Research & reports

Alicja Kicińska, Justyna Wikar · Plant and Soil · Global

This study assessed human health risks from contact with contaminated soil and consumption of plants grown in contaminated soils in allotment gardens and farmlands located in areas affected by Zn-Pb and steel industries and hard coal mining. Using US EPA methodology and pseudo-total concentrations of Potentially Toxic Elements (PTEs) in soil and plant samples, estimated daily intake and non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic health risks were analyzed for recreational and residential exposure scenarios. Findings indicated that the proportion of different exposure pathways in total health risk decreased in the order: intake of contaminated vegetables > accidental soil ingestion > dermal contact > inhalation of contaminated soil particles, and children are more exposed to toxic effects of PTEs than seniors and economically active adults.

Ashli D. Jay · Advances in human resources management and organizational development book series · Global

This chapter investigated the crucial role of transformational leadership in shaping urban agricultural education and program development. Drawing from established research, it highlighted how transformational leadership provides a structured approach to achieving academic excellence and educational equity in urban settings. The emphasis on empowerment, ethical behavior, and relationship building makes transformational leadership ideal for addressing urban agriculture's unique challenges and opportunities, concluding that its principles stand out for their ability to enrich urban agricultural education, creating an environment that is academically rigorous, empathetic, and socially responsible.

Luíza Malvessi Lagemann, Luciana Turatti, Rodrigo Spinelli · Revista Destaques Acadêmicos · Global

This paper conducted a literature review of architecture and urban planning projects to find alternatives to mitigate problems of the current food system, such as processed foods, reduced access for small producers, and high environmental pollution. Ten projects focusing on urban agriculture and healthier food production were analyzed. Ultimately, it was observed that it is possible to construct architectural and urban planning projects that contribute to more sustainable food production, especially in urban areas and with the use of urban agriculture.

Juan Pablo Robayo, Jemay Mosquera Téllez · limentech Ciencia y Tecnología Alimentaria · Colombia (Cúcuta)

A descriptive and interpretive qualitative study in Cúcuta, Colombia, documented the implementation of home gardens aimed at self-management and community empowerment. The research involved families in the Rudesindo Soto, La Pastora, and Belén neighborhoods, utilizing semi-structured interviews, field work, and documentary analysis in collaboration with the Catholic Church. Findings indicated that participants experienced advantages and benefits in terms of self-management, cooperation, and community empowerment, leading to the formulation of a public policy proposal to support home gardens at the municipal level.

Alexandra Ribeiro, Lívia Madureira, Raquel Carvalho · Landscape and Urban Planning · Global

This paper conducted a bibliometric analysis of published research on urban gardens, using Vosviewer software and the Web of Science database. The analysis identified four research clusters: 'Citizens' (people, lifestyle, community), 'Drivers' (motivations, purposes, benefits), 'Cities' (contribution to urban sustainability, hindered by lack of policy recognition), and 'Soil' (sustainability shortcomings due to soil contamination on vacant land). The study concluded that urban garden research is directly related to sustainable development, but the issue receives little importance, with most studies being case studies and economic pressure affecting sustainability.

Licia María Lilli · kult-ur revista interdisciplinària sobre la cultura de la ciutat · Argentina (Rosario)

This study reflects on sustainable food systems through the biographical narrative of Antonio Lattuca, a key figure in urban agriculture development in Rosario, Argentina. Based on a semi-structured interview, the research focuses on his activism in establishing urban gardens and institutionalizing collective strategies within the municipal government since the 1990s, including the Urban Agriculture Program. Rosario has over 34 years of urban agroecological experiences addressing urbanization, poverty, and exclusion.

Yumin Park, Yong-Wook Shin · Journal of people, plants, and environment · Global

This study conducted an importance-performance analysis (IPA) on the values and major achievements of urban agriculture, analyzing 104 responses from experts involved in urban agricultural policies. It found that both importance and satisfaction were highest for health functions, followed by social-cultural, environmental-ecological, and economic functions. Awareness of health functions was high, while economic functions were low, suggesting a need for strengthening.

Tanja Mölders · · Global

"Societal Spatial Relations as a Sustainability Science Perspective on 'Space', 'Nature', and 'Gender'. The Case Study Urban Gardening" was published on page 39 of Gender und Diversity in Natur-, Technik- und Planungswissenschaften.

Joshua Zeunert, Tanya Court · Elsevier eBooks · Global

Public urban agriculture (PUA) in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia faces challenges, including aesthetics and negative perceptions of its spatial presence and visual performance. In these contexts, PUA often remains limited to allotments, community gardens, education gardens, and street verge gardens, which frequently suffer from negative aesthetic perceptions in highly visible public settings. This chapter explores how eight distinctive rural food production practices could be translated into urban contexts to address aesthetic shortcomings in PUA design.

Michael Tuffour · Journal of Regional and City Planning · Ghana

This study investigated how urban farmers in Ghana cope with land scarcity amidst rapid urbanization and the factors influencing their mobility for farmland. Responses from 251 farmers were analyzed using both Tobit and Ordinary Least Squares (OLS), revealing that land situation factors such as land ownership type, land scarcity challenges, and land size were associated with farmers' mobility. Farm characteristics like market benefits, intensity of vegetable production, and technology level, along with personal characteristics such as age, education level, farmer engagement, and marital status, also played a role in mobility.

Krista Willman · ACME · Finland (Tampere)

This article explores the "operational space" of urban community gardening (CG) from the viewpoint of city officials in Tampere, Finland. Two rounds of interviews with eight officials and discourse analysis were used, and the operational space, shaped by administrative policies and practices, was found to be rather rigid and narrow. Five main discourses aimed to enable urban gardening but were restricted to strategic, limited, and instrumental levels, as political-strategic aims contradicted administrative practices, and cautiousness and unclarity in the administrative-political culture led to institutional ambiguity.

Jialing Xie · · Australia (Wyndham)

Wyndham, one of Australia's fastest-growing communities, faces increased urbanization and pressure on its socio-ecological environment, leading to growing food insecurity. This paper aims to explore agriculture-based resilient community development to achieve food security in Wyndham. Through a critical review of relevant literature and case studies on implementing a pilot site design approach, the paper presents necessary actions for urban farming practices at their current scale and reviews opportunities and barriers to scaling up these practices under future risks like climate change and sea-level rise.

Shannon Davis, Guanyu Chen, Naomi Darvill · Land · New Zealand

In Ōtautahi Christchurch, New Zealand, surveys explored perceptions of peri-urban residents and food producers regarding food growing in the peri-urban zone. Over 90% of residents expressed positive views towards local food production, though they raised concerns about environmental and health impacts, particularly water quality, and limited access to local food. Conversely, food producers reported less positive experiences due to various operational issues in the peri-urban zone.

Ernst‐August Nuppenau · PLoS ONE · Global

This article proposes an ecological economics orientation for peri-urban development, focusing on land use planning, local food, and entropy. Based on a mathematical model and control theory, it presents an operational concept to minimize negative externalities within a given population, aiming to assure space for urban agriculture and enable organic matter recycling. It notes that current unhealthy developments and market-oriented city expansions have limited the scope for peri-urban farming, advocating for regional planning based on organic matter recycling.

Ayşegül YARIŞ, Emel Karakaya Ayalp · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · Global

The current agri-food system is undergoing an unsustainable transition, with Urban Food Planning emerging as a holistic approach for sustainable transition. This paper explains and translates the "City-Region Food System (CRFS) Toolkit," developed in partnership with FAO, RUAF, and participating cities. It examines the toolkit's roadmap and approach for building more sustainable and resilient urban food systems through two case studies in West Africa. The research concluded that the CRFS Toolkit defines limited tools for building sustainable urban food systems and excludes the relationship with spatial disciplines.

Patrizia Pugliese, Cosimo Rota, Fatima Zohra Sabrane, Marie Reine Bteich, E.J. Veen · · Morocco

A mixed-methods study of four urban agriculture initiatives in Morocco found that while all cases struggled with certain perturbations, some were able to turn them into more hopeful situations, whereas others could lead to new perturbations or increased vulnerability. The study concluded that the outcomes were highly case-specific and related to existing resources, highlighting the complex and fluid nature of these initiatives.

Serkan Kemeç, Salar Hassan Abdalkarim · Iconarp International J of Architecture and Planning · Iraq (Erbil)

This study, conducted in Erbil City in 2017 and 2020, measured the accessibility of public urban green spaces using network analysis with GIS. It found that for community parks, 68% of the population had access within 5 minutes travel time, while for mini parks, 22% had access within a 5-minute walk. This was the first known investigation into public green space accessibility in Erbil.

José Anido · Agroalimentaria · Venezuela

This exploratory review study examined the viability of urban food systems and their governance in Venezuela, based on secondary sources. While identifying available resources like educational infrastructure and a renewed legal framework, the study highlighted significant limitations. These include increasing deforestation, deteriorating potable water services for urban agriculture, migration of skilled populations, decline in public funding for science and technology, opaque official information, and scarcity of financing for new developments.

Nurulanis Ahmad, Zarita Ahmad, Siti Nadiah Mohd Ali, Nor Aini Salleh, Fatemah Khozaei · Environment-Behaviour Proceedings Journal · Global

This study assessed the role of local authorities in urban agriculture practices within strata housing, addressing environmental pressures from urbanization. Through semi-structured interviews with City Council Y's COB Manager, findings indicated that local authorities can promote urban agriculture by creating policies and regulations and allocating public resources and funding. The study concluded that urban agriculture in strata housing contributes to resilient urban environments.

Lalawmpuii Lalawmpuii, Prabhat Kumar · Energy Nexus · Global

This review emphasizes the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus as a tool to combat environmental degradation, address climate action, and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It investigates the methodological paradigm and application of the WEF Nexus through case studies on water resources, energy efficiency, urban food production, food waste reduction, cross-sectoral perspectives, and the circular economy. The WEF nexus approach was found to stimulate multilevel and inter-sectoral governance, aiding in addressing complexities and inefficiencies in achieving the SDGs.

Gizaw Ebissa, Kumelachew Yeshitela, Hayal Desta, Aramde Fetene · Environment Development and Sustainability · Global

This study investigated urban agriculture's (UA) contributions to environmental sustainability (ES) using scholarly search engines. Findings indicate UA contributes to ES by mitigating greenhouse gases, urban heat island effects, and floods, while enhancing biodiversity and promoting agro-tourism. However, challenges such as lack of policy support, exclusion from urban land use planning, and urbanites' behavior towards UA products limit its full benefits.

Justyna Kleszcz · Architecture Civil Engineering Environment · Global

This 2023 article summarizes research on urban residential housing forms integrated with agriculture developed between 2010 and 2021 across North America, Asia, and Europe. The study conducted a comprehensive comparative analysis of contemporary architecture, examining both external form and internal structure of housing developments. Seven global case studies, including conceptual and completed projects, were selected to identify main trends and points generating structural changes in buildings connected with urban agriculture.

Paola Clerino, Agnès Fargue‐Lelièvre, Jean-Marc Meynard · Agronomy for Sustainable Development · Global

This study investigated the sustainability assessment practices of professional intra-urban agriculture (PIUA) projects in the Global North, analyzing 19 case studies. Four dimensions underpinning sustainability assessment were identified: internal sustainability, external sustainability, the project leader’s credibility, and the innovative nature of the project. The study found 67 diverse assessment criteria and that 78% of indicators used were qualitative, noting that assessment practices evolve over time. The results enhance understanding of how PIUA project sustainability is assessed.

Simon Marvin, Lauren Rickards, Jonathan Rutherford · Urban Studies · Global

This paper critically examines urban controlled environment agriculture (CEA), reconceptualizing it as an emergent urban infrastructure for artificial, highly productive microclimates. It argues that CEA attempts to secure food production through three spatial-temporal fixes: enclosing food production indoors, moving it closer to cities, and integrating it into city buildings, thereby extending existing agricultural logics. The paper identifies future research challenges for urban studies regarding CEA.

Svetlana Hristova-Vladi · Postmodernism Problems · Bulgaria

The book "Urban Agriculture for Improving the Quality of Life. Examples from Bulgaria," edited by Donna Pickard, explores the real versus potential effects of urban agriculture on the welfare of urban and nearby communities. This multidisciplinary study analyzes the interplay between urban agriculture practices and quality of life through social, educational, economic, spatial, and ecological aspects. It also delves into the historical dimension of urban agriculture in Bulgaria, including examples from Sofia in the 1930s.