Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
2091 results(20 / 84)
Farm-to-Table Initiatives in Restaurant Food Production: Benefits, Challenges, and Consumer Perceptions
2024Dr.M.K. Ganesh · International Journal for Multidimensional Research Perspectives · Global
This mixed-methods study examined the farm-to-table movement in restaurant food production, identifying benefits like enhanced food freshness and local economic support. However, it also found significant challenges including higher costs, seasonal variability, and complex supply chain logistics. Consumer perceptions were generally positive, but the study emphasized the need for increased consumer education and policy support to overcome barriers.
Economic viabilityEconomicsFood miles & supply chainPolicyCommunityPlanetary health risks in urban agriculture
2024Nilanjana Ganguli, Anna Maria Subic, Janani Maheswaran, Byomkesh Talukder · Global Health Journal · Global
A systematic literature review of 55 papers identified five distinct planetary health risks associated with urban agriculture, despite its environmental benefits. The study highlighted particular concerns regarding trace metal bioaccumulation in soil and vegetables, posing health risks to populations. Additionally, risks related to wastewater irrigation, backyard livestock farming, and gaps in infectious disease research were identified.
Contamination & food safetyHealthClimate changeCommunityMotivations for Urban Agriculture Policies: Evidence from Norway’s Largest Urban Areas
2024Inger‐Lise Saglie · The Geojournal library · Norway
This study investigated the motivations for urban agriculture policies in Oslo, Bergen, and Trondheim, Norway, identifying five categories of motivations. These include urban "green" development, food production and alternative food systems, provision of social meeting places and community building, municipal welfare services (work training, integration, health promotion, knowledge sharing), and active citizenship and co-creation of city development. While motivations were similar across cities, their emphasis varied.
PolicyCommunityBiodiversityWelfareHome and Garden Pests
2024Dawn H. Gouge · CABI eBooks · Global
Entomopathogenic nematode (EPN) products are effective but underutilized tools for pest control in homes, gardens, and landscapes, despite being safe for children and pets. They can be used on various plants and are often cost-effective, with lower efficacy levels being acceptable in these settings. There are significant opportunities to increase EPN use in urban environments, including for previously untested pests, driven by growing urban populations and increased appreciation for home-grown produce.
DIYCommunityThe Impact and Future of Edible Landscape on Sustainable Development of Universities: A Systematic Literature Review
2024Yu Hang · International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences · Global
This study provides a systematic literature review using PRISMA to analyze the ecological, social, and educational benefits of edible landscapes in universities. Research has shown that introducing edible landscapes can improve campus sustainability, educational content, and community engagement. This helps to improve ecological diversity and environmental quality on campuses, enhances awareness and participation of teachers and students in sustainable development, and promotes community identity and social cohesion.
Food educationCommunityClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceSiEUGreen White Paper with best practices
2024Nordregio, Luciane Aguiar Borges, Ana de Jesus · · Global
This report discusses the barriers and drivers of Urban Agriculture (UA) within the framework of the Horizon 2020 project 'SiEUGreen,' across environmental, technological, economic, social/cultural, and regulatory/institutional aspects. Based on insights from five showcases in Norway, Denmark, Turkey, and China, the results suggest that city food provision and UA systems can be designed considering circular economy regenerative cycles. However, key barriers limiting UA uptake include the need for more evidence-based research, further experimentation for innovative technological developments, high investments, difficulties accessing financial support, underdeveloped business cases, limited recognition of UA's benefits, and behavioral/cultural barriers.
Governance failureFood sovereignty & justiceOrganic cycleCommunityPolicyMAPEAMENTO E SELEÇÃO DE INDICADORES DE AVALIAÇÃO DA SUSTENTABILIDADE NO CONTEXTO SOCIODEMOGRÁFICO DA AMAZÔNIA
2024Maria Fernanda Coghi, Duarcides Ferreira Mariosa, Orandi Mina Falsarella · · Portugal
This project aimed to develop and install an optimized aquaponics system at the School of Engineering, Polytechnic of Porto (ISEP). The three-floor vertical garden includes two tanks with approximately 2,000 liters of water for fish, three flower boxes, and over 120 positions for growing vegetables. Pedagogical activities involving students from various ISEP courses were also developed in conjunction with this project.
Food sovereignty & justiceFood educationDigital agricultureCommunityImpact of school gardens on secondary schools' agricultural science education in east Berbice Corentyne, Guyana
2024Tinesha Onika Carmichael, Wazim Rafeek Sharif, Lydia Narain · Magna Scientia Advanced Research and Reviews · Guyana
This study investigated 30 Agricultural Science teachers across 17 secondary schools in East Berbice Corentyne, Guyana, regarding their perceptions of school gardens. Findings showed that students in school gardening activities were more inclined towards agricultural careers and had an enhanced understanding of practical agriculture. School gardens also facilitated interdisciplinary learning, connecting agricultural science with other subjects.
Food educationCommunityEconomicsTHE ROLE OF URBAN AGRICULTURE IN FOOD SECURITY: A STUDY ON ENTREPRENEURIAL STRATEGIES FOR SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS
2024Harshdeep Chandrakant Sapkale, Madhulika A. Sonawane · International Journal of Advanced Research in Commerce Management & Social Science · Global
A 2024 study explored the multifaceted importance of urban agriculture in urban and peri-urban areas, highlighting its role in enhancing food security, economic resilience, and environmental sustainability. The research examined entrepreneurial opportunities and strategies to foster sustainable food systems through innovative practices such as backyard cultivation, participatory gardens, green roofs, vertical farms, and tech-enabled marketplaces. It advocated for urban agriculture as a scalable model for addressing urban challenges and encouraging entrepreneurship, particularly in rapidly urbanizing regions like Asia and Africa.
Food sovereignty & justiceEconomicsClimate changeCommunityHome Gardening
2024Pavitira Manogaran, Nur Aliah Mansor · Practice, progress, and proficiency in sustainability · Malaysia (Penang)
This research investigates the impact of home gardening in Penang, Malaysia, which gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic due to increased food demand and supply chain disruptions. The study highlights home gardening's potential to promote self-sufficiency, food security, and sustainable practices, contributing to food system resilience and community well-being. It aligns with sustainable development goals like zero hunger and climate action.
DIYCommunityClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceNavigating Urban Agriculture and Sustainability
2024Kheir Al‐Kodmany, Madhav Govind, Sharmin Khan, Anita Pinheiro, Chittaranjan Kole · · Global
The issue of urban agriculture's overlooked role in urban sustainability discussions amidst urbanization and climate change is addressed. This book aims to bridge the "brown" agenda, which prioritizes human well-being and social justice, with the "green" agenda, focusing on environmental health and ecosystem protection, within the context of urban agriculture and sustainability.
Climate changePolicyEconomicsCommunityContemporary research on urban agriculture
2024Ada Górna · · Global
This chapter presents the specific nature of urban agriculture in cities of the Global North and Global South, based on an analysis of published research and the author's field observations. It identifies main problems and common denominators in urban agriculture across different environmental, socioeconomic, and political conditions. The chapter discusses issues in the Global South (Latin America, South, East and Southeast Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa) and the Global North.
Urban–rural linkagePolicyEconomicsCommunityNinguna casa sin jardín
2024María Dolores Sánchez Moya, Araceli Tárraga Guillén · Constelaciones Revista de Arquitectura de la Universidad CEU San Pablo · Denmark
This article traces the thinking of landscape architect Th. Sørensen on public space design, who was involved in major Danish collective social housing programs from the 1930s to 1950s. It studies Sørensen's six most outstanding collective gardens to highlight the design strategies that have consolidated them into spaces of high civic value, still suitable today. The analysis is structured in three approaches based on building spatial patterns and dispersion, examining the use of topography and vegetation to define character, clear spatial order, and reconcile public and human scales.
CommunityPolicyOne Health Approach to Study the Occurrence and Antimicrobial Resistance of Extended-Spectrum β-Lactamase- and Carbapenemase-Producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella spp. in Urban Agriculture in Burkina Faso
2024Fatimata Bintou Josiane Diarra, Isidore Juste O. Bonkoungou, Zakaria Garba, Namwin Siourimè Somda, Djifahamaï Soma, Marguerite Edith Malatala Nikiema, Évariste Bako, Souleymane Sore, Natéwindé Sawadogo, Nicolas Barro, Kaisa Haukka · Microorganisms · Burkina Faso (Ouagadougou)
A study in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, assessed the occurrence of extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli (ESBL-Ec) and Klebsiella spp. (ESBL-K) in 356 samples from lettuce, the environment, and gardeners' stools in market gardens. The overall prevalence of ESBL-producing bacteria was 65.2%. Specifically, ESBL-Ec was found in 25.0% of lettuce samples and ESBL-K in 43.4% of lettuce samples, indicating a high prevalence of these resistant bacteria in urban agriculture.
Contamination & food safetyHealthCommunityRe-negotiating the boundaries between infrastructure and landscape: Mapping infrastructural ecologies
2024Ivonne Weichold · · Global
This paper re-conceptualizes infrastructure as hybrid systems where human and ecological elements intersect, merging infrastructure and landscape to create new productive urban spaces. It proposes redesigning infrastructure as complex socio-ecological systems, or "infrastructural ecologies," which can support urban agriculture and food system infrastructure in interstitial urban spaces like vacant lots. The research uses observations of everyday food system activities and interviews in New York and Brazil to inform design scenarios.
Urban–rural linkagePolicyCommunityCultivating Change: Empowering Communities Among Elderly Through Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Smart Urban Farming
2024Nasreen Khan, Anusuyah Subbarao, Shereen Khan, Aysa Siddika · Journal of Human Earth and Future · Malaysia
This research investigated whether the adoption of smart urban farming (SUF) enhances the social and economic well-being (SEW) of senior citizens, involving 130 elderly participants from Klang Valley, Malaysia. Survey data was analyzed using SPSS. The study revealed that while Social Entrepreneurship alone may not be enough to encourage elderly adoption of SUF, combining it with social innovation significantly increases adoption. It also indicated that SUF adoption enhances the elderly's SEW.
ElderlyCommunityEconomicsWelfareThe community contributions of urban farms in Singapore
2024Sean Olivia Nicholas, Niki Harré · Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems · Singapore
A review of existing literature and a case study of three urban farms in Singapore were conducted to examine their community contributions. Content analysis of 27 interviews with employees and volunteers revealed that these farms empower participants, generate social capital, provide jobs, involve marginalized groups, and promote pro-environmental behaviors. However, the farms were limited by poor job prospects and lower-than-expected yield.
Economic viabilityCommunityWelfareEconomicsClimate changeJordkorrespondenser : episod 3
2024· KTH Publication Database DiVA (KTH Royal Institute of Technology) · Sweden
As a continuation of the ongoing "Soil Correspondences" project, people engaged in local soils were invited to write letters to soil. The letters were read and composted during a ritualized working day to create an 18-day compost, forming an ecosocial sculpture. This activity learned from the composting practices of artists Etta Säfve and Jona Elfdahl from the artist duo Gylleboverket, and the resulting compost will be returned as probiotics to the local soil.
CommunityCompostOrganic cycleUrban Green Spaces: An Analysis of Evolution in Romania’s Regions
2024Silvius Stanciu, Simona Beatrice MANOLACHE, Mihaela Pila · Communications of International Proceedings · Romania
This paper analyzes the evolution of urban green spaces in Romania, using open-access articles and data from the National Institute of Statistics. The research indicates that while cities like Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, and Timișoara have seen significant progress through investments in expanding parks, creating green corridors, and promoting community gardens and green roofs, many localities face constraints. These constraints include high population density, rapid urban infrastructure development, and a lack of coherent, well-funded environmental policies, leading to difficulties in maintaining and expanding green areas despite growing awareness of their importance.
CommunityPolicy‘I learned this in the gardening group’: the impact of a community garden on children and their families’ eating habits
2024V. Nigel Kelly, Emma Brännlund · Irish Educational Studies · Ireland
This small-scale pilot study investigated the impact of children's involvement in a rural community garden in Ireland on their and their families' eating habits. Using a qualitative design, semi-structured interviews gathered parents' perspectives on their children's eating habits before and after participation. The study indicated that children's involvement in a community garden positively impacted their social development, confidence, and food awareness, alongside a noticeable influence on the family's general healthy food consumption. Further research with more participants is needed for more accurate data.
CommunityFood educationHealthFood Atlas Vienna: A collective cartography of the urban food landscape
2024Daniel Löschenbrand, Vanessa Giolai, Angelika Psenner · · Austria (Vienna)
The "Food Atlas Vienna" project was realized in the context of the Vienna Biennale 2021. This project aims to question the discipline of urban planning regarding the existing urban food system and regional cycles, combining spatial mapping with innovative design possibilities for a sustainable metropolitan region. Working with inhabitants at four different locations in Vienna, the project developed a new mindset and methods to make connections between food and urban morphology visible.
PolicyCommunityUrban–rural linkageClimate changeEvaluation of the nature based community recovery project - Extended 2023
2024Joanne E. Porter, Megan Simic, Elizabeth Miller, Daria Soldatenko, Luis Hualda · · Australia
This project, commissioned by the Collaborative Evaluation and Research Centre (CERC), explored how nature improved the recovery of remote and rural communities affected by bushfires in East Gippsland, Australia. Data were collected from June to September 2023 through a nature-based community recovery project survey and community interviews. Phase 1 evaluated grant-funded projects, while Phase 2 investigated how broader communities interacted with nature for healing after the 2019-2020 bushfires.
CommunityWelfareFood educationSustainable Built Environments and the Water, Energy, and Food Nexus: Toward an Interdisciplinary Approach to Urban Resilience
2024Zeina ElZein · Chinese Journal of Urban and Environmental Studies · Global
This paper reviews articles on the water, energy, and food nexus and urban resilience from the past 10 years, exploring the need for interdisciplinary approaches. It identifies key research foci, gaps, and future research needs. Recommendations for future studies include allocating funds to ensure vulnerable communities' access to resources, sustainable operation of urban agriculture practices, circular economy and reuse, and engaging experts, local authorities, and communities in decision-making and training. The study also recommends using quantitative assessment to identify the impact of urban agriculture and urban water management practices on the environment and including socio-economic aspects in assessment models.
Climate changeFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityPolicyFood as a public service for people and pollinators: evidence-based insights from regenerative placemaking in New Zealand—the Waharoa living lab
2024Bárbara Ribeiro, David E. Pattemore, A. B. Morris, Leo Baldwin-Ramult, Daniel Exeter · Journal of Urbanism International Research on Placemaking and Urban Sustainability · New Zealand
An action research project in Waharoa, New Zealand, transformed a former bowling green into a public, edible landscape. This 400 m2 Living Lab (LL) involved multi-stakeholder cooperation (government, community, and academia), and participants perceived benefits as transition pathways to more nutritious dietary choices, health education, and reduced criminality in a socially deprived region. Analyses of interviews, observations, and pollinator surveys conducted at the LL confirmed that 14 visiting species were drawn to the site, leading to an approach to regenerative placemaking that combines human health and biodiversity benefits.
CommunityHealthBiodiversityPollinatorsPengetahuan, Sikap dan Praktek Terhadap Adopsi Urban Farming: Tinjauan Konsep
2024Harry Wiyanto · Labs Jurnal Bisnis dan Manajemen · Global
This conceptual review aims to explore the factors, specifically knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP), that influence the adoption of urban farming practices. Urban farming is presented as a means for food security with diverse goals and benefits, including improved access to fresh produce and reduced climate change impact. The study seeks to gain a deeper understanding of the overall concept of the KAP model in relation to urban farming adoption.
Food sovereignty & justiceCommunityHealthClimate change