Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
59 results(2 / 3)
Urban agriculture in times of crisis: the role of home food growing in perceived food insecurity and well-being during the early COVID-19 lockdown
2021Bethan R. Mead, Jessica Davies, Natalia Falagán, Sofia Kourmpetli, Lingxuan Liu, Charlotte A. Hardman · Emerald Open Research · United Kingdom
A cross-sectional online survey of 477 UK adults (March-April 2020) investigated the role of home food growing during the early COVID-19 lockdown. Participants engaged in home food growing reported lower perceived food insecurity and higher well-being than non-growers. There were no differences in opinions of urban agriculture compared to pre-pandemic data from a separate sample (N=583).
DIYHealthWelfareFood sovereignty & justiceDecentralized Community Composting: Past, Present and Future Aspects of Italy
2020Bruni C., Akyol Ç., Cipolletta G., Eusebi A.L., Caniani D., Masi S., Colón J., Fatone F. · Sustainability · Italy
Reviews Italian legislation and implemented projects on decentralized community composting, arguing Italy can serve as a model for Mediterranean countries building decentralized composting programs.
DIYCompostCommunityEconomic Sustainability of Small-Scale Aquaponic Systems for Food Self-Production
2020Lobillo-Eguíbar J., Fernández-Cabanás V.M., Bermejo L.A., Pérez-Urrestarazu L. · Agronomy · Spain
Two small-scale aquaponic systems, self-built from cheap and easy-to-obtain materials based on FAO models, were monitored for a year to assess their economic sustainability for self-production.
DIYEconomicsEvaluation of Recycled Materials as Hydroponic Growing Media
2020· Agronomy · United Kingdom
Assesses waste almond shells and a recycled plastic drainage plank as sustainable hydroponic media alternatives to perlite, evaluating physicochemical properties and lettuce germination and greenhouse growth.
DIYOrganic cycleProyecto de huertos urbanos sociales, de 3,8 hectáreas,en la Casería de los Cipreses, Granada
2020Rogelio Nogales Romero · · Spain (Granada)
This master's thesis outlines the process for creating and implementing a 3.8-hectare urban garden project in Casería de los Cipreses, Granada, Spain. The project aims to transform an abandoned historical site into sustainable, self-managed urban gardens for community building and agro-environmental education. It details the design, social and technical aspects, and the creation of an association to manage the initiative, adhering to municipal legislation and sustainability requirements.
CommunityDIYFood sovereignty & justiceEffect of stocking density of fish on water quality and growth performance of European Carp and leafy vegetables in a low-tech aquaponic system
2019Maucieri C., Nicoletto C., Zanin G., Birolo M., Trocino A., Sambo P., Borin M., Xiccato G. · PLOS ONE · Italy
In a low-tech aquaponic system, two fish stocking densities were compared for their effects on water quality, European carp growth and leafy vegetable yield; the lower density (2.5 kg/m3) improved water quality and production.
DIYSustainable Community Gardens Require Social Engagement and Training: A Users’ Needs Analysis in Europe
2019J. Ochoa, Esther Sanyé‐Mengual, Kathrin Specht, J.A. Fernández, S. Bañón, Francesco Orsini, F. Magrefi, Giovanni Giorgio Bazzocchi, Severin Halder, Doerte Martens, Noémi Kappel, Giorgio Gianquinto · Sustainability · Europe
A user needs analysis conducted in Berlin, Bologna, Budapest, and Cartagena, Europe, evaluated training requirements for participants in community gardens. The results revealed a need to reinforce training during the formation and community building phases of community gardens, particularly for top-down activities. Users expressed a need for training in crop management skills, such as maintenance and organic practices, and communication skills to disseminate their activities.
CommunityFood educationDIYKent Hakkı ve Katılımcılık Bağlamında Kendin Yap Kentleşme: Roma Bostanı Örneği
2019gökçe öcal · Journal of Planning · Turkey (Istanbul)
This study focuses on the Roma Garden, one of Istanbul's last remaining urban gardens, within the context of "DIY urbanism." In Istanbul, historical gardens are threatened by municipal policies favoring urban development, leading to the formation of "DIY" urban gardens on public land since 2013. These gardens operate without legal ties to the local state, and the destruction of urban public space over the last decade is noted as having paved the way for DIY public gardens as spaces of solidarity and shared knowledge.
Governance failureDIYCommunityPolicyBiodiversityAgronomic and Environmental Assessment of a Polyculture Rooftop Soilless Urban Home Garden in a Mediterranean City
2019Anna Boneta, Martí Rufí-Salís, Mireia Ercilla‐Montserrat, Xavier Gabarrell, Joan Rieradevall · Frontiers in Plant Science · Spain (Barcelona)
This study analyzed an 18 m2 polyculture rooftop soilless urban home garden in Barcelona city center from 2015 to 2017 to estimate its degree of self-sufficiency and sustainability. A total productivity of 10.6 kg/m2/year was achieved, estimating that 5.3 m2 would be needed to fulfill the yearly vegetable requirements of an average citizen. While a high degree of self-sufficiency was achieved, fertilizers and their associated leachates accounted for the highest environmental impacts in all studied categories.
DIYClimate changeEconomicsUrban–rural linkageAgriculture urbaine : jardiner hors de chez soi
2019Yvon Le, Paula Nahmías, Giulia Giacchè · HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe) · France (Rennes)
This paper is a contribution to the inaugural issue of the journal "Palimpseste," which aims to highlight research conducted within the twenty-two research units of Rennes 2 University.
CommunityDIYVorstellung des Projekts "Ernte Deine Stadt"
2018Jens A. Geißler, Tim Schümann · · Germany (Bad Oldesloe)
The "Ernte deine Stadt" project series in Bad Oldesloe, Germany, combines civic engagement platforms with makerspace and community building ideas, focusing on local sustainability, particularly urban gardening and green libraries. Due to the project's success, the Bad Oldesloe City Library won the IFLA Green Library Award in 2017.
CommunityDIYFood education12. Green Library of the Neighbourhood
2018Anja Seifert, Stefan Rogge · · Germany (Berlin)
The Bibliothek Tiergarten Sud, a library in central Berlin, has been transforming since 2013 with neighborhood volunteers focusing on a DIY philosophy, including urban gardening, after overcoming financial struggles. With EU funding, the library is establishing itself as a community center, offering diverse activities like a Repair Cafe and gardening information sessions. It also features Germany's first "Leih-Samerei" in a public library, allowing patrons to borrow home-grown seeds from local gardens.
CommunityDIYFood educationDesigning a Community Garden
2018Davide Fassi, Alessandro Sachero, Giulia Simeone · IDEA JOURNAL · Italy
This paper reviews Coltivando, a convivial garden at Politecnico di Milano, which serves as a design research project and a social and educational experiment. It brings together neighbors and design students to meet, cultivate, and share skills. The review analyzes the project's context, outputs, innovation, process, obstacles, impact, user needs, transferability, and dissemination.
CommunityFood educationDIYNon-traditional grains for a balanced diet
2018Aneta Popova, Dasha Mihaylova · Bulgarian Portal for Open Science · Europe
This article discusses the role of grains in a balanced diet, noting that non-traditional grains are increasingly available commercially and reflect a broad interest in diverse food genres. These grains are frequently cultivated in home, allotment, and community gardens, often connected to the ethnic ancestry of the growers.
DIYCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceProduction for consumption: Prosumer, citizen‐consumer, and ethical consumption in a postgrowth context
2018Elisabeth Kosnik · Economic Anthropology · Europe
This article investigates self-provisioning practices and diverse economies, drawing on ethnographic research of lifestyle subsistence farmers in central Europe and New Zealand. It uses Alvin Toffler's "prosumer" concept to explore the meaning of production for consumption in relation to discourses on ethical consumption, social distinction, and the "citizen-consumer" within a postgrowth society.
DIYCSA & TeikeiCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsThe Aroma-Home Community Garden Project'sDemocratic Narratives: Embodied Memory-Stories of Planting and Cooking
2018Susan C. Haedicke · Public Art Dialogue · France
The Aroma-Home project, originating from aromatics, flavors, conversations, and guerrilla gardening, began in Villetaneuse, France, in early spring 2013. Inhabitants discovered a small, brightly painted caravan, marking the start of this community garden initiative.
CommunityDIYExploring Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting Potential for Food Production in Urban Areas
2017· Agriculture · Rome, Italy
Models rooftop rainwater harvesting to irrigate 2,631 fruit and vegetable gardens in Rome, estimating 19-33% of gardens could be water self-sufficient depending on irrigation efficiency.
DIYCommunityAzioni e progetti per micro interventi sullo spazio pubblico della città
2017Leonardo Zaffi · Florence Research (University of Florence) · Italy
This chapter reconstructs the main themes and implementation methodologies characterizing spontaneous practices and micro-interventions for the transformation of residual urban spaces. It outlines the characteristics of experiences such as public art, placemaking, active design, and urban farming, considering their compatibility and potential effectiveness for systemic "urban acupuncture" actions in the oldest parts of cities. The final part focuses on action methodologies like DIY and user involvement to investigate the potential of "urban acupuncture" in the oldest parts of cities.
DIYCommunityPolicyVegetables
2017Elizabeth Carruthers, Carole Keane, Jo Ingleby · · United Kingdom
This project in the United Kingdom aimed to provide children with first-hand knowledge of food growth and its environmental connection. It sourced seasonal and local ingredients from gardens, grocers, an allotment at Windmill Hill City Farm, and Farmers’ Markets for children to explore.
Food educationCommunityDIYAroma-Home’s edible stories: An urban community garden performs
2017Susan C. Haedicke · Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems · France (Paris)
Aroma-Home, an artist-initiated community garden in Villetaneuse, France, transformed a bleak construction site into an urban agricultural commons starting in 2013. Local inhabitants and an artist reclaimed public spaces, creating a community garden that wove together food-growing, storytelling, and place-making through cultural practices around growing, preparing, and sharing food among multi-ethnic participants.
CommunityDIYFood educationRadical Urban Horticulture for Food Autonomy: Beyond the Community Gardens Experience
2016Pierpaolo Mudu, Alessia Marini · Antipode · Italy
In Italy, the occupation of abandoned urban spaces for "orti urbani" (urban gardens) has increased within the squatting movement over the last 10 years. The city of Rome shows widespread activity in organizing self-managed spaces for growing fruits and vegetables. These initiatives support food autonomous configurations and represent a strategy to re-appropriate and commune urban space.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyDIYContesting Neoliberal Urbanism in Glasgow's Community Gardens: The Practice of DIY Citizenship
2016John Crossan, Andrew Cumbers, Robert McMaster, Deirdre Shaw · Antipode · United Kingdom (Glasgow)
This paper examines community gardens in Glasgow, acknowledging their vulnerability to neoliberal cooptation where citizen work may alleviate state service provision. However, it argues that even with neoliberal practices, these gardens cultivate collective practices that suggest a progressively transformative polity. This form of citizen participation, termed "Do-It-Yourself" (DIY) Citizenship, encourages reconsideration of relationships and effective political practice.
Governance failureCommunityDIYPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceTowards Regenerated and Productive Vacant Areas through Urban Horticulture: Lessons from Bologna, Italy
2016Daniela Gasperi, Giuseppina Pennisi, Niccolò Rizzati, F. Magrefi, Giovanni Giorgio Bazzocchi, Umberto Mezzacapo, Monique Centrone Stefani, Esther Sanyé‐Mengual, Francesco Orsini, Giorgio Gianquinto · Sustainability · Italy (Bologna)
This paper analyzed current practices in the requalification of vacant areas as urban gardens in Bologna, Italy, using six case studies across four types of vacant areas. For most cases, urban horticulture improved the image and quality of the areas and provided social benefits like improved life quality, food access, and social interaction. Strong differences were found between top-down and bottom-up initiatives, with bottom-up approaches being preferable for citizen engagement.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsPolicyDIYThe Debate about Berlin Tempelhof Airport, or: A Lefebvrean Critique of Recent Debates about Aect in Geography
2016Ulrich Best · · Germany (Berlin)
Berlin Tempelhof Airport, closed on October 30, 2008, temporarily became a park. Debates about the use and accessibility of this space have continued, including opposition to a fence, successful guerrilla gardening, and discussions about future construction. This chapter investigates the politics and discourses surrounding the airport's closure in the media and neighborhood, linking them to the theme of memory and affect in urban studies.
CommunityPolicyDIYGrow your own:space, planning, practice and everyday futures of domestic food production
2016Enrico Marcore, Nicola Spurling · Lancaster EPrints (Lancaster University) · Italy, United Kingdom
This essay explores the relationship between space, planning, and everyday practices, focusing on the futures of domestic food growing spaces and practices in Italy and the UK. It examines the recent inclusion of community gardens in an eco-urban housing model in L'Aquila, Italy, and the historical trajectory of allotments in the UK. Through these examples, the essay considers how various "experiments" in policy, planning, and practice should be conceptualized.
CommunityPolicyDIY