Research & reports

Ademola K. Braimoh, Paul L. G. Vlek · Earth Interactions · Ghana

This study quantified land-cover changes in a 2400-ha area of northern Ghana using Landsat images from 1984, 1992, and 1999, and projected future distribution. Remote sensing showed built-up area expansion at 26 ha/year (1984-92) and 35 ha/year (1992-99), alongside peri-urban agriculture development at 24 ha/year (1992-99). Projections indicated built-up areas would cover 39% of the landscape by 2006, at the expense of cropland and natural vegetation.

Lai Chang-wei · Journal of Chongqing Institute of Commerce · China (Chongqing)

This study examines the declining proportion of agriculture in Chongqing Urbanism Circle's total economic gross due to civilization and industrialization. It asserts that agriculture's status remains important for perfecting city functions and developing industries. Modifying agricultural structure and functions and developing modern urban agriculture are identified as significant tasks for promoting Chongqing's agricultural and overall industrial development within the Urbanism Circle.

Marian Goslinga · Cuban studies · Cuba

This entry from "Recent Work in Cuban Studies 2003" lists several publications related to Cuban agriculture and urban agriculture from 2003. It includes books such as "Agriculture in the City: A Key to Sustainability in Havana, Cuba" and master's theses on user benefits of urban agriculture in Havana and sustainable livelihoods in Cienfuegos. The entry also references articles discussing land-use planning, economic reform, and agricultural policy in Cuba.

Eugênio Ávila Pedrozo, Tânia Nunes da Silva, Izabel Cristina Takitane · Americanae (AECID Library) · Japan

This exploratory study examines the Seikatsu Club's experience in Japan, which operates based on Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) and Sanchoku systems. These movements foster direct relationships between organic consumers and Japanese organic rural producers, who are part of social networks and aligned with sustainability principles. This approach contributes to more sustainable solutions for society by emphasizing new food consumption patterns and valuing consumer cooperatives.

Clare Rishbeth · Journal of Urban Design · United Kingdom (London)

This paper investigates how urban greenspace can be designed and managed to reflect ethnic diversity and how this is perceived by users, using two case studies of community gardens in London. It found some differences in the response to the gardens by people from different ethnic backgrounds. The use of obvious symbolism was not necessarily a primary means of encouraging users from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds, though appreciated for educational and design strengths. Concern is expressed about aspects of the physical and psychological containment of ethnic groups in fixed places and identities leading to the perpetuation of stereotypes.

Simone Fullagar · World Leisure Journal · Australia

This article draws on Foucault's later work on ethics and subjectivity to consider Socrates' question, "how are we to live?". Through a case study of an Australian community garden project (Northey Street City Farm), it outlines the transformative potential of leisure practices in constituting the ethical self.

王建炘 · 农金纵横 · China

Focusing on the economically developed southern Jiangsu region of China, this piece describes a rising momentum toward building modern urban agriculture, driven by heightened attention to "agriculture, rural areas and farmers" issues from party and government at all levels and by growing domestic and foreign investment in agriculture. It states, however, that the Agricultural Bank of China — described as the main force in rural finance — has for years shifted the focus of its business expansion toward urban areas, advantaged secondary and tertiary industries, and quality domestic and foreign industrial enterprises, leaving it providing very little credit service or support to agriculture.

Shaohua Yin · Economic Geography · China

This essay discusses a development strategy for building green cities in Hunan, China, proposing four aspects: relying on green concepts, developing the green economy, establishing scientific urban layout, and emphasizing urban agriculture. It argues such a strategy must be treated not as a slogan but as a systematic science, concept, belief and way of life requiring everyone's effort and comprehensive coordination, without presenting specific data or study findings.

Kenny Lynch · · Indonesia (Jakarta)

This piece reviews the literature on urban agriculture (UA), noting that Bryceson (1993) provides documentary evidence from as early as 1939 of UA's importance during and after the Second World War, and that the UN University's Food Energy Nexus research programme in the mid-1980s prompted researchers to examine agricultural cultivation within city boundaries more seriously. Since then, a significant body of literature has developed around a central debate over whether urban agriculture is beneficial, summarized by Lynch (2002). This summary is described as having two problems: it assumes urban agriculture is a homogenous activity with universally similar impacts, and it is largely viewed from the perspective of a city's population, so urban agriculture tends to be seen as beneficial for food, employment and the environment with little consideration of its impacts on the rural-urban food supply. This led Lynch, Binns and Olofin (2001) to argue that urban agriculture should instead be considered part of the broader urban food supply system.

XI Yu-kun · · China

A policy discussion of Jinan, capital of Shandong province and an economically strong city, argues for how Jinan's urban agriculture should draw on its basic conditions and advantages under a policy of integrating urban and rural areas, developing service-oriented functions such as ecological environment, leisure, tourism, experience and education alongside production and livelihood functions, so that agriculture becomes an organic part of the city.

Tacoli, C. · Environment and Urbanization 15(1), 3–12 · Global

A classic synthesis of urban-rural interactions, systematizing flows of people, goods, capital and information between countryside and city, and showing—via South Asian and sub-Saharan cases—that cities are essential to rural development.

Zavisca J.R. · Slavic Review · Russia

An ethnographic study showing that dacha food cultivation among urban Russians serves as a discursive arena for debating the rationality and morality of the post-Soviet transition to capitalism, not merely an economic survival strategy.

Pallot J., Nefedova T. · Journal of Rural Studies · Russia (Moscow Oblast)

Examines the diverse forms and micro-geography of personal food plot production in Moscow Oblast, revealing how geographic, historical, and structural factors shaped household farming during the post-socialist transition.

Premat A. · European Review of Latin American and Caribbean Studies · Cuba (Havana)

Based on ethnographic fieldwork in Havana (1999-2001), this article examines urban garden parcelas as sites revealing tensions between private and public domains, finding that revolutionary values around food security and community persisted in post-Soviet Cuba despite assumptions of growing individualism.

Olufunke Cofie, R. van Veenhuizen, Pay Drechsel · · Sub-Saharan Africa

Urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) significantly contributes to food supply, employment, livelihoods, and poverty alleviation in many Sub-Saharan African cities, providing diverse foods including perishable items. However, UPA production often carries health risks from polluted urban water and faces challenges due to limited semi-official recognition and support from city authorities, sometimes conflicting with planners regarding land tenure and water use. More data is needed for appropriate recognition of this sector.

Joan M. Twiss, Joy Dickinson, Shirley Duma, Tanya Kleinman, Heather Paulsen, Liz Rilveria · American Journal of Public Health · United States (California)

Community gardens enhance nutrition, physical activity, and social capital, promoting public health and quality of life. The California Healthy Cities and Communities (CHCC) program funded successful community gardens in several cities, which incorporated local leadership, volunteers, and skill-building. These initiatives led to policies for land and water use, improved produce access, and strengthened community building skills.

Caitlin DeSilvey · Cultural Geographies · United Kingdom (Edinburgh)

A paper on Scottish allotment gardens examines how the ambiguity pervading allotment practice surfaces as a liability in strategic appeals and draws out the survival of historical forms in contemporary political negotiations, by juxtaposing narratives of involvement in a Scottish Parliament Allotments Inquiry and the history of a single Edinburgh allotment site.

Tony Binns, Roy Maconachie, Adamu Idris Tanko · Land Degradation and Development · Nigeria (Kano)

This paper examines health and environmental concerns associated with urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) in Kano, Nigeria. Empirical evidence indicates that industrial and domestic toxins are reaching dangerously high levels, leading to significant pollution of soils and water channels. This raises serious questions about the sustainability of UPA and the long-term health implications of toxin exposure.

Christopher M. Smith, Hilda E. Kurtz · Geographical Review · United States (New York City)

New York City community gardens have faced political contestation for thirty years, notably in 1999 when 114 gardens were slated for public auction and redevelopment. This article examines the controversy as a politics of scale, where garden advocates expanded the dispute beyond individual gardens and the city. The analysis highlights the significance of scale politics for grassroots organizations within a market-centric, neoliberal economic framework.

Derek Eaton, Thea Hilhorst · Environment and Urbanization · Africa

A 2003 paper examined the links between urban solid waste management and peri-urban agriculture in Bamako and Ouagadougou. Farmers near both cities value urban waste as an organic matter source and are willing to pay for it, but uncertain land tenure provides little incentive for safe disposal of dangerous elements in solid waste. Current plans to eliminate this recycling practice and promote large-scale composting are noted to be too costly for farmers, creating an incentive for illicit waste acquisition.

Shi Ya · Journal of Beijing Union University · China (Beijing)

This study focused on new ideas and avenues for developing modern urban agriculture in the Beijing area. It considered various agricultural development styles, concluding that modern urban agriculture holds strategic significance for optimizing the city's structure and advancing its modernization level.

Troy D. Glover · Journal of Leisure Research · United States

This narrative inquiry explored how 14 participants in the Queen Anne Memorial Garden, a community garden built to combat urban decline, collectively reconfigured events into a “success story.” The aggregated community narrative illustrates how a collective leisure pursuit can be a grassroots effort to address urban decline and reshape collective identity.

俞凯丰 · 上海农村经济 · China (Shanghai)

This paper discusses the profound changes in agriculture's function, its role in urbanization, and urban-rural relations within the context of Shanghai's development into an international metropolis. Following fundamental shifts in China's agricultural product supply and demand, agriculture in metropolitan suburbs is no longer merely a subsidiary food base. New urban demands and qualitative changes in agriculture necessitate its extension into secondary and tertiary industries and integration with cities, thereby giving agriculture new connotations and functions, and forming a new development pattern.

Tanja Pless‐Mulloli, Karen L. Foster, J Bush · Epidemiology · United Kingdom (Newcastle upon Tyne)

Investigations in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, analyzed the extent and consequences of disposing 2000 tons of incinerator ash on over forty allotments. Soil, egg, and vegetable samples (75 soil, 21 egg, 65 vegetable) revealed contamination of footpaths with dioxin/furan (max 9000 ng/kg I-TEQ) and high levels of copper, lead, and zinc. Mean dioxin/furan levels in soil were 38 ng/kg I-TEQ and in eggs were 16.4 ng/kg I-TEQ, indicating significant contamination and potential exposure pathways for allotment gardeners and children.

Christian M. Rogerson · Acta Academica Critical views on society culture and politics · South Africa

This article examines international and South African research on urban agriculture's role in poverty reduction, arguing for the need for policy guidelines to support local initiatives in South Africa. It suggests that best practices from international urban agriculture policy interventions could form the basis for such guidelines.