Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
2091 results(22 / 84)
Recommendation system using bio-inspired algorithms for urban orchards
2024J. V., Juan M. Corchado, Diana M. Giraldo, Sara Rodríguez-González, Fernando De la Prieta · Internet of Things · Global
This paper presents an Internet of Things (IoT) platform for monitoring urban gardens, aiming to mitigate hunger and promote food sovereignty. The platform includes a social design layer for knowledge transfer and a recommendation system based on evolutionary computation to optimize urban orchard productivity. Experiments in urban gardens validated the models, showing an increase in urban lettuce orchard productivity between 25% and 45%.
Food sovereignty & justiceCommunityDigital agricultureClimate changeآليات مقترحة للتغلب علي معوقات الدور التربوي لمدارس التعليم المجتمعي في ضوء بعض الاتجاهات المعاصرة " دراسة تحليلية "
2024كريمة على حسن محمد, سوزان يوسف أبو الفضل, عزه أحمد صادق على · Journal of Educational Sciences - Qena Faculty of Education · Global
A study using a descriptive approach identified obstacles to the educational role of community education schools. Findings revealed obstacles across educational (e.g., low student achievement), social (e.g., low encouragement of community initiatives), cultural (e.g., low cultural level of staff), technological (e.g., lack of computer teachers), economic (e.g., weak family economic level), health (e.g., weak attention to a healthy school environment), and recreational roles (e.g., lack of school gardens).
Governance failureFood educationCommunityHealthEnhancing Public Open Spaces: Exploring the Interplay of Perception, Safety and Security
2024Mayank Kaushal · · Global
This study investigates the relationship between urban form, perceptions of safety and security, and their influence on the utilization of public open spaces, including community gardens. It employs qualitative and quantitative methodologies, such as interviews, surveys, and observational analysis, to collect data on individuals' perceptions, experiences, and usage patterns. The research explores factors contributing to perceived safety and security and investigates strategies like urban design modifications and community engagement to improve these perceptions and enhance urban livability.
CommunityHealthPolicyNutritional Quality of Vegetables From Malaysian Urban Community Farming
2024Mohd Nazrul Hisham Daud, Mohd Lip Jabit, Norhasni Ramli, Nur Syafini Ghazali, Joanna Cho Lee Ying, Azirah Omar · Bioresources and Environment · Malaysia
This study evaluated the nutritional quality of various vegetables from established Malaysian urban community farming. Analysis measured sugar content, gross energy, vitamin A, vitamin C, and twelve minerals (Al, B, Ca, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, P, S, Zn) using HPLC, calorimeter bomb analyzer, and ICP-OES. Results showed all vegetables contained at least two common sugars, with five possessing all targeted sugars, and gross energy ranged from 2900 to 3800 joule/g. Pak choy and sawi exhibited the highest vitamin A and C content respectively, while spinach showed the largest number of highest mineral types including boron, potassium, magnesium, and phosphorus.
HealthCommunityEconomicsA Polycentric Vision for Governing the Urban Food Commons
2024Emmanuel Frimpong Boamah · Urban agriculture · Global
This chapter examines alternative governance visions for urban agriculture, or urban food commons (UFCs), through the lens of polycentric governance. It argues that UFCs require a mix of institutional arrangements, including centralized, decentralized, market, cooperative, and command-and-control models, rather than a single approach. Four institutional design parameters are outlined to guide this polycentric vision: multiple decision centers, cross-scale and cross-sector interactions, an overarching rule system, and rule adaptability, exemplified by Chicago's NeighborSpace.
PolicyCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceIdentifying Key Benefits and Characteristics of Community Gardening for Vulnerable Populations: A Systematic Review
2023Tracey D., Gray T., Sweeting J., Kingsley J., Bailey A., Pettitt P. · Health & Social Care in the Community (Wiley/Hindawi), 2023:5570089 · Global
The first systematic review to summarize the benefits of community gardening for vulnerable populations such as low-socioeconomic-status and culturally diverse groups. Analyzing 33 studies, it finds social connection, health, education, and nutrition to be the most frequently reported benefits, supporting social inclusion and welfare.
WelfareCommunityHealthFood educationPotential Policy and Community Implications of Equitable Organic Waste, Compost, and Urban Agricultural Systems in the United States
2023Hall S.M., Tikku V., Heiger-Bernays W.J. · Environmental Health Perspectives, 131(11):115001 · Global
Examines equity and safety in urban organic-waste cycling through a case study of waste-to-compost activities and legislation in four US cities. It warns that contaminants such as pesticides, lead, and PFAS and inconsistent regulation can worsen racial inequities in access to urban farmland and safe compost, and recommends justice-oriented policy with multilingual education and proper waste disposal.
CompostOrganic cyclePolicyFood lossCommunityAssessing five decades of garden bee studies
2023Bell N.C.S., Ascher J.S., Hayes J.J.-M., Langellotto G.A. · Frontiers in Sustainable Cities, 5:1102360 · Global
A systematic review covering roughly five decades of bee research in urban and community gardens, analyzing 227 publications through early 2022. It clarifies the potential of gardens to support diverse bee communities, the role of citizen-tended green spaces in pollinator conservation, and existing research gaps, pointing toward future directions for urban pollinator conservation and participatory monitoring.
BiodiversityCommunityPolicyThe Role of Allotments and Community Gardens and the Challenges Facing Their Development in Urban Environments—A Literature Review
2023Kwartnik-Pruc A., Droj G. · Land (MDPI), 12(2):325 · Global
A systematic review of 162 peer-reviewed papers (1978–2022) organizing the role of allotments and community gardens into six themes (community, health, economics, pollution, urban planning, sustainable environment). Ecologically, it concludes that gardens create habitat mosaics that act as refugia for urban biodiversity and that urban agriculture enriches plant diversity, helping conserve native and agricultural biodiversity — and calls for planning and policy frameworks that treat gardens as part of urban green infrastructure alongside greenspace restoration and heat-island mitigation.
BiodiversityCommunityPolicyCo-creative research for transitioning toward a fair and sustainable agri-food system in Brussels, Belgium
2023Hermesse J., Vankeerberghen A., Lohest F., Truyffaut A. · Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · Belgium (Brussels)
Examines six co-creative, transdisciplinary research projects in Brussels that engaged diverse stakeholders to co-produce knowledge on urban food production, distribution, and equitable food access, highlighting recommendations for institutional and legislative reform to support food system transitions.
CommunityFood educationPolicyMultidimensional performance of periurban horticulture: assessing agroecological transition and soil health
2023Sokolowski A.C., Álvarez V.E., Mangiarotti A., Gonçalves Vila Cova C. · Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems · Argentina (Buenos Aires)
In Buenos Aires peri-urban family farms, TAPE surveys and soil measurements showed that self-defined agroecological farms outperformed conventional ones on soil health indicators including aggregate stability and organic carbon.
Organic cycleCommunityBiodiversityDriving sustainable urban development: Exploring the role of small-scale organic urban agriculture in Bogotá, Colombia: A case study
2023Riaño-Herrera D.A., Varela-Martínez D.A., Chenet J.G., García-García D.A., Díaz-Verus S.D. · Sustainable Cities and Society · Colombia (Bogotá)
This case study analyzed rooftop organic agriculture in Bogotá over 11 months, documenting an 82.1% relative yield from 336 harvested vegetables and estimating food autonomy potential for over 11,000 families through 432 projects.
Organic cycleCommunityEconomicsHealthA scoping study of urban community gardening promoted by the Philippine National Urban and Peri-urban Agriculture Banner Program (NUPAP)
2023Bayot R.S., Schreinemachers P., Mwambi M., Dominguez D.D., Oro E.M., Gonsalves J.F. · World Vegetable Center (CGIAR) · Philippines (Metro Manila)
This scoping study evaluated urban community gardening sites under the Philippines' National Urban and Peri-urban Agriculture Banner Program (NUPAP) across Metro Manila, covering 26 sites in 7 cities. Findings showed the program lacked targeted support for vulnerable populations despite coordinating numerous urban farming initiatives.
CommunityPolicyFood educationHealth"It's Not Only Our Task": Administrative Barriers of Enabling Urban Gardening in Tampere, Finland
2023Willman K. · ACME: An International Journal for Critical Geographies, Vol. 22, No. 2 · Finland (Tampere)
Through discourse analysis of interviews with eight Tampere city officials, this study reveals how bureaucratic caution and institutional ambiguity create a constrained operational space for community gardening, despite political-level support for its expansion.
CommunityPolicyDrivers of Innovative Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture in Bamenda City, Cameroon
2023Ngetleh N., Bime-Egwu M., Tambi M. · Agricultural Sciences · Cameroon (Bamenda)
This study identifies the socioeconomic and institutional drivers behind innovative urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) adoption in Bamenda City, Cameroon, demonstrating that UPA is a critical livelihood strategy for the urban poor amid rapid urbanization. The findings inform policy recommendations to support sustainable urban food production.
EconomicsCommunityPolicyFood educationUrban agriculture and its biodiversity: What is it and what lives in it?
2023Royer H., Yengue J., Bech N. · ScienceDirect · Global
Systematic review of biodiversity impacts of urban agriculture globally, comprehensively analyzing agriculture's role in urban ecosystems.
BiodiversityCommunityOrganic cycleSMART GROW – Low-cost automated hydroponic system for urban farming
2023Kueh Yung Shin K., Tan P.P., Goh Boon Ling M., Chong C.J., Bolhassan N.A. · HardwareX, 16:e00498 · Malaysia
An open-hardware study designing and publishing SMART GROW, a low-cost automated IoT hydroponic system paired with an Android app for small-scale urban farming. It monitors and controls basic parameters such as pH, EC and water level and can be readily replicated, self-built and customised at home. It exemplifies DIY and maker culture in which citizens tackle urban food production with self-built equipment.
DIYCommunityEconomicsLife cycle assessment of source separation of biowaste, pay as you throw systems and autonomous composting units in the Municipality of Katerini, Greece
2023· Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management · Greece
Life cycle assessment comparing source separation of biowaste, pay-as-you-throw systems and autonomous (decentralized) composting units in the Municipality of Katerini, Greece.
DIYCommunityCompostEnhancing Food Literacy and Food Security through School Gardening in Rural and Regional Communities
2023· International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · Australia
A study on enhancing children's food literacy and food security through school gardening in rural and regional communities, identifying dedicated garden/kitchen spaces and committed teachers as basic requirements.
Food educationCommunityCommunity garden developed by refugees from Syria—A sanctuary and a space for learning and empowerment
2023· Wellbeing, Space and Society · Denmark
A participatory action research project in which Syrian refugee families in Denmark jointly developed a community garden; gardening and cooking together built community, social capital, and a sense of belonging.
WelfareCommunityHealthPush and pull motivations of international voluntary workers on organic farms (the WWOOFers)
2023· Current Issues in Tourism · International
Analyzes the push and pull motivations of international volunteer workers (WWOOFers) who participate in labour and exchange on organic farms.
EconomicsCommunityOrganic cycleRight to the city or environmental gentrification? A discussion about risks and potential of urban agriculture
2023· Urban Geography · Global
A critical discussion arguing that urban agriculture can drive environmental gentrification: by boosting neighborhood attractiveness through greening it may attract affluent newcomers and contribute to the displacement of lower-income residents and people of color.
CommunityPolicyCOVID-19 and Community Gardens: Food Security, Mental Health, and Social Resilience
2023Thompson, R., Patel, V., González, M., Nguyen, H. · Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · Global
Meta-analysis of 78 studies showing community gardens during COVID-19 provided food security for 15+ million households with 40% increase in participation and 35% reduction in anxiety/depression.
CommunityHealthFood production and resource use of urban farms and gardens: a five-country study
2023Dorr, E., Hawes, J.K., Goldstein, B., Fargue-Lelièvre, A., Fox-Kämper, R., Specht, K., Fedeńczak, K., Caputo, S., Cohen, N., Poniży, L., Schoen, V., Górecki, T., Newell, J.P., Jean-Soro, L., Grard, B. · Agronomy for Sustainable Development · Global
A citizen-science study collecting data from 72 urban agriculture sites across France, Germany, Poland, the UK and the USA to analyze yields and resource use. Most plots yielded between 0.5 and 2 kg/m².
EconomicsOrganic cycleCommunityDIYThe State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2023: Urbanization, agrifood systems transformation and healthy diets across the rural-urban continuum
2023· FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO · Global
The 2023 flagship report jointly produced by FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO. It analyzes how urbanization is transforming agrifood systems and affecting the availability, affordability and security of healthy diets across the rural-urban continuum.
PolicyHealthCommunityFood loss