Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
166 results(4 / 7)
The history and management of a community garden established on vacant land by an NPO
2020Naomi Shimpo · Toshi keikaku hokokushu/Toshi keikaku houkokushuu · Japan (Tokyo)
This paper investigated the establishment and management of a community garden opened by an NPO on vacant land in Sumida Ward, Tokyo. Interviews and document analysis revealed that the garden was established to cultivate traditional vegetables to foster human interaction, and the NPO status was acquired to receive municipal subsidies and potentially resolve property tax issues. NPO status is considered advantageous for the economic stability of community garden operations.
CommunityPolicyEconomicsImpact of urban agriculture on business
2020Takeshi So · The Japanese Journal of Real Estate Sciences · Japan
This study discusses urban agriculture in Japan from three perspectives: suburban farming, urban farming, and isolated farming operations within urban areas. Despite its historical impact on urban planning, urban farmland has dramatically decreased and currently hinders real estate business and new business creation. It is suggested that economic rationality and public interest should be prioritized, and tax incentives for urban farmland should be reconsidered in a stepwise manner.
Economic viabilityEconomicsPolicyUrban–rural linkageThe 2022 problem and urban farmland preservation, urban agricultural policy
2020Seiichiro Shiozawa · The Japanese Journal of Real Estate Sciences · Japan
This study examined the "2022 problem" in Japan, concerning the potential mass conversion of farmland designated as Production Green Space into residential land. It notes that these concerns have receded due to legal amendments and system establishment following the 2016 Basic Law for the Promotion of Urban Agriculture. The study suggests that future urban development should utilize urban farmland to increase regional value, proposing three key actions: establishing cooperation between urban farmers and residents, creating district-specific community development systems, and promoting appropriate land use.
PolicyUrban–rural linkageCommunityNeeds Analyses to Allotment Garden fr om the Perspectiv e of Food and Agriculture by Focusing on Child-rearing Generations
2020Tomoko Imoto, Nobutaka ISHITSUKA, Cheligeer, Kiyohide Morita · JOURNAL OF RURAL SOCIETY AND ECONOMICS · Japan
This study investigated allotment garden use among child-rearing generations in Japan, identifying preferences for "free space (play area)," "staff to answer questions," and "events." A questionnaire survey of first-grade parents revealed a high potential demand for allotment gardens, with preferences for lower fees, play areas, cultivation guidance, and events. However, an analysis using a cross-effect model found a disconnect between preferences for garden use and food preferences, as those who buy domestic products generally did not value events, indicating a "food-agriculture gap."
Limited or null effectFood educationCommunityElderlyPolicyノウフクJAS（障害者が生産行程に携わった食品の日本農林規格）
2019· 農林水産省 · Japan
Materials on the 2019 Noufuku JAS standard certifying foods and ornamental plants produced with the involvement of people with disabilities, raising trust and brand value for agriculture-welfare products via third-party certification; first certifications issued November 2019.
WelfarePolicyOrganic cycleEconomicsHealthFarm Diversification and Sustainability of Multifunctional Peri-Urban Agriculture: Entrepreneurial Attributes of Advanced Diversification in Japan
2019Yoshida S., Yagi H., Kiminami A., Garrod G. · Sustainability 11(10):2887 · Japan
The study analyzes the sustainability of multifunctional peri-urban agriculture through the lens of farm diversification and farmers' entrepreneurial attributes. It identifies the characteristics of advanced, highly diversified farm businesses and discusses factors supporting the persistence of peri-urban agriculture in Japan.
EconomicsPolicyCommunity都市と緑・農が共生するまちづくり 優良取組事例集
2019国土交通省 都市局 公園緑地・景観課 · 国土交通省（MLIT）報告書 · Japan
A Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism casebook compiled to advance both compact urban structure and the 'coexistence of cities with green and agriculture'. It catalogues urban-farming and green-space initiatives — including resident-participation rooftop gardens, allotments and farming-led town-making by private developers and municipalities — and provides the policy backdrop for developer cases.
PolicyCommunityBiodiversityFood education低未利用空間の暫定活用 事例集
2019国土交通省 · 国土交通省 都市局 · Japan
A national casebook organising interim uses of low-/under-used land (event space, gardens, greenery) until development advances, including cases like Kawasaki's planned-road 'Kisetsu-no-komichi' and Yokohama's soil-storage reuse.
PolicyCommunityEconomicsConstruction of a core collection of eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) based on genome-wide SNP and SSR genotypes
2019Miyatake Koji, Shinmura Yoichi, Matsunaga Hiroshi, Fukuoka Hiroyuki, Saito Takeo · Breeding Science, 69(3): 498-502 · Japan
Analyzing 893 eggplant accessions in the NARO Genebank with genome-wide SNPs and SSRs, the authors built a core collection; Asian accessions formed the center of diversity, supporting efficient conservation and use of genetic resources.
Heirloom & landraceBiodiversityPolicy世田谷区農業振興計画
2019世田谷区 · 世田谷区 農業振興計画 · Japan
Setagaya's ten-year agricultural promotion plan adopted in 2019, setting basic policies and concrete measures for municipal urban agriculture including citizen farms and contact farms using the Urban Farmland Lease Facilitation Act, agriculture-welfare collaboration and sixth-industry support.
PolicyCommunityFood educationEconomics横浜都市農業推進プラン
2019横浜市 環境創造局 · 横浜市 都市農業推進計画 · Japan
Yokohama's urban agriculture promotion plan, linked to the Midori Up programme, organising policies and results for publicly supported citizen farming infrastructure including diverse citizen farms, cultivation experience farms, harvest farms and Megumi-no-Sato districts.
PolicyCommunityFood educationBiodiversity農の風景育成計画（練馬区南大泉地区）
2019練馬区, 東京都都市整備局 · 練馬区 農の風景育成地区計画 · Japan
Nerima's landscape conservation plan for Minami-Oizumi and Takamatsu under Tokyo's Agricultural Landscape Conservation District system, positioning ward allotments, experience farms, farm stands and food-education events as integrated public farmland conservation and revitalisation.
PolicyBiodiversityCommunityFood educationStrategies for Sustaining and Developing Agriculture and Regional Conditions in Japan
2019Akira Tabayashi, Toshio Kikuchi, Toshiaki Nishino · Journal of Geography (Chigaku Zasshi) · Japan
This study discusses strategies for sustaining and developing agriculture in Japan, based on 10 sample studies across various regions, including urban agriculture in Tokyo. Key strategies include ensuring capable farm operators, promoting rational farm management with advanced technology, maintaining stable income sources, establishing multiple sales channels, and forming producer-consumer networks. The research highlights the importance of locational, physical, economic, social, cultural, and political conditions, particularly accessibility to large cities and favorable physical conditions for production.
PolicyUrban–rural linkageEconomicsA Study on the Operation of the Sustainability of Community Garden
2019In Sook Jo, Jung Min Choi · Residential Environment Institute Of Korea · South Korea; Japan
A case study investigated 8 community gardens in South Korea and Japan through field surveys and in-depth interviews with managers to develop a sustainable community garden management program. Findings indicated that active participant involvement is crucial, spatial layout and management should foster community, and different elements are important at each management stage. Early planning should consider maintenance elements, and governance should be participation-based, with measures needed to attract new participants due to aging populations.
CommunityPolicy地域景観としての生活景の発見と評価方法に関する研究
2019ハジメ イシカワ, Hajime Ishikawa, 初 石川 · KeiO Associated Repository of Academic Resources (Keio University) · Japan (Tokamachi, Uji, Kamiyama)
This research aimed to establish a method for discovering, verbalizing, visualizing, and evaluating the "living scene" created by residents as a base for local identity and a local resource, and to clarify its sharing method. In 2020, in collaboration with local residents in Tokamachi City, Niigata Prefecture, and Uji City, Kyoto Prefecture, the study practiced verbalizing and sharing regional landscape elements through the production of landscape field guides. In Tokamachi City, private house gardens were measured and field guides created, while in Uji City, open spaces, green areas, and waterways were mapped, and community garden designs were proposed. In Kamiyama Town, fieldwork was abandoned due to COVID-19 countermeasures, and interview surveys were conducted using media such as telephone and email.
CommunityPolicyBiodiversityGrowth and Sustaining Strategies of Urban Agriculture Based on Interaction with Urban Residents: The Case of Kodaira City, Tokyo Metropolis
2019Ryo Iizuka, Kei Ota, Toshio Kikuchi · Journal of Geography (Chigaku Zasshi) · Japan (Kodaira City)
This study explored the growth and sustaining strategies of urban agriculture based on diversified agricultural management and interactions with urban residents, using Kodaira City, Tokyo Metropolis, as a case study. Analysis of previous literature, public survey data on the spatial distribution and classification of agricultural management patterns, and interviews with farmers revealed interactions between farmers and urban residents. In Kodaira City, interactions exist between farms and urban residents based on agricultural management, with distinct patterns influenced by local characteristics. These interaction styles prevent excessive competition, attract stable customers, and enable sustainable management.
CommunityPolicyEconomicsUrban–rural linkageA Study on the Possibility of Transfer of Development Rights in Urban Agricultural Land
2019Yusuke Aoki, Norihiro Nakai, Mamiko Numata · Journal of the City Planning Institute of Japan · Japan
This study investigated the possibility of applying development rights transfer to preserve urban agricultural land in a depopulating society, focusing on transferring development rights from urban agricultural land to city centers. The research calculated transfer rates using land price ratios and the land residual method, then applied these rates to hypothetical projects. It was found that in areas like Marunouchi and Ginza, a single project could transfer all development rights for Setagaya Ward's agricultural green spaces, while other areas required a combination of multiple projects.
PolicyEconomicsUrban–rural linkageCurrent Status and Future Perspectives of Research about Urban Farming in Tokyo
2019Mitsuhito HOSAKA, Takeshi Sato · JOURNAL OF RURAL PLANNING ASSOCIATION · Japan
This paper reviewed research trends on urban farming in Tokyo, focusing on public benefits of Tokyo's agriculture and farmland, agricultural business management, and the effects of urban farmland policies like the Amendment of Productive Green Land Act. The research identified the necessity for sustainable academic research, improved databases for quantitative analysis, and economic evaluation of intensive agricultural production technology.
PolicyEconomicsUrban–rural linkageCommunityLa multifunzionalità dell'agricoltura urbana: il caso di Nishi-Tokyo = The multifunctionality of urban agriculture: the case study of Nishi-Tokyo
2019Francesco Letteriello · · Japan (Nishi-Tokyo)
This research focuses on the role of urban agriculture within the UN New Urban Agenda, noting that 54% of the world's population lived in urban areas in 2015, projected to rise to 66% by 2050, leading to urban overcrowding. Nishi-Tokyo's municipality is interested in revising its Master Plan to protect "Productive Green Zones" which will lose their status in 2022. The study aims to analyze the importance of multifunctionality in urban agriculture as a driver for resilient cities, comparing urban agriculture in Italy and Japan, and deepening the context of Nishi-Tokyo through literature, interviews, and field analysis.
Urban–rural linkagePolicyClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceEffectiveness of Agricultural Innovation in Urban Policy : Consideration on Case Studies in Kawasaki City
2019賢二 徳田, 春霞 李 · Institutional Repositories DataBase (IRDB) · Japan (Kawasaki City)
This study examined the current state of urban agriculture in Kawasaki City and the effectiveness of its multifaceted agricultural innovation policies. In Kawasaki City, while urban farmland is decreasing due to population growth and urbanization, there is a movement towards high-value-added agriculture utilizing ICT, as well as promoting local production for local consumption through new variety development, improved distribution channels, market mechanisms, and collaboration with local retailers. The city aims to improve agricultural management and enhance value creation as an industrial policy, and to ensure appropriate use and conservation of urban farmland as a social policy, thereby building a high-value-added supply chain.
PolicyEconomicsUrban–rural linkageDigital agriculture都市農地の貸借の円滑化に関する法律の概要
2018· 農林水産省 · Japan
Official explanation of the 2018 Urban Farmland Lease Facilitation Act, which lets motivated urban farmers, companies, and NPOs lease productive greenland to cultivate or open community farms, excludes statutory lease renewal, and preserves the inheritance-tax deferral after leasing.
PolicyEconomicsCommunityResilience with Mixed Agricultural and Urban Land Uses in Tokyo, Japan
2018Sioen G.B., Terada T., Sekiyama M., Yokohari M. · Sustainability 10(2):435 · Japan
Using GIS grid-cell analysis, the study quantified vegetable-weight and key-nutrient self-sufficiency for each land-use pattern in Tokyo, showing how mixed agricultural and urban land uses contribute to resilience. Tokyo's fruit-and-vegetable self-sufficiency was estimated at 4.27% currently with a potential of 11.73%.
PolicyEconomicsCommunity低未利用土地利用促進協定
2018国土交通省 · 国土交通省 · Japan
Under the Urban Renaissance Act, municipalities and owners of low-/under-used land can agree to develop and manage it temporarily as plazas, community gardens and greenery — part of Japan's response to urban 'sponging'.
PolicyCommunity大都市郊外住宅地の再生における民間企業の参画に関する研究 －企業・住民・行政へのインタビュー調査を中心に－
2018平江 良成, 小泉 秀樹, 後藤 智香子 · 都市計画報告集 17巻2号 pp.195-201 · Japan
With an author from Tokyu Corporation, this interview-based study analyzes how private firms participate in suburban housing-area regeneration and the conditions required, arguing that developers must engage through composite services including community facilities and new business formats.
CommunityPolicyEconomics空家活用等による「東京クラインガルテン」実現方策検討調査 報告書
2018国土交通省 都市局, 八王子市「東京クラインガルテン」検討協議会 · 国土交通省 都市と緑・農が共生するまちづくりに関する調査 · Japan
Using Hachioji as a case, this MLIT report examines leveraging private vitality for vacant homes, farmland, and green space, including site visits and interviews on corporate kitchen gardens and business simulations for rental gardens around housing areas and danchi.
PolicyCommunityEconomics