Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
9385 results(281 / 376)
Nitrogen Dynamics Associated with Organic and Inorganic Inputs to Substrate Commonly Used on Rooftop Farms
2015Angela Y. Y. Kong, Cynthia Rosenzweig, Joshua Arky · HortScience · United States
This study evaluated the effects of organic and inorganic nitrogen (N) inputs on N dynamics within substrate typically used on rooftop farms during an 8-week greenhouse experiment in the United States. Substrate without added N inputs (control) was compared with synthetic fertilizer and three organic N inputs: composted poultry manure, municipal green waste compost, and vermicompost. Few differences in N cycling and yields were found among treatments receiving organic N inputs, despite differences in carbon-to-nitrogen ratios. Crop yields from the synthetic fertilizer and municipal green waste compost treatments were higher than other organic N input treatments. Inorganic N levels in the synthetic fertilizer treatment decreased from 129 mg N/L to 113 mg N/L, while control and organic N input treatments showed nearly 10-fold decreases from 79.5–117.8 mg N/L to 12.8–16.6 mg N/L over 8 weeks. The greatest losses of ammonium and nitrate via leachate were measured from the synthetic fertilizer treatment.
Organic cycleCompostClimate changePengembangan Pembelajaran Ekosistem dan Lingkungan Hidup melalui Project-Based Learning untuk Mendukung Urban Farming di SMP
2015Arga Triyandana, Mimien Henie Irawati, Ibrohim Ibrohim, Susilowati Susilowati, Endang Budiasih · Jurnal Pendidikan dan Pembelajaran Universitas Negeri Malang · Indonesia
This research aimed to develop learning tools for Ecosystem and Environmental Studies using project-based learning to support urban farming in junior high schools, following the Borg and Gall research and development model. Validation of the learning tools (syllabus, lesson plans, and modules) by instructional design experts and education practitioners showed they were valid with minor revisions, making them ready for implementation. Validation of the modules by material and media experts also confirmed their validity with only minor revisions needed.
Food educationCommunityUrban Farm & Garden Alliance Nelson Report UPDATE
2015Rachel Grewell · · United States
The Urban Farm and Garden Alliance (UFGA) conducted a measurement project from summer to fall 2015, involving UFGA gardens and backyard gardeners weighing and measuring produce. The project also included a community survey on the social impacts of gardening. Based on these results, community-friendly guides were designed to help collect and disseminate data on both social and vegetative yields in urban gardens.
CommunityEconomicsUna evaluación sistemática cuantitativa del conocimiento alrededor de la agricultura urbana y su aporte a la Gestión Ambiental
2015Barrientos Gómez, Yuly Anthoula · · Global
A paper examining that, while much research has attempted to establish the range of benefits and services attributed to urban agriculture across social/community, environmental, economic, political, and technical dimensions, uncertainty remains about the outlook from an environmental-management perspective, how the scholarly effort around the topic has evolved, and where this knowledge has been produced. Aiming to systematically evaluate the state of knowledge on urban agriculture through a literature review, the article presents a quantitative review of 300 studies on urban agriculture, examining the origin of publication, number of authors, type of publication, language, type and nature of the investigation, publication source, country of origin, and research objectives categorised by field of knowledge.
CommunityPolicyHealthEconomicsFacilitators & barriers to organic waste and phosphorus re-use in Montreal
2015Geneviève S. Metson, Elena M. Bennett · Elementa Science of the Anthropocene · Canada
A study of Montreal, Canada, examining the potential and barriers for phosphorus (P) recycling through organic waste, noting that currently only 6% of P in Montreal's waste is recycled. Combining semi-structured interviews with 19 key stakeholders, participant observation over more than 1.5 years, and document review, the study identified key barriers and facilitators to achieving a high level of organic waste recycling through composting. A provincial law mandating 100% recycling of organic matter was found to have great potential to facilitate increased P recycling, but this potential is inhibited by a lack of shared vision about the roles of government, the private sector, and citizens in producing high-quality compost, along with cultural inertia, lack of knowledge, and lack of infrastructure. Urban agriculture, which benefits from strong citizen support and is both a consumer and producer of compost, could help overcome some of these barriers, but limited access to garden space and training, and diversity in the fertiliser qualities gardeners want, somewhat limit this potential.
CompostOrganic cyclePolicyGrowing opportunities: CSA members, CSA farmers, and informal learning in the USA
2015Connie Everson · Studies in the Education of Adults · United States
This study examined informal learning among members and farmers in community-supported agriculture (CSA) in the United States. CSA began as a loosely formalized, vaguely socialistic agreement between consumers and farmers, but as it became more institutionalized, education came to hold a near-equal footing alongside the nutritional offerings. The author's research found that goodwill generated by the farmers translated into a shared sense of community, in which information and knowledge were freely shared between CSA members and their farmer. Informal learning was found to be an intricate part of participation in the CSA experience: while individuals joining a CSA did not anticipate or expect a learning experience, the season-long process was strongly conducive to many forms of informal learning.
CSA & TeikeiCommunityFood educationCommunity Supported Agriculture Programs: A Novel Venue for Theory-Based Health Behavior Change Interventions
2015Christopher Wharton, Renée Shaw Hughner, Lexi MacMillan, Claudia Dumitrescu · Ecology of Food and Nutrition · United States
A US study conducted a series of focus groups to identify the motives for joining community supported agriculture (CSA) programs, the experiences of CSA membership, and diet-related outcomes. Using the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) as a framework to categorize findings, the data suggested that CSA membership could serve as a strategy for promoting healthful diets and behaviors. Participant numbers and the specific location are not stated in the abstract.
CSA & TeikeiHealthCommunityAgriculture in the rural-urban continuum: a CGIAR research perspective
2015Pay Drechsel, Keraita, Bernard N. · CGSPace A Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research) · Global
A CGIAR (Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research) perspective piece on food and water challenges at the urban-rural interface amid global urbanization. It states that in low-income countries, investments in waste management and sanitation are not keeping pace with population growth, so the urban "return flow" of waste is not adequately managed. Where polluted water is used for irrigation to feed cities, food safety becomes a crucial component of food security. The piece explicitly states that urban and peri-urban farming systems — often run by the informal sector — are the systems most affected by this resource competition and pollution. It describes CGIAR's Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) research program as working at the interface of agriculture and sanitation to address these urbanization-related challenges and opportunities.
Environmental trade-offsPolicyPeri-urban agricultureHealthClimate changeThe Graduate Extension Scholars: Communicating Science to the Youth
2015Martín Leonardo Battaglia · CSA News · United States
An article describing the Graduate Extension Scholars (GES) program at the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS), Virginia Tech, United States. Citing the National Academy of Sciences (2009), it notes that future agronomists will increasingly come from cities and suburbs rather than rural areas, making youth outreach to build interest in agriculture a recruitment concern. The GES program has graduate students develop educational modules for youth based on their own research, working with 4-H youth development agents; lesson plans are posted online, and networking through professional conferences of the Department of Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education extends impact beyond individual classrooms or clubs. Per the National Academy of Sciences (2009), several urban agricultural education programs are already established, but higher education institutions are not well represented in most K-12 curricular programs. The article also references the 2013 Next Generation Science Standards.
Food educationCommunityResearch Article: Food Availability and the Food Desert Frame in Detroit: An Overview of the City's Food System
2015Dorceta E. Taylor, Kerry Ard · Environmental Practice · United States
A study of Detroit, Michigan, United States, combining environmental justice analysis with systems thinking to examine the city's food environment. Data were collected from ReferenceUSA, Orbis and the Michigan Department of Agriculture between 2011 and 2013 to build a database of food outlets, analyzed and mapped using SPSS 22 and ArcGIS 10.1. The study examined the locations of 3,499 food outlets across 34 categories, including 96 supermarkets or full-line grocery stores, 1,110 small groceries/convenience stores/mini marts/liquor stores, 279 specialty food stores, 306 pharmacies/dollar/variety stores, 1,245 full-service and fast-food restaurants and other food service outlets, 157 supply chain operations, 206 farms/community and school gardens/farmers markets/produce markets, and 100 food assistance programs. It found that although Detroit has areas lacking food outlets, characterizing the entire city as a "food desert" is misleading, and that the traditional food desert research approach — relying only or primarily on the presence or absence of supermarkets and full-line grocery stores — ignores many important venues people use to obtain food and the coping strategies people employ in response to limited food access.
Food sovereignty & justicePolicyEconomicsCommunityLAND CHARACTERISTIC AND SUITABILITY IN RELATION TO AGRICULTURAL LAND-USE PLANNING IN DENPASAR, BALI
2015I Ketut Sardiana · Bumi Lestari Journal of Environment · Indonesia
A field survey using subak (traditional Balinese irrigation) units as sampling points, with soil properties analyzed by standard laboratory methods, evaluated land suitability for horticultural and medicinal crops in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia, to support agricultural planning that protects the subak system amid land conversion to tourism development. Land was found "very suitable" (S1) for rice, and "suitable" (S) for vegetables, fruit and medicinal plants with two limiting factors — poor drainage and fine soil texture — leading to recommendations for drainage improvement, organic matter addition, and zoned land-use planning by season and location (rice in the rainy season, flowers in the north, fruit and vegetables in the central area, and vegetables and secondary crops in the south).
PolicyPeri-urban agricultureFood sovereignty & justiceGerakan Urban Farming: Studi atas Mobilisasi Sumber Daya oleh Komunitas Bandung Berkebun
2015Intan Zainab Bauw, Suharko · · Indonesia
A 2015 qualitative case study of "Bandung Berkebun," an urban farming community in Bandung, Indonesia, examines its resource mobilization process using resource mobilization theory from social movement studies (the McCarthy and Zald, and Edwards frameworks). Based on direct interviews, participant observation, and secondary data, it finds that Bandung Berkebun accessed resources through self-aggregation and self-production, drawing on human resources in the form of creative activists, cultural resources in the form of innovative ideas and concepts, and social-organizational resources in the form of strong networks. However, while the group achieved considerable community-sustainability outcomes, the study notes that in terms of realizing the movement's longer-term vision, its resource mobilization process remained mere mobilization, not yet fully directed toward ensuring that vision's realization.
CommunityPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceHealthy urban gardening
2015Dieneke Schram-Bijkerk, Dirven-van Breemen L, P Otte · Rivm (National Institute for Public Health and the Environment) · Europe
Based on a literature review conducted by the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM), this report examines the health and living-environment effects of non-commercial neighborhood vegetable gardens on vacant urban land. It notes that garden work is associated with increased physical activity and consumption of self-grown vegetables and fruit, and indications of reduced stress and increased social contact in the neighborhood, while also stressing the importance of minimizing risks from soil and air pollution. The review identifies measurable indicators for each health effect and recommends using consistent measurement methods to enable international comparison; findings are also used to inform research on allotment gardens in various European countries.
CommunityHealthSustainable Land Use Diversification and Investment Potential in Peri-urban, Semi-urban and Rural Areas of Telangana State, India
2015M. Osman, G. Ravindra Chary, S. S. Balloli, Shaik Haffis · Indian Journal of Dryland Agricultural Research and Development · India
This study, conducted in three districts of Telangana State, India (Adilabad, Nalgonda, and Warangal), used net returns from crops, fruit trees, and livestock to identify sustainable and profitable land uses, estimate credit requirements, and formulate a credit investment action plan, surveying 270 respondents (90 per district). Based on system index and benefit-cost ratio (BCR), the study identified profitable crop and livestock enterprises, with BCR ranging from 1.58 for cotton-pigeonpea intercropping in rural Adilabad to 3.98 for soybean-pigeonpea intercropping in peri-urban Adilabad. For fruit trees (15-year lifespan), payback periods of 5-7 years were found, with BCR of 1.61-2.07 and net present values (at 2010 prices) of 267 crore for sweet orange in Nalgonda and 109 crore for mango in Warangal. Returns per rupee invested in large ruminant (dairy) rearing ranged from 3.04 to 3.44, and for small ruminants from 4.05 to 5.54 across the three districts. The study reports large credit demand from the farming community and formulates a district-level investment action plan with policy implications.
Peri-urban agricultureEconomicsA new peri-urban agricultural system for Auckland
2015Shoujun Chen, Nikolay Popov · Unitec Research Bank (Unitec Institute of Technology) · Global
This 2015 paper, addressing projected population growth in Auckland, New Zealand, surveys planning concepts for peri-urban agricultural development. It notes that while Auckland is the country's largest customer of food markets, its fossil-fuel-based agricultural system is vulnerable to urban growth and climate change. The paper reviews various peri-urban agriculture planning concepts and evaluates their applicability to a specific site, the Special Housing Areas (SHAs) in Belmont.
PolicyEconomicsClimate changeDoes the Royal Horticultural Society Campaign for School Gardening increase intake of fruit and vegetables in children? Results from two randomised controlled trials
2014Christian M., Evans C., Cade J. · Public Health Research, Vol. 2, No. 4 (NIHR Journals Library) · United Kingdom
Two randomised controlled trials in London primary schools evaluating the RHS Campaign for School Gardening. They found gardening alone had very little impact on children's fruit and vegetable intake, suggesting it must be combined with nutrition education to change diet.
Food educationHealthPolicyカシニワ制度に基づくコミュニティガーデンにおける公共性の変化
2014Watanabe Y., Miyamoto M., Amemiya M., Terada T., Yokohari M. · ランドスケープ研究 77(5):713-718 · Japan
Taking the 'Jiyu Hiroba' community garden established under Kashiwa City's Kashiniwa program as a case study, the paper analyzes how the publicness of a community garden is generated and transformed, drawing on resident-drawn site plans, annual management reports, and interviews with neighborhood-association members.
CommunityWelfarePolicyA methodology for the sustainability assessment of agri-food systems: an application to the Slow Food Presidia project
2014Peano C., Migliorini P., Sottile F. · Ecology and Society · Global
Develops an indicator-based sustainability assessment tool translating Slow Food's 'good, clean, fair' principles into criteria spanning economic, ecological, social, cultural, and quality dimensions, applied to the Slow Food Presidia project.
Heirloom & landracePolicyEconomicsBiodiversityRe-purposing the master's tools: the open source seed initiative and the struggle for seed sovereignty
2014Kloppenburg J. · The Journal of Peasant Studies · Global
Argues that food sovereignty requires seed sovereignty, examining the Open Source Seed Initiative's attempt to apply open-source legal tools against corporate enclosure and intellectual property rights over plant genetic resources.
Heirloom & landracePolicyBiodiversityCommunityIncreasing homogeneity in global food supplies and the implications for food security
2014Khoury C.K., Bjorkman A.D., Dempewolf H., Ramirez-Villegas J., Guarino L., Struik P.C. · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) · Global
Shows national diets grew about 36% more similar over five decades, increasingly reliant on a few major crops, with implications for food security, nutrition, and the value of conserving crop diversity.
Heirloom & landraceBiodiversityHealthFood educationGenebank Standards for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture
2014Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) · FAO, Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture · Global
FAO's revised international technical standards guiding genebank management of plant genetic resources, covering orthodox seed, field, in vitro, and cryopreservation collections to ensure secure long-term conservation.
Heirloom & landracePolicyBiodiversityThe Influence of Hannes Meyer and the Bauhaus Brigade on 1930s Soviet Architecture
2014Tomita H., Ishii M. · Journal of Asian Architecture and Building Engineering · Germany
Analyzes the influence of Bauhaus's second director Hannes Meyer and his Bauhaus Brigade on Soviet urban and architectural planning, examining Meyer's socially-oriented functionalism and planning features including mass demonstration spaces and broad greenery, using unpublished sources.
PolicyCommunityReview: Susan R. Henderson, Building Culture: Ernst May and the New Frankfurt Initiative, 1926–1931
2014Bishop P. · Journal of European Studies (SAGE) · Germany
A scholarly review of Henderson's study of Ernst May and the New Frankfurt initiative, critically assessing Weimar modernist social housing, garden and green-space programs, and Existenzminimum dwelling within their historical significance and limitations.
PolicyCommunityWelfarePresent status and future outlook of plant factories in Japan
2014Nishizawa T. · Advances in Horticultural Science · Japan
Reviews the status and outlook of Japan's solar- and artificial-light plant factories, covering the post-disaster and policy-driven expansion of corporate entry and the profitability challenges of commercial operation in urban food production.
EconomicsPolicyUp, Up and Away! The Economics of Vertical Farming
2014Banerjee C., Adenaeuer L. · Journal of Agricultural Studies 2(1):40-60 · Europe
Engineering and economic simulation of a 37-floor commercial vertical farm in Berlin, quantifying capital investment, operating costs, and profitability challenges of for-profit indoor food production.
Economics