Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
735 results(22 / 30)
Socially acceptable urban agriculture businesses
2016Specht K., Weith T., Swoboda K., Siebert R. · Agronomy for Sustainable Development 36:17 · Europe
Examines the social acceptance of commercial urban agriculture businesses, drawing on Berlin stakeholder research to identify conditions and challenges for corporate urban farms to gain societal legitimacy.
EconomicsCommunityThe position of urban allotment gardens within the urban fabric
2016Sandra María Fonseca da Costa, Runrid Fox-Kämper, Russell Good, Ivana Sentić, S. Treija, Jasminka Rizovska Atanasovska, Hervé Bonnavaud · · Europe
This chapter provides an understanding of the position of allotment and community gardens within the urban fabric across Europe. It offers insights into their diverse locations, relationships to other green spaces, reciprocal impact on the urban landscape and people, and their role in green infrastructure, including functions, connectivity, and accessibility for residents.
CommunityPolicyUrban–rural linkageBiodiversityRadical 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 & justicePolicyDIYUrban green infrastructure and urban forests: a case study of the Metropolitan Area of Milan
2016Giovanni Sanesi, Giuseppe Colangelo, Raffaele Lafortezza, Enrico Calvo, Clive Davies · Landscape Research · Italy (Milan)
This study assessed land use changes and policy impacts on urban green infrastructure (UGI) in the Metropolitan Area of Milan, Italy. Since the 1970s, policies have led to the creation of 10,000 hectares of new forests and green systems, such as Boscoincittà and Parco Nord Milano, to address green space loss. The research, part of the Emonfur project, aims to identify effective measures for increasing UGI quality and quantity.
PolicyCommunityBiodiversityUrban–rural linkageContesting 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 & justiceEconomicsPolicyDIYErnte Deine Stadt : Die Stadtbibliothek als Impulsgeber und aktiver Erfahrungs- und Lernort
2016Jens A. Geißler, Tim Schümann · · Germany
The Bad Oldesloe City Library developed a new event series, "Harvest Your City," focused on urban gardening. This series aimed to impart knowledge on food cultivation in urban spaces, encourage environmental responsibility, address the origin of food, and promote collective action. Traditional event elements like lectures and exhibitions were combined with a seed exchange and an analog makerspace for building insect hotels, successfully establishing the library as an active learning space.
Food educationCommunityLes jardins partagés : interface entre nature et sociétéMise en place du jardin partagé du mini M à Rangueil
2016Josselin Rouhier · · Europe
Shared gardens are a powerful support for social connection, enabling collective activities and participatory consultations that foster exchanges and interactions among various stakeholders. They serve as a meeting point for administrations, developers, associations, and residents. Shared gardens are presented as an example of sustainable development, promoting intergenerational communication and socio-professional diversity within urban natural spaces.
CommunityOrganic cycleFood educationMitigating Stress and Supporting Health in Deprived Urban Communities: The Importance of Green Space and the Social Environment
2016Catharine Ward Thompson, Peter J. Aspinall, Jenny Roe, Lynette Robertson, David Miller · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · United Kingdom
A cross-sectional survey of 406 adults in four deprived urban communities in Scotland, UK, investigated the relationship between green space access and health outcomes. While the amount of neighborhood green space and access to a garden or allotment were significant predictors of stress, social isolation and place belonging were found to be the strongest predictors of stress in three communities and of poor general health in the least healthy community. Physical activity, winter green space visits, and home views also predicted general health.
Limited or null effectHealthCommunityWelfareEén buurttuin, twee gemeenschappen: een case study
2016E.J. Veen, Petra Derkzen, B.B. Bock, A.J. de Visser, J.S.C. Wiskerke · Sociologie · Netherlands
This case study of a community garden in the Netherlands, used by three different groups, found that communities formed in such gardens are complex and multiple, not singular. While the garden served as a meeting space for two groups, strengthening internal cohesion, both groups categorized people as 'us' and 'them' based on residence. This strengthened their social identities and led to struggles over garden ownership, demonstrating that shared presence does not necessarily bridge social distances.
Equity & displacementCommunityPolicyHealthFood Inequities, Urban Agriculture, and the Remaking of Milwaukee, Wisconsin
2016Margaret Pettygrove · UWM Digital Commons (University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee) · United States (Milwaukee)
This case study in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, examines food procurement patterns among low-income residents and how local governance and political economic processes shape food environments. It uses quantitative and qualitative methodologies, drawing on spatial analytical and political ecological perspectives. The research critiques the "obesogenic environment thesis" by emphasizing other dimensions of food access beyond proximity to retail sources.
HealthWelfareCommunityPolitics of grassroots innovations
2016Mari Martiskainen, Eva Heiskanen · INDIGO (University of Illinois at Chicago) · United Kingdom
This article examines grassroots innovations, such as community energy projects and community gardens, as forms of political engagement. It argues that while contemporary grassroots innovations may appear less explicitly political than their 1970s predecessors, they still represent political participation. Using UK community energy initiatives as an example, the paper asserts that these projects possess political dimensions extending beyond their immediate communities, fostering political engagement whether intentionally or not.
CommunityPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceThe 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.
CommunityPolicyDIYA history of urban gardens in Europe
2016Nazila Keshavarz, Simon Bell, Andis Zīlāns, Andrew Hursthouse, Annette Voigt, Ans Hobbelink, Antoine Zammit, Ari Jokinen, Bent Egberg Mikkelsen, Bruno Notteboom, Byron Ioannou, Chiara Certomà, Eva Schwab, Ivana Sentić, Johan Barstad, Krista Willman, Laura Calvet‐Mir, Ligita Baležentienė, Malou Weirich, Maria Partalidou, Martin Sondermann, M. Latkowska, Nerea Morán, Ole Pihl, Sara Uršić, Simone Tappert, Sophia Meeres, Susan Noori, Theodosia Anthopoulou, Tim Delshammar, Werner Heidemann, Zuzana Gogová · · Europe
This article outlined the diverse history of urban gardens, including allotments and community gardens, in Europe. History shows many similarities and differences in the reasons for their formation, with urban gardens gaining renewed recognition during the two world wars as a reliable way of producing food. Changes in urban demography, environmental and social movements, and people's attitudes in recent decades have also shaped the history of urban gardens.
CommunityPolicyEconomicsVulnerability Analysis of Urban Agriculture Projects: A Case Study of Community and Entrepreneurial Gardens in the Netherlands and Switzerland
2016Ladina Knapp, E.J. Veen, H. Renting, J.S.C. Wiskerke, J.C.J. Groot · Urban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems · Europe
This study assessed criteria for the successful establishment and continuity of 29 small-scale, bottom-up urban agriculture (UA) initiatives in the Netherlands and Switzerland, using a vulnerability analysis framework. Biophysical and socio-institutional criteria were analyzed through interviews with project leaders. Findings revealed that the vulnerability of UA systems strongly depends on local circumstances, with the main perturbations and causes of vulnerability originating from social-institutional and human conditions, such as the institutional sphere, local authority assistance, and project leaders' determination.
Governance failureCommunityEconomicsPolicyHealthGrow 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.
CommunityPolicyDIYJardin partagé des Piedalloues Auxerre
2016Petites ruches · · France (Auxerre)
The shared garden of the Maison de Quartier des Piedalloues in Auxerre, France, features lawns intentionally left high to attract butterflies such as the 'demi-deuil', which pollinate knautia flowers. Residents have also participated in creating palisades or 'branch walls' using split acacia stakes within the garden.
CommunityBiodiversityPollinatorsFrom sanctuaries to prefigurative social change: Creating health-enabling spaces in East London community gardens
2016Madeleine A. Guerlain, Catherine Campbell · Journal of Social and Political Psychology · United Kingdom (East London)
This qualitative research explored the impact of community gardens on the psycho-social well-being of marginalized groups in East London, UK, and their role in prefigurative social change. Through interviews, Photovoice, and participant observation with 28 gardeners from four groups, findings suggest that participation is driven by the shared practice of gardening, leading to unintended benefits addressing personal adversities. Community gardens create "health-enabling social spaces" and offer an alternative understanding of prefiguration based on participants' lived experiences.
CommunityHealthWelfareFood sovereignty & justicePatrimonialización local del paisaje agrario periurbano. La experiencia del parque agrario de Fuenlabrada (Comunidad de Madrid)
2016Rafael Mata Olmo, Carolina Yacamán Ochoa · Dialnet (Universidad de la Rioja) · Spain (Madrid)
This study, based on a case study in the Community of Madrid, addresses the treatment of agricultural landscapes in metropolitan contexts from a heritage perspective, emphasizing the role of this approach in territorial development and the revitalization of peri-urban agriculture. It synthesizes the concept of heritage and the agrarian park figure, then proposes a methodology for activating patrimonialization processes of peri-urban agricultural areas, supported by public participation and the activation of their identity elements.
Peri-urban agriculturePolicyCommunityIl patrimonio rurale nutre la città
2016Redazione · ECONOMIA E SOCIETÀ REGIONALE · Europe
This paper analyzed the characteristics of organizations that can best convey the cultural benefits of urban agriculture to the city. Through case studies in the cities of Seville and Milan, it examined the relationship between the presence of tangible and intangible cultural heritage and the ways communities are organized to transmit the value of that heritage.
CommunityPeri-urban agricultureUrban–rural linkageSocial Actions Transformed in a Post-Carbon Transition: The Case of Barcelona
2016Jesús Viçens · Palgrave Macmillan UK eBooks · Spain (Barcelona)
This chapter investigated which social actions in modern urban neighborhoods aid the transition to a post-carbon society and mitigate global warming effects, examining a neighborhood in Barcelona. Data was collected through eight semi-structured interviews (averaging 70 minutes), and Nonaka and Takeuchi's (1995) knowledge creation model was used for analysis. The study is based on the capacity of communities to support innovative social actions through experiential knowledge creation.
CommunityClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceUrban Gardeners’ Motivations in a Metropolitan City: The Case of Milan
2016Giordano Ruggeri, Chiara Mazzocchi, Stefano Corsi · Sustainability · Italy (Milan)
This study investigated the motivations of urban gardeners in Milan, Italy, using multiple correspondence analysis and hierarchical clustering analysis. While urban gardening's multifunctionality is well-documented, individual motivations are less explored. The analysis revealed the significant importance of the social component in urban gardening and identified several distinct gardener profiles.
CommunityHealthEconomicsCampUS: co-designing spaces for urban agriculture with local communities
2016Davide Fassi, Laura Galluzzo, Annalinda De Rosa · Virtual Community of Pathological Anatomy (University of Castilla La Mancha) · Italy (Milan)
This paper discusses social innovation-based experiments developed within the "campUS" research project at Politecnico di Milano. Focusing on urban agriculture, it examined the design strategy, methodologies, and social innovation impact of two experiments conducted in a nursery school and a middle school in Milan. These experiments are positioned as a step towards infrastructuring, a more open-ended long-term process where diverse stakeholders can innovate together.
CommunityFood educationThe idea of allotment gardens and the role of spatial and urban planning
2016Matthias Drilling, Renata Giedych, Lidia Poniży, Mary Benson, Mária Bihuňová, Duarte d’Araújo Mata, Sophia Meeres, Patrick Oehler, Roberta Štěpánková, Nicola Thomas, Malou Weirich · · Europe
This chapter explores how urban allotment gardens are or could be integrated into spatial development visions and concepts in Europe. Following 1989, allotment gardens gained attention as a land-use category in spatial and urban planning. The planning of allotment gardens in the contemporary European landscape faces a contradictory situation, with urban development planning largely responsible for future scenarios.
PolicyCommunity‘A New Season for Planning’: Urban Gardening as Informal Planning in Rome
2016Chiara Certomà · Geografiska Annaler Series B Human Geography · Italy (Rome)
This article investigates the relationship between urban gardening and planning, based on field research on gardening initiatives in Rome, Italy. It suggests that urban gardening exhibits characteristics of "informal planning," intentionally advanced by local dwellers to plan urban space and organize public life in the absence of legal definition, guidance, and funds. Cases in Rome exemplify the emergence of informal planning and show how a new mode of interaction between citizens' agency and formal planning initiatives can lead to creative solutions for issues like decreased public space and its deterioration.
CommunityPolicyEconomics