Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
11393 results(365 / 456)
Increased Productivity, Role in Alleviating Food Insecurity Possible
2013Kathryn Colasanti, Michael W. Hamm · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · United States
This paper criticizes Hallsworth and Wong (2013) for failing to adequately recognize the potential for increased productivity in urban agriculture and its role in alleviating food insecurity. The authors emphasize the opportunities for urban agriculture in diverse North American cities and the potential for productivity expansion using methods like passive solar and season extension. They cite examples such as Michigan hoophouses growing 30 crops year-round and a 4-square-meter garden providing daily vegetable servings for a family of four, arguing that urban agriculture's value extends beyond food quantity.
Food sovereignty & justiceEconomicsClimate changeBioaccessibility of heavy metals and risk assessment in urban gardens of Madrid
2013Marcelo Ortega Romero, Juan Mingot Marcilla, María Jesús García Martínez, Eduardo de Miguel, Miguel Izquierdo‐Díaz, Amaya Gómez · · Spain (Madrid)
This study evaluated the potential health risk from trace elements in urban garden soils in Madrid, Spain. Thirty-six composite soil samples were collected from the top 20 cm of six urban gardens, and concentrations of cobalt, chromium, copper, nickel, lead, and zinc were determined. The findings indicated that urban soils are significantly enriched in trace elements relative to background levels, suggesting a potential health risk.
Contamination & food safetyHealthCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceThe Yard Goes on Forever: Community Initiatives in Maintaining and Revitalizing Local Open Space
2013David Nichols, Robert Freestone · · Australia
This paper reviews efforts to utilize and manage a specific type of neighborhood greenspace in Australia, known as internal reserves. These spaces, often underutilized, have been reinvented by residents through new gardening and leisure initiatives. Three success stories in the Melbourne suburbs of Keilor, Footscray, and Reservoir are reported, identifying empowering pathways for enriching the environmental and cultural capital of a more sustainable suburban environment.
CommunityPolicyEducación Ambiental con los más pequeños: empezando a crear un huerto
2013Fátima Rodríguez Marín, Jorge Fernández-Arroyo, Helena Álvarez García · Dialnet (Universidad de la Rioja) · Spain
This experience, conducted by a group of primary education students, involved school garden activities with pre-school and primary children, with a focus on pre-schoolers. Through various activities demonstrating plant growth and garden creation, children had fun learning about nature, developing conceptual, attitudinal, and procedural knowledge, including observation and respect for plants.
Food educationCommunityURBAN COMMUNITY GARDENS IN A SHRINKING CITY: COMMUNITY STRENGTH AND THE URBAN COMMUNITY GARDENS OF CLEVELAND, OHIO
2013Jacqueline Ann Luke · OhioLink ETD Center (Ohio Library and Information Network) · United States (Cleveland)
This study surveyed three urban community gardens in Cleveland, Ohio, to assess if garden participation increased feelings of community, ties to place, and safety. Survey results indicate that urban community gardens, similar to other urban greenspaces, increase feelings of community, create ties to place through neighborhood satisfaction, and enhance feelings of safety. This research suggests that urban gardens are a positive way to repurpose vacant land in residential neighborhoods by offering greenspace and strengthening the community.
CommunityHealthCultivating More Than Food: Where Community Gardens Fit with What Cities Do
2013Terri Evans, Christiana Miewald · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · Global
Community gardens and other local food initiatives are insufficient strategies to replace the quantity and efficiency provided by contemporary globalized food systems for supplying cheap food to urban populations.
Limited or null effectCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsMappare la campagna in città: uno sguardo tra New York City e l’Italia
2013Pierluigi Musarò, Roberta Bartoletti · Archivio istituzionale della ricerca (Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna) · United States (New York City), Italy, Europe
This study maps urban gardening in New York City and Italy, tracing the evolution of urban gardens from 19th-century worker gardens to the 1970s community garden movement. It notes that contemporary urban horticulture in Italy, while influenced by the US movement, primarily focuses on social, cultural, and civic-political values, with economic and productive potential not being central or sometimes excluded.
CommunityPolicyFood educationWelfareUna jornada abordará los huertos urbanos como alternativa para humanizar las ciudades
2013Veguita de Graná · · Spain (Granada)
This conference addresses the question of whether urban gardens humanize cities. Students will visit the leisure gardens in Granada (Las Huertas). The conference is organized by the Permanent Seminar on Agroecology of the Faculty of Sciences at the University of Granada.
CommunityHealthSidewalks and City Streets: A Model for Vibrant Agricultural Education in Urban American Communities
2013Nicholas R. Brown, Kathleen D. Kelsey · Journal of Agricultural Education · United States
This instrumental case study explored the process by which an urban school district created a new, community-focused agricultural education program, addressing a national call for new programs and a lack of literature on urban agricultural education. Five themes emerged that informed a model for originating future urban agricultural education programs: reasoned motivation, hourglass advocacy, intentional innovation, community rejuvenation, and program regeneration. These themes describe the sequence of events that led to the program's creation.
Food educationCommunity《厨师、农民、他的妻子和他们的邻居》:未来城市景象和艺术家传递者的角色(英文)
2013Marjetica, Potr · 公共艺术 · Netherlands (Amsterdam)
The on-site project "The Cook, the Farmer, His Wife and Their Neighbour" involved the creation of a community garden and community kitchen in the Nieuw West district of Amsterdam. This collaborative project was organized with the Dutch collective Wilde Westen.
CommunityFood educationHorticultura comunitária e construção de sistemas socioecológicos sustentáveis Community horticulture and construction of sustainable socio-ecological
2013Alessandra Pavesi, Denise de Freitas, Bárbara Pacheco Lopes · · Global
This paper reaffirms the importance of community horticulture as a tool for learning scientific and political skills essential for building sustainable and resilient Socioecological Systems (SES). It explores concepts from (Agro)Ecology and Education, reframing community and school gardens from a contextualized perspective to strengthen adaptive capacity and enable systems to respond to disruptions.
CommunityFood educationClimate changeAnalysis on Thermal Measuring of Rooftop Farming Garden a Case Study of Julong Residential District in Zhongshan
2013Juan Wu, Ming Xin Liu, Lei Xiao · Advanced materials research · China (Zhongshan)
This study reports on a thermal experiment and energy saving analysis of rooftop farming conducted in Zhongshan, Guangdong Province, China, in August 2011. External and internal surface temperatures of roofs with and without greening were measured using the same climate parameters. The experiment results indicate that green roofs with urban farming contribute to modulating air temperature in building interior spaces, showing lower external surface temperatures than normal flat roofs during hot summer days. The vegetated green roof system was found to effectively lower surface temperature by 6 °C and save 18.7% electric power compared to traditional flat roofs.
Climate changeFood sovereignty & justiceGender Roles in Urban Crop Production in Imo State, Nigeria
2013Asadu A. N · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Nigeria (Imo State)
A study investigated gender roles in urban crop production in Imo State, Nigeria. Data were collected from 60 respondents via interview schedules, revealing that 60% of urban farmers were female with an average age of 40 years. Mixed cropping was the most common system, with cassava, maize, and Telfaria as major crops. Both men and women were involved in securing plots, and all family members participated in fertilization and harvesting. Weeding and processing were primarily done by women and girls, while men mostly handled chemical spraying.
CommunityEconomicsWelfarePotenciál záhrad a produkčných plôch v súčasnom meste
2013Jana Adamková · Brno University of Technology Digital Library (Brno University of Technology) · Global
This article discusses how productive gardens, historically integral to cities, have been disappearing from urban structures in recent years. As urban agglomerations and their resource uses become dominant, cities increasingly depend on external food supplies. The article highlights the importance of gardens for humans and the role of productive urban space in creating a viable urban environment. It states that as the world urbanizes, urban agriculture plays an important role in contributing to the sustainability of cities in spatial, socio-economic, and environmental ways.
CommunityUrban–rural linkageEconomicsClimate changeProductive Landscapes and Resilient Cities
2013Meliz Akyol, Hayriye Eşbah Tunçay · · Turkey (Istanbul)
This study explores the role of productive landscapes, specifically urban agriculture, in creating resilient cities. Istanbul, Turkey, is presented as a case study, noting the historical influence of food on the city's image and traces of agricultural uses along the Theodosian Walls and in old neighborhoods. Despite agricultural lands being transformed into settlement areas due to rapid urbanization, the study suggests that combining agriculture with new technology, architectural trends, and sustainable master plans will encourage urban agriculture and create more resilient urban environments.
Urban–rural linkageClimate changePolicySegmentation and Preference Analysis of Urban Farming Patterns
2013Jeong Im Hwang, Yoon Ji Choi, Bo Gyung Jang · The Korean Journal of Community Living Science · Global
This study segmented urban farming patterns and analyzed preferences using two-step cluster analysis, chi-square analysis, and ANOVA, based on face-to-face surveys from 9 urban farms. Three clusters were identified: 'hobby-oriented farming', 'producing-oriented farming', and 'multipurpose farming'. Significant differences were found among these groups regarding age, presence of children under 14, household income, and housing type, indicating that urbanites' farming patterns vary with socio-demographic profiles.
CommunityDIYEconomics厨师、农民、他的妻子和他们的邻居
2013马杰提卡·波特尔克, 怀尔德·维特森 · 公共艺术 · Netherlands (Amsterdam)
This project was implemented in 2009 in Nieuw-West, Amsterdam, Netherlands, by artists Majetika Poterke and Wilder Vitsen. It utilized a community garden and community kitchen as its medium, incorporating building materials, energy infrastructure, and a plant garden.
CommunityFood educationDIYReadjusting to reality
2013Adrian Atkinson · City · Global
This paper analyzes the background to the rapid growth of urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) globally over the past three decades. It notes that while food security is a primary consideration in many cities, UPA initiatives are driven by many other concerns, motivations, starting points, and organizational means.
Food sovereignty & justiceClimate changeEconomicsHow Does Your Garden Grow? Environmental Justice Aspects of Community Gardens
2013Heather McIlvaine-Newsad, Rob Porter · Journal of Ecological Anthropology · Global
This conceptual paper focused on the benefits of community gardens, informed by participant observation and literature from the environmental justice movement. Community gardens are stated to be models for improving health through growing and eating local produce, and instruments for generating social awareness and community change.
CommunityHealthFood sovereignty & justiceLandscape Design with Edibles
2013Gail Hansen · EDIS · United States
This 4-page fact sheet presented details to ensure the success of edible ornamental landscape design. Gardens with plants that change considerably with seasons rely more on an organized yet interesting layout, appealing support structures, functional pathways, and colorful containers and planters to provide interest and beauty when plants are not taking center stage. Twelve important ideas to consider when creating a successful edible ornamental garden are outlined.
DIYFood educationThe Current Status of the Korean Urban Farming Researched from an Institutional Perspective and Tasks for the Future
2013Jin-Wook Park, Gye-Bog Ahn · Journal of Korean Society of Rural Planning · South Korea
This study analyzed the current circumstances of urban farming in Korea, including its legal system, the status of the urban farming act, and comprehensive plans, to identify improvement methods. It found that securing more space for urban farming and improving the support system for urban farmers are essential. The research suggests that enthusiastic local government attitudes, budget security, and citizen cooperation are vital for expanding urban farming.
PolicyCommunity都市农业、生态旅游、文化创意产业融合之价值研究
2013石进朝, 朱启酒, Qian Jing · 北京农业职业学院学报 · China (Beijing)
This study analyzed the integration mechanism and value-added potential of urban agriculture, ecotourism, and cultural creative industries from the perspective of agriculture's ecological service value. The results indicate that the organic integration of these three industries is a major trend in the development of urban modern agriculture, capable of creating more valuable spaces for Beijing's urban modern agriculture and rural tourism.
Urban–rural linkageEconomicsPolicyGuerrilla Gardening in California's East Bay
2013Charlotte Lai-Sam Hryse · · United States (California)
This study examined the practices, outcomes, and motivations of guerrilla gardeners in California's East Bay through nine interviews. Projects occurred on different scales involving individuals, neighborhoods, community-based organizations, and 'Occupy the Farm,' demonstrating outcomes such as youth empowerment, community building, and civic engagement. Guerrilla gardening was shown to facilitate inclusive community organization, expand social capital, and build local resiliency and assets.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyUrban–rural linkageGuerrilla warfare in the planning system: revolutionary progress towards sustainability?
2013David Adams, Alister Scott, Michael Hardman · Geografiska Annaler Series B Human Geography · Global
This article examined how planning practice, exemplified by permaculture and guerrilla gardening case studies, can be rooted in confrontation and legal challenge, hindering innovative practices. The findings confirmed that spatial planning theory is largely "disintegrated" from much contemporary planning and environmental practice and wider sustainability discourses. This suggests that planners and decision-makers' prescribed and constrained management of space can impede practices with significant societal and environmental benefits.
Governance failureDIYPolicyCommunityPoľnohospodárstvo v mestskom prostredí a jeho historický vývoj
2013Jana Adamková · Brno University of Technology Digital Library (Brno University of Technology) · Global
This paper discusses urban agriculture as an indisputable part of cities throughout history. It highlights urban agriculture as an important subject for improving city sustainability, enhancing food security, and reducing urban poverty. The study suggests that understanding its evolution could yield valuable information.
Food sovereignty & justiceEconomicsPolicy