Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
5823 results(38 / 233)
Landrace in situ (on-farm) conservation: European Union achievements
2024Raggi L., Spataro G., Tiranti D., Negri V. · Biodiversity and Conservation 33:2709-2738 · Europe
Reviews the status of on-farm landrace conservation in the EU, including the materials conserved, who maintains them and why, and EU policies governing the commercialization of landrace seeds.
Heirloom & landraceBiodiversityPolicyCommunityOn-farm crop diversity, conservation, importance and value: a case study of landraces from Western Ghats of Karnataka, India
2024Puneeth G. M., Gowthami R., Katral A., Laxmisha K. M., Vasudeva R., Singh G. P., Archak S. · Scientific Reports 14:10712 · India
Documents 671 landraces of 60 crops across 24 sites in the Western Ghats, identifying suitability, cuisine, medicinal use, cultural significance and economic value as determinants of on-farm conservation by custodian farmers.
Heirloom & landraceBiodiversityCommunityFood educationResource Orchestration in Cross-Sector Partnerships for Systemic Change: A Longitudinal Study of Urban Food Assistance
2024Bartezzaghi G., Garrone P., Rizzuni A., Melacini M., Perego A. · Business & Society · Italy
A longitudinal action-research study of a cross-sector partnership delivering urban food assistance, showing how resource orchestration by public, corporate, and nonprofit actors spurs phases of systemic change in the urban food system.
CommunityEconomicsPolicyUrban agriculture as an evolved sustainable urban livelihood: evidence from Kampala city, Uganda
2024Kwiringira J., Mohling E.W.P., Mathias A., Ariho P., Mugisha J., Zakumumpa H., Rujumba J., Tumwebaze I.K. · Agriculture & Food Security 13:53 · Uganda
This study analyzes urban agriculture in Kampala as a dynamic, evolved livelihood strategy attracting both the urban poor and other groups, contributing to job creation, poverty alleviation, and household food security.
EconomicsWelfareCommunity都市的土地利用の手法としての市民農園の展開可能性
2024新田 直人, 谷口 守 · 土木学会論文集 80巻11号 論文ID:23-00303 · Japan
Through multiple regression on fees at growing corporate-run kitchen gardens in metropolitan areas, this paper shows pricing reflects urban land-use factors such as rail access, distance from city center, and surrounding population, discussing expansion potential for private rooftop and non-farmland farms.
EconomicsPolicyCommunity一般社団法人まちにわ ひばりが丘 2023年度 活動報告書
2024一般社団法人まちにわ ひばりが丘 · まちにわ ひばりが丘 公式活動報告書 · Japan
Annual report of the area-management organization after UR Hibarigaoka Danchi regeneration, documenting resident-led activities such as the shared garden and Niwa Marche at Hibari Terrace 118 and strengthened collaboration with developer subdivisions including Nomura, Daiwa, and Sumitomo.
CommunityPolicyHealth「有明ガーデン みんなの菜園プロジェクト」開始のお知らせ
2024住友不動産商業マネジメント株式会社, 武蔵野大学工学部サステナビリティ学科 · 武蔵野大学 / 住友不動産 共同プレスリリース · Japan
At Sumitomo Fudosan's Ariake Garden commercial facility, a resident-participatory container garden is launched jointly with Musashino University as a social experiment including urban permaculture workshops and wellbeing evaluation.
CommunityHealthBiodiversity企業の農業参入と都市農業ビジネス
2024佐藤 光泰 · NOMURA Food & Agri Business Review Vol.14 · Japan
A Nomura Securities Food & Agri Business white paper presenting revenue simulations and cross-sell strategies for rental-farm businesses as urban agriculture entry opportunities for real estate and service firms, discussing private developer kitchen-garden business models.
EconomicsPolicyCommunityポスト2022年の都市農地
2024一般財団法人都市農地活用支援センター · 都市農地活用支援センター 事例集 · Japan
A 2024 casebook on urban farmland use after the 2022 productive-green-area milestone, compiling 40 national examples including UR housing-district Kleingarten, rooftop farms, and private vacant-land community gardens, organizing latest private developer and corporate entry trends.
PolicyCommunityEconomics川崎市市民農園事業実施要綱
2024川崎市 · 川崎市 行政規程・実施要綱 · Japan
Kawasaki's implementation guidelines for city-established and city-managed citizen farms, defining land leasing under the Special Farmland Lease Act, plot recruitment and use conditions as the official basis for municipally operated rental gardens.
PolicyCommunityEconomics横浜都市農業推進プラン2024-2028
2024横浜市 環境創造局 · 横浜市 都市農業振興基本法に基づく地方計画 · Japan
Yokohama's latest five-year local plan under the Urban Agriculture Promotion Act, organising policies for sustainable farming, farmland preservation, citizen farms, harvest experiences and local consumption building on Midori Up and Megumi-no-Sato programmes.
PolicyCommunityFood educationBiodiversityEconomics環境報告書（令和６年度）
2024東京都国分寺市 · 国分寺市 環境報告書 · Japan
Kokubunji's annual environmental report under the basic environment plan, evaluating urban farmland preservation, local consumption and biodiversity while documenting municipally supported programmes such as the Citizen Agriculture University and citizen farms.
PolicyBiodiversityCommunityFood educationOrganic cycleFifty years of Teikei: the evolution of the movement's ten principles and its impact on alternative food initiatives in Japan
2024Kondo C., Zollet S., Kobayashi M., Yamamoto N. · Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · Japan
A systematic analysis of fifty years since the 1971 Kobe origin of 'Teikei'—the root of CSA worldwide—tracing the evolution of the ten Teikei principles through cases across Japan, including Kansai groups (Iga, Nabari, Osaka, Kobe).
CommunityFun, community, and culture in a Japanese alternative food network
2024Black J. · Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · Japan
Analyzes the motivations of participants in Japanese alternative food networks (teikei, direct sales, farmers' markets) through the lens of culture, community and fun, focusing on the social-capital-building function of urban-rural connection.
CommunityFood justice in community supported agriculture – differentiating charitable and emancipatory social support actions
2024Parot J., Wahlen S., Schryro J., Weckenbrock P. · Agriculture and Human Values, 41(2):685-699 · Global
Typologizes food justice in community supported agriculture into 'charitable' and 'emancipatory' support actions, analyzing differences in the motivations and effects of participating in urban-rural food networks and discussing CSA's social-transformation potential.
CommunityThe contribution of urban farming to urban food security: the case of "Buruan SAE"
2024Giyarsih S.R., Armansyah, Zaelany A.A., Latifa A., Setiawan B., Saputra D., Haqi M., Fathurohman A., Lamijo · International Journal of Urban Sustainable Development · Indonesia (Bandung)
This study finds that Bandung's Buruan SAE urban farming programme meaningfully contributes to household food security, with diverse produce meeting community food needs, some participants achieving farming independence, and urban agriculture providing supplementary income. The research documents a transformation in citizen attitudes toward farming as a viable urban livelihood.
CommunityFood educationPolicyHealthCo-creation of urban agriculture through participatory processes in residential building environment: Insights from Finland
2024Johansson J., Roitto M., Steiner B., Alakukku L. · Cleaner and Responsible Consumption (Elsevier) · Finland
This Finnish study evaluates the co-creation of urban agriculture in residential settings with housing companies, finding that flexible modular planning and availability of key site actors are critical success factors for participatory urban farming initiatives.
CommunityPolicyFood educationAchieving social inclusion for vulnerable urban residents through community gardens: a case of Bulawayo city, Zimbabwe
2024Chari F., Ngcamu B.S. · Local Environment · Zimbabwe (Bulawayo)
This survey-based study of community garden farmers in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe assessed the effectiveness of community gardens in promoting social inclusion for vulnerable urban residents, finding that garden participation enhanced social networks, food security, and livelihoods among marginalized groups.
CommunityWelfareHealthPolicyAssessing climate vulnerabilities of urban food systems and institutional responses: the case of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe
2024Maphosa M., Moyo P. · Frontiers in Sustainable Cities · Zimbabwe (Bulawayo)
This study evaluated climate vulnerability in Bulawayo's urban food system and found that the city's 2007 urban agriculture policy lacks climate change provisions, institutional coordination is weak, and extension services are severely understaffed, though NGO-led innovations and national conservation agriculture programs offer promising pathways for resilience.
PolicyFood educationCommunityEconomicsIn defence of urban community gardens
2024Anja Egerer · People and Nature · Global
Research defending the value of urban community gardens, examining citizen participation in biodiversity conservation and the role of gardeners as central actors in nature conservation projects.
CommunityBiodiversityPollinatorsFrom access toward sovereignty: A scoping review of municipal land access policies for urban agriculture in the United States
2024Raychel E. Santo, Sara N. Lupolt, Katherine M. Uhde, Robert C. Bennaton, Keeve E. Nachman · Elem Sci Anth · United States
This scoping review compares land access mechanisms for urban agriculture across the 40 most populous US cities. It finds 75% of cities used at least one mechanism but only 20% offered multiple options; temporary-use mechanisms (e.g., Adopt-A-Lot programs, city-run farms and gardens) were more common than secure-tenure options like long-term leases and land trusts; 45% of cities designed mechanisms with an equity focus; and fewer than a quarter offered complementary support such as subsidized water, liability insurance, soil testing, or funding.
PolicyCommunityTrace Metal Contamination in Community Garden Soils across the United States
2024Maeve Malone, Kabindra M. Shakya · Sustainability · United States
This paper reviews the state of heavy metal contamination (such as lead, arsenic, and cadmium) in community garden soils across the United States, noting that gardeners are exposed through pathways such as inhalation and ingestion. It states that contamination hot spots are higher in city areas with greater minority populations and lower incomes. The review outlines mitigation approaches including applying biochar and compost, using raised beds, and maintaining a natural pH.
HealthCommunityCompostRacial equity and the USDA's Office of Urban Agriculture granting program and urban offices
2024Kristin Reynolds, Cédric Gottfried, Tamarra Thomas · Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development · United States
This policy brief reports findings from a study examining, through a racial-equity lens, the rollout of the USDA Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production established by the 2018 farm bill. Drawing on national surveys, interviews in New York City and Atlanta, GIS mapping, and policy review, it situates the provisions within the USDA's history of discrimination and offers policy recommendations for engaging socially disadvantaged urban farmers.
PolicyCommunityEconomicsUrban agriculture in Baltimore, Maryland: Documenting current irrigation practices and rainwater harvesting
2024Abriana Segal, Niya Khanjar, Julie Yang, Kelsey Brooks, Marcus Williams, Neith Little, Andrew Lazar, Rachel E. Rosenberg Goldstein · Urban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems · United States (Baltimore)
This study surveyed urban farms and community gardens in Baltimore, Maryland, to document irrigation practices, water sources, and interest in rainwater harvesting. Most sites were concerned about water availability yet all had access to city water; 27% were already harvesting rainwater and 54% were interested, and the authors suggest rainwater harvesting, food safety, and education programs could increase safe use of this water source.
CommunityDIYFood educationScalability of Urban Agriculture
2024Kristin Jones · Enquiry The ARCC Journal for Architectural Research · United States (Chicago)
Taking Alfred Caldwell's mid-century vision of small-scale farming as social empowerment as its starting point, this study examines three distinct urban farming approaches in Chicago—spanning raised-bed farming, aquaponics, hydroponics, and permaculture across a nonprofit, a community group, and a private entrepreneur—to assess their scalability and broader societal and environmental impact. It identifies numerous opportunities for scaling up and concludes that a multi-faceted, multi-scalar framework is needed to grow urban agriculture within resilient cities.
EconomicsCommunityPolicy