
2015Yan Xiaohui · Digital Commons - Lingnan (Lingnan University) · China
This paper presents a lecture by Mr. Yan Xiaohui on Community and Ecological Agriculture, focusing on the experiences and reflections of Little Donkey Farm. The lecture discusses the farm's origins, current activities, and future vision for a shared community.
CSA & TeikeiCommunityOrganic cycleFood sovereignty & justiceEffects of Urban Agriculture Program on the Formation of Family Unity and Intimacy
2015Haeseon Chu, Eujean Jang, Chun‐Ho Pak · Journal of people, plants, and environment · South Korea
This research investigated the effects of an urban agriculture experience program on family unity, intimacy, and recognition of urban agriculture. The participated group showed a significant increase in family cohesion, unlike the control group, indicating agricultural experiences affected family cohesion. Participants also showed significantly increased recognition of urban agriculture and reported decreased stress, increased family unity, intimacy, and dialogue after the program.
CommunityHealthFood educationGardening the City: Neighbourliness and Appropriation of the Common Spaces in Bulgaria
2015Меглена Златкова · Colloquia Humanistica · Bulgaria (Plovdiv)
This anthropological research in a Plovdiv neighborhood, Bulgaria, discusses public-private space division in a post-socialist city. It examines everyday practices of urban gardening in common spaces, such as around apartment blocks and on balconies, to understand changing boundaries and social dynamics.
CommunityPolicyFood (In)Security: Provisioning Strategies in a Northern Wisconsin Town
2015Margaret Ellen Kubek · UWM Digital Commons (University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee) · United States (Wisconsin)
This thesis explored the food provisioning strategies of year-round and seasonal residents of Phelps, WI. Ethnographic data gathered in the summer and fall of 2011 found that Phelps, WI, is classified as food insecure, leading residents to modify routines for lengthy drives to purchase food, while year-round residents utilized self-provisioning strategies. Newly initiated farmers' market and community supported agriculture projects increased overall food availability, but these efforts were mostly utilized by seasonal residents, with year-round residents finding these options unaffordable and inconveniently scheduled.
Equity & displacementFood sovereignty & justiceCSA & TeikeiCommunityEconomicsRaumgefühle – Gefühlsräume. Perspektiven auf die Verschränkung von emotionalen Praktiken und Topografien der Moderne
2015Benno Gammerl, Rainer Herrn · sub\urban zeitschrift für kritische stadtforschung · Global
This article outlines the theoretical, empirical, and political potential of the tension between affective disruptions of ordered structures and the emotional processing of power-infused spatial relations. It uses urban gardening practices and gentrification debates as examples to demonstrate how analyzing dynamic interactions between spaces and feelings can foster a critical perspective on urbanity, particularly regarding issues of equity. The study focuses on the ambivalent dynamics and effects of emotional-spatial processes.
Equity & displacementCommunityPolicyEconomicsTotal factor productivity of urban agriculture on the urban periphery of Cape Town
2015Martin Dyer, Richard M. Mills, Beatrice Conradie, Jenifer Piesse · Open University of Cape Town (University of Cape Town) · South Africa (Cape Town)
This paper investigates the efficiency relationships between inputs and outputs of urban micro-farms in two Cape Town townships, Nyanga and Khayelitsha. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) applied to 33 producers supplying a social enterprise box scheme revealed an average overall efficiency of 72.4%. Overall efficiency was negatively correlated with land holdings and the use of compost and seedlings, indicating efficiency losses with greater input quantities. Furthermore, it was not shown that mulching or operator experience increases profitability.
Economic viabilityEconomicsCommunityPeri-urban agricultureA study on REM Model of experiential tourism products development in allotment farm garden: a case study of Beijing Little Donkey Farm
2015LI Min-q · Zhongnan Linye Keji Daxue xuebao · China
This study explored the interactive relationship between tourists' experience, resource base, and market demand in allotment gardens in China, proposing the Resource-Market-Experience (RME) model for experiential tourism product development. Using Beijing Little Donkey Farm as a case study, the RME model was applied to develop experiential tourism products, offering proposals such as integrating superior resources and focusing on tourist needs.
CommunityUrban–rural linkageEconomicsFood educationGardeners, Locavores, Hipsters, and Residents: An Alternative Local Food Market's Potential for "Community" Building
2015Yuki Kato · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · United States (New Orleans)
This case study, based on ethnographic observation and interviews, examined an alternative food market in a New Orleans neighborhood to understand different views of "community." The study identified four distinct groups—community gardeners, locavores, hipsters, and local residents—each with different expectations for the organization. Findings did not demonstrate a unified community emerging around this organization, with no single group staking a claim on it.
Limited or null effectCommunityCSA & TeikeiEconomics立本求新,保民兴农促发展——乌鲁木齐市现代都市农业可持续发展之我见
2015欧阳炜, Liu Jie · 蔬菜 · China (Urumqi)
This study stated that urban agriculture is an emerging industry integrating primary, secondary, and tertiary industries, playing a promotional role in socio-economic development, agricultural modernization, increasing farmers' income, and healthy urban development. For the sustainable development of modern urban agriculture in Urumqi City, it was suggested that agriculture should be based as the foundation for social stability and economic development, drawing on domestic and international experiences to establish a practical, innovative, scientific, and reasonable operating model integrated with regional economic development plans.
EconomicsPolicyClimate changeCommunityImpact of rooftop garden and shading effect towardshuman thermal comfort
2015Muhammad Irfan Shathiran, Muhammad Syahir Osman, Jasasikin Ab Sani · · Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur)
The impact of rooftop gardens and shading effects on human thermal comfort was investigated in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Data on surface temperature and solar radiation were collected, supported by photographic observations and questionnaires. The study concluded that areas covered with dense green canopies, such as rooftop gardens and large vegetation, are crucial for providing a high level of thermal comfort to human beings.
Climate changeCommunityCommunity gardening and social cohesion: different designs, different motivations
2015E.J. Veen, B.B. Bock, W. van den Berg, A.J. Visser, J.S.C. Wiskerke · Local Environment · Global
This paper studied seven community gardens with varying organizational designs, objectives, and gardener motivations to investigate their influence on social cohesion. It found that in all cases, people interacted, got to know each other, and mutual help was widespread, concluding that community gardens contribute to social cohesion regardless of participants' primary motivations. Social aspects also provided added value for those primarily motivated by growing vegetables.
CommunityHealthParticipation level of lower income community towards urban agriculture
2015Nurul Ain, Mohamad Ariff Fahmi Ahmad Zawawi · · Malaysia
A quantitative study conducted with 100 respondents in Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia, aimed to identify the main influence on lower-income communities' participation in urban agriculture. The results showed that knowledge was the most influential factor, followed by perception, and then acceptance.
CommunityWelfareFood educationResearch Trend Analysis on Characteristics and Social Condition of Domestic Homeless for Self-supportive Community Garden Programs
2015Sook Mee Lee, In Ho Kim · Journal of people, plants, and environment · South Korea
This study analyzed research trends concerning the characteristics and social conditions of domestic homeless populations in South Korea, focusing on community garden programs for self-support. It suggests that integrating community gardens into supportive housing could offer comprehensive services to the homeless, including physical and mental health care, improved sociality, job training, and communication spaces for rehabilitation.
CommunityWelfareHealth