Research & reports

Ranjan Datta, Rebecca English · · Global

This auto-ethnographic study explores the role of community garden activities in bridging formal and informal learning for urban children's science and environmental education. Based on five years of community garden activities, the author found that these practices promote relational learning methods and adhere to forms of agency such as embracing diversity, sharing power, and trust building. The study offers insights for environmental educators aiming to incorporate ethnic diversity and engage children in research leading to community action.

Lorena Meneses Medina · Universitas Científica · Colombia

An urban children's garden was created between July and December 2015 at the Fundación Hogar el Divino Niño (FHDN) in Colombia, which feeds approximately 100 vulnerable children daily. Led by Nelson Enrique Casas Leal, the project aimed to build an organic farm with the support of children and youth interested in urban agriculture production practices. The garden cultivated tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, cilantro, squash, oregano, thyme, and medicinal plants, and became a life and survival option for the participating children and their families.

Haryani Haron, Natrah Abdullah · · Malaysia

This paper examines the real practices of experience sharing for community engagement within community gardening in Malaysia. A comparative study of two community types found that experience sharing helps communities become engaged. Furthermore, communities engaged more effectively with the advancement of information technology.

Annalisa Metta · Iris (Roma Tre University) · Global

This publication compiles insights from 50 architects, landscape architects, designers, and environmental leaders on sustainability, sustainable design, urbanism, and architecture. Through articles, interviews, and project presentations, they promote good practices and share visions on projects like gardens and community gardens from a sustainability perspective. The work advocates for a complementary convergence of bottom-up practices and traditional design, suggesting design should involve negotiation with places, elements, and people.

Valerie Calberry, Ingrid E. Lofgren, Lori F. Pivarnik · Journal of Media Literacy Education · Global

The Food Safety and School Garden Program (FSSGP) developed a curriculum integrating food safety into school garden activities for elementary students. A two-lesson intervention with 194 students in grades 1-5 showed an increase in correct responses on a 10-question test from 5.6 to 8.1 (P < .001). Most students rated activities as satisfactory or better and communicated learned topics to their parents.

هالة فالح احمد · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Iraq

A field study in Iraq investigated the role and importance of school gardens within educational institutions. The research found that school gardens eliminate desertification, moderate weather, and bring happiness to students and teachers, while their neglect obstructs the teaching process. The study recommends organizing teacher courses on school environment and health, and conducting periodic cleaning and repair campaigns for school gardens and buildings.

Gundula Proksch · · Global

This chapter investigates various approaches to community involvement in urban agriculture, demonstrating how communities and interest groups can be instrumental in creating and operating urban agricultural projects. Urban agriculture has the potential to reestablish lost connections between food production and consumption and restore social, economic, and cultural ties. Community-initiated urban agricultural programs are essential in reducing the divide between producers and consumers.

Claudia Patricia Osorio Doncel · INGENIO · Colombia (Palmira)

At the "Fundacion Hogar Divino Nino" in Palmira, Colombia, educational and practical workshops are provided for underprivileged youth. A boy named 'El Doc de la granja', who attended the foundation, enjoyed planting and cultivating various green species, including beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, chard, cilantro, bell peppers, and some medicinal and aromatic plants. These crops were used to feed all the children at the foundation.

Natalie Louise Kincy, Nicholas E. Fuhrman, Maria Navarro, D. A. Knauft · Applied Environmental Education & Communication · Global

This study analyzed elementary teachers' attitudes, school norms, perceived behavioral control, and intent regarding the use of school gardens in their curriculum, using a quantitative survey based on the theory of planned behavior. In current teaching situations, 77% of teachers' intent to use school gardens was explained by positive school norms and teachers who garden in their personal time. It was suggested that school gardens are more likely to succeed if teachers who garden personally can mentor others and promote positive norms and attitudes.

Yeon Seon Kim, Sin Ae Park · Journal of people, plants, and environment · Global

This study investigated the effectiveness of a horticultural activity program for mothers to improve mother-child relationships, involving 60 mothers with children aged 4-7 years. The experimental group (n=30) attended six weekly 90-minute sessions, while the control group (n=30) did not. After the program, the experimental group showed statistically significant improvements in parenting stress, self-esteem, and parenting efficacy, but no significant difference was found in emotional empathy.

Katherine Alexandra Herrera Hernández, Yohanna Marcela Pinzón, Ruth Zamira Herrera Rincón · · Colombia (Bogotá)

This project aimed to contribute to the study of Urban Peri-urban Agriculture (UPA) in Bogotá by describing projects led by the José Celestino Mutis Botanical Garden from 2004 to 2016, analyzed from an environmental education perspective. Using a qualitative methodology, the study investigated fundamental elements in education-management development, such as participation, the construction of the concept of environment, and the strengths and weaknesses in achieving these projects within the framework of successive city governments during that period.

Nam-Sick Jung, Yong‐Hak Lee, Eun-Jee Kang, Yong-Geun Kim · 농촌지도와 개발 · Global

This study verified the effect of urban agricultural practice on factors of adolescent problem behavior. Quantitative research showed that urban agricultural practice improved self-worth by 16.7%, reduced depression by 28.1%, and improved sociality by 19.4%, with statistical significance confirmed in all lower measures. Qualitative research found overwhelmingly positive changes or maintenance in sentence completion tests and confirmed a positive change of mind in adolescent communication, cognitive and problem-solving abilities, and participation through observation of program participation behavior.

Heather Ohly, Sarah Gentry, Rachel Wigglesworth, Alison Bethel, Rebecca Lovell, Ruth Garside · BMC Public Health · Global

A systematic review of 40 articles on school gardening programs found that quantitative research was generally of poor quality, with limited evidence for changes in fruit and vegetable intake based on self-report. Qualitative research, though of better quality, attributed a range of health and well-being impacts to school gardens, but more robust quantitative research is needed to support these findings.

Eun‐Hee Park, Eunha Yoo, Kyungsook Han, Yoonah Jang, Sunjin Jeong, Dongkeum Park · Journal of people, plants, and environment · Global

This study analyzed the utilization of a functional vegetable garden model by its users, examining aspects such as product types, quantities, ratios, and existing issues. Many participants reported no prior experience with vegetable garden education, yet found cultivation education helpful for their activities. Vegetables were the main type of plant grown in family gardens, with participants independently determining planting times and methods. The current amount of flowers and herbs in the functional vegetable garden model was deemed appropriate, and a crop ratio of 60.5% vegetables, 21.2% medicinal plants, and 18.3% flowers/herbs was considered moderate.

Diego Vinueza, Lydia Lera, Judith Salinas, Carmen Gloria González, Lorena Barrios, Fernando Vío · Food and Nutrition Sciences · Chile (Santiago de Chile)

This study conducted a six-month quasi-experimental intervention in two public schools in Santiago de Chile (intervention and control schools) to evaluate the improvement of healthy dietary consumption, habits, and practices among third to fifth-grade children using a school-based food garden. The intervention school showed significant improvements in dietary habits, such as peeling and slicing fruit, and increased use of the school garden, but no significant changes were observed in food consumption or nutritional status.

Lalieta Somwaru · Brazilian Journal of Science and Technology · Suriname

In Suriname, "The Green School" project, initiated in October 2013, is being implemented in all primary schools nationwide. This project aims to positively influence children's environmental behavior through practical activities, focusing on biodiversity (including school gardens), waste, water, and energy. Of the 333 primary schools in Suriname, 286 have been officially designated "Green Schools," and monitoring has shown improvements in classroom and schoolyard cleanliness and sustainable water and energy usage.

Annalisa Metta · Iris (Roma Tre University) · Global

This publication compiles visions from 50 architects, landscape architects, designers, and environmental leaders from 15 countries on sustainability, sustainable design, urbanism, and architecture. Through articles, interviews, and project presentations, they share insights from their work, including community gardens and environmental education. Annalisa Metta contributes 10 tips for young designers on responsibility and sustainability in open space design.

Séverine Erismann, Akina Shrestha, Serge Diagbouga, Astrid M. Knoblauch, Jana Gerold, Ramona Herz, Subodh Sharma, Christian Schindler, Peter Odermatt, Axel Drescher, Ray-Yu Yang, Jürg Utzinger, Guéladio Cissé · BMC Public Health · Burkina Faso; Nepal

This study protocol aims to describe the health status of schoolchildren in Burkina Faso and Nepal and provide an evidence-base for program decisions on the relevance of complementary school garden, nutrition, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) interventions. The studies will be conducted in 24 schools among 1144 children aged 8-14 years in the Centre Ouest and Plateau Central regions of Burkina Faso and the Dolakha and Ramechhap districts of Nepal. Data will be collected at baseline and a 1-year follow-up, including parasitological examinations, anthropometric and hemoglobin measurements, and questionnaire surveys to assess nutritional status, intestinal parasitic infections, and WASH conditions.

Heather Yeatman · Research Online (University of Wollongong) · Global

This chapter focuses on how food literacy is developed through experiences with food production in different settings, including agriculture, urban food production, and home and school gardens.

Ranjan Datta · Cogent Education · Global

Community garden activities play a significant role in bridging formal and informal learning, especially in urban children's science and environmental education, by promoting relational methods that integrate food security, social interactions, community development, environmental activism, and cultural integration. An auto-ethnographic study revealed that community garden-based practices adhere to forms of agency such as embracing diversity, sharing power, and trust building as part of everyday learning.

Leila A. Graves, Harrison Hughes, Meena M. Balgopal · Journal of Agricultural Education · Global

This case study examined the implementation of a horticulture-based curriculum by two 3rd grade teachers and two STEM coordinators. While one STEM coordinator found the curriculum addressed academic science standards and provided relevant inquiry activities, the other STEM coordinator and teachers believed garden plants did not address science standards and only supported enrichment. This highlights a divergence in perception regarding the curriculum's alignment with academic standards.

Sheri L. Johnson, Dalila Cardona, J. H. C. Davis, Benjamin Gramling, Chelsea Hamilton, Ray G. Hoffmann, Sabrina J. Ruis, Douglas J. Soldat, Steve Ventura, Yan Ke · Progress in community health partnerships · Global

This study used community-based participatory research to explore backyard gardening practices and soil lead concentrations in urban neighborhoods. Interviews with 20 adult gardeners revealed perceived benefits but few initial concerns about lead exposure, despite children's active involvement. Soil lead concentrations from 17 residential properties ranged from 7 to 3,234 mg kg-1, significantly higher than commercial soils (6 to 13 mg kg-1), indicating a contamination risk.

Francesca Ostuzzi, Peter Conradie, Lieven De Couvreur, Jan Detand, Jelle Saldien · The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning · Global

This case study explored opportunities for 47 Industrial Design Engineering students to share open-ended urban gardening design solutions during a two-week intensive course, using Instructables.com. Open sharing of local solutions triggered global discussions and reported instances of re-appropriation. However, the study also showed difficulty in keeping students engaged in global discussions, with online activity dropping to near silence after a few weeks, and challenges in tracking re-appropriation cycles.

Fabrizio Valpreda, Ilaria Zonda · Sensors · Global

This study presents Grüt, a gardening sensor kit for children, aiming to change children's attitudes towards food and reduce waste by increasing their knowledge about food production and consumption. The project combines real and virtual reality, connecting plants to the Internet of Things via sensors and an app. User testing was executed with Dutch children in Amsterdam.

Hollis J. Laird · D-Scholarship@Pitt (University of Pittsburgh) · Global

This paper reviews the effects and evaluation methods of garden-based nutrition education programs, noting their positive impacts on children, including increased knowledge, preference, and consumption of fruits and vegetables, and increased self-efficacy. It identifies a lack of standardized evaluation methods for these programs as a limitation. The paper also describes the evaluation of the Enright Community Garden's nutrition education component for children.