Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
2058 results(41 / 83)
Population health impact and cost-effectiveness of community-supported agriculture among low-income US adults: A microsimulation analysis
2020M. Petrie, S. Basu, E. Sayer, R. Bellin, J. O apos Neill, S.A. Berkowitz · UNC Libraries · United States
This study estimated the population-level effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a subsidized community-supported agriculture (CSA) intervention in the United States. A microsimulation model developed in 2019 utilized national demographic, biomedical, and dietary data (NHANES, 2013-2016) and a randomized trial (Massachusetts, 2017-2018). Two interventions were modeled: an unconditional cash transfer ($300/year) and a subsidized CSA ($300/year subsidy), both of which were shown to reduce discounted disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) for cardiovascular disease and diabetes complications. Both interventions had negative incremental cost-effectiveness ratios, implying cost savings to society.
CSA & TeikeiHealthEconomicsWelfareHow Healthcare Organizations Are Facilitating Access to Fruits and Vegetables in Their Patient Populations: A Systematic Scoping Review
2020Susan Veldheer, Christina Scartozzi, Amy Knehans, Tamara K. Oser, Natasha Sood, Francis Puleo, Joie Cooper, Daniel R. George, Alicia J. Cohen, Renate M. Winkels · Current Developments in Nutrition · Global
This systematic scoping review analyzed 46 manuscripts from 30 studies published between 1990 and 2019 to understand clinical strategies used by healthcare organizations to increase patient access to fruits and vegetables (F&V). Six program models were identified, including garden-based programs and CSA. The overall quality of the included studies was weak due to selection bias and incomplete reporting, with only 6 out of 30 studies including a control group. While some studies showed improvements in dietary intake, objective health markers such as blood pressure and BMI had mixed results.
HealthWelfareFood educationCommunityThe affordable housing, transportation, and food nexus: Community gardens and healthy affordable living in Calgary
2020Miho Lowan‐Trudeau, Noel Keough, Joshua Wong, Sara Haidey · Canadian Geographies / Géographies canadiennes · Canada (Calgary)
This study, examining community gardens in Calgary, aimed to determine the socio-economic demographics of neighborhoods supporting community gardens and their proximity to active transportation and public transit. GIS visualization and quantitative analyses were used to investigate relationships between demographic variables and transportation accessibility. Findings showed that community garden neighborhoods are located in areas with significantly fewer visible minorities, higher levels of educational attainment, and more attached dwellings like apartments and townhomes. This study suggests potential inequities in the proliferation of public community gardens based on socio-economic factors beyond economic capital.
Equity & displacementCommunityHealthWelfareEconomicsAllotment Gardens (AG) in the days of the covid-19 pandemic. The case of “Żeromskiego” AG in Łask-Kolumna and “Wolinka” AG in Zduńska Wola (Poland)
2020Roman Szkup · Journal of Geography Politics and Society · Poland
A questionnaire survey was conducted among users of two allotment gardens ("Żeromskiego" AG and "Wolinka" AG) in the Łódź suburban area, Poland, to verify the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their behavior and recreation. The analysis showed that while the pandemic affected the behavior and rest of allotment garden users, the impact was not as large as could be expected.
CommunityHealthWelfareCharacteristics of successful primary school-based experiential nutrition programmes: a systematic literature review
2020Karen Charlton, Teagan Comerford, Natika Deavin, Karen Walton · Public Health Nutrition · Global
This systematic literature review identified key characteristics of successful experiential nutrition interventions aimed at changing nutrition-related cognitive and behavioral outcomes in primary schoolchildren. From 3800 articles identified across five databases (CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, Medline, Academic Search Complete), 67 were eligible, and 42 were defined as successful. Nutrition education (when combined with taste testing), cooking-related activities, and gardening interventions increased children's willingness to taste unfamiliar foods, improved their cooking and food preparation skills, and increased nutritional knowledge.
Food educationHealthUnderstanding the effects of the Hobart Apartments student accommodation community garden project
2020Suzanne Mallick, Philip Marsh, Dave Kendal · Figshare · Australia
This research aims to understand how a community garden project at the University of Tasmania's Melville St student accommodation in Hobart CBD can benefit the health and wellbeing of students and the broader community. The first phase involved collecting and analyzing qualitative, quantitative, and observational data before the garden's installation, using interviews, focus groups, observational studies, and an online survey. The second phase will collect and analyze data after the community garden has been established.
CommunityHealthA Place to Breathe in the Dense City: Community Gardening and Participatory Urbanism in Paris
2020Carrie Ann Benjamin · Sociální studia / Social Studies · France (Paris)
This study examines community gardening and participatory urbanism in Paris, focusing on the Goutte Verte, a temporary nomadic community garden. The continued existence of the Goutte Verte is in opposition to the city's much-needed housing, with gardeners caught between a desire for green space and a demand for comfortable housing. Community gardens are shown to act as a material alternative to urban planning and governance that often fail to account for a "place to breathe" in the city.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyHealthFraming Food Access: Do Community Gardens Inadvertently Reproduce Inequality?
2020Katie L. Butterfield, A. Susana Ramírez · Health Education & Behavior · United States (Minnesota)
A quantitative content analysis was conducted on descriptions, missions, and goals provided by 411 community garden managers across Minnesota. Six frames were consistently present, including "greater good" and "community orientation," which were the most common. The findings suggest that the prevalent "greater good" frame may inadvertently reproduce inequality by alienating food-insecure populations, similar to other alternative food programs.
Equity & displacementCommunityHealthWelfareFactors Associated with Acquiring Food from a Farmers Market and Community or Home Garden Among Primarily African American Residents from Under-Resourced Neighborhoods
2020Jeanette Gustat, Yu-Zhang Lee, Taylor Johnson, K. O’Malley, Brian Luckett, Leann Myers · Journal of the Louisiana Public Health Association · United States (New Orleans)
This cross-sectional survey in two low-income, predominantly African American neighborhoods in New Orleans, Louisiana, interviewed 901 participants to explore factors associated with acquiring food from farmers markets (FMs) and community/home gardens (C/HGs). Daily fresh fruit and vegetable servings were positively associated with acquiring food from FMs and C/HGs in the past three months. African Americans and those living farther from an FM were less likely to acquire food from an FM, while those who cooked at home were more likely to use C/HGs.
CommunityHealthWelfarePELATIHAN CARA BERTANAM BERTINGKAT SEBAGAI UPAYA PENINGKATAN KONSUMSI SAYUR-SAYURAN DI DEPOK
2020Wahyu Sulistiadi, Ibnu Malkan Bakhrul Ilmi, Dian Luthfiana Sufyan, Sri Rahayu · Jurnal Bisnis Indonesia · Indonesia (Depok)
A community service activity in Depok, Indonesia, aimed to establish vegetable consumption habits among residents by utilizing limited space for verticulture. The training employed organic and non-organic waste as growing media, using participatory methods and demonstrations. Participants practiced planting vegetables from seeds to harvest using verticulture, and the activity was deemed successful as most participants were able to harvest their own crops.
DIYFood educationHealthCompostBody Image Benefits of Allotment Gardening
2020Viren Swami · Ecopsychology · United Kingdom (London)
This study assessed the impact of allotment gardening on body image among 84 allotment gardeners in London, United Kingdom. Participants completed measures of state body image before and after spending time on their allotments, and were compared to a matched control group of 81 non-gardeners. Results indicated that allotment gardening significantly improved state body image, with longer time spent on the allotment associated with larger improvements. Allotment gardeners also had significantly higher positive body image than non-gardeners across all included indices.
HealthCommunityGrowing Resilient Cities
2020Andreas Wesener · transcript Verlag eBooks · New Zealand (Christchurch)
This study explores the role and value of urban community gardens following a major crisis: the 2010/11 earthquakes in Christchurch, New Zealand. Urban community gardens are broadly defined as shared open green spaces for mainly horticultural uses that are managed by local communities.
CommunityClimate changeHealthMore Than Food: The Social Benefits of Localized Urban Food Systems
2020Lucy Diekmann, Leslie Gray, Chan L. Thai · Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · United States (California)
This study measured the social, educational, civic, and nutritional impacts of four types of urban food system activities: home gardens, community gardens, farmers' markets, and CSAs, through a survey of 424 gardeners and 450 direct market shoppers in California's San Francisco Bay Area. While nutritional impacts were consistently high, significant differences were observed in social interaction and civic engagement between activity types. Gardens generally fostered greater learning, connection, and civic participation than direct marketing.
CommunityHealthFood educationCSA & TeikeiSpatial Usage and Qualifications of Outdoor Recreation Areas in Primary Schools: A Case Study From Üsküdar
2020Selda Cansu TEMEL · GRID - Architecture Planning and Design Journal · Turkey
This study analyzed the planning and design criteria of public primary school gardens in Üsküdar district, Istanbul, Turkey, to determine their proficiency levels against national, international, and academic standards. Using quantitative and qualitative methods, including on-site observation, the research identified architectural disadvantages and inadequacies in the school gardens. The findings indicate deficiencies in the current state of these outdoor recreation areas.
Limited or null effectFood educationCommunityHealthFarming Food and Community
2020Theresa J Beardell · Digital Commons @ Connecticut College (Connecticut College) · United States
Sprout is a community garden and direct-to-consumer farm dedicated to building community and empowering individuals through the shared effort of growing and eating good food. Cultivation at Sprout is led by the conviction that good food is produced in a way that is ethical in both its environmental and social impacts.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceHealthOrganic cycleLos techos verdes como innovación para la sustentabilidad en vivienda, ciudad y territorio
2020Beatriz Giobellina · LA Referencia (Red Federada de Repositorios Institucionales de Publicaciones Científicas) · Global
This chapter explores the concept of green roofs as an innovation for sustainability in housing, cities, and territories, particularly in the context of global challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic. It suggests revisiting ideas linking environment, development, urban agriculture, and self-sufficiency gardens to address climate change, food security, and health. This chapter is part of the book "Green Infrastructures: from territory to habitable roof."
Climate changeFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityHealthLinking school gardens, school feeding, and nutrition education in the Philippines
2020Emilita Monville‐Oro, Imelda Angeles‐Agdeppa, Irish P. Baguilat, Julian Gonsalves, Mario V. Capanzana · · Philippines
The Nutrition Center of the Philippines (NCP) collaborated with the Department of Education to develop nutrition education modules for elementary schoolchildren, integrating classroom, garden, and home activities. A survey in two towns found that pre-school children in households with home gardens ate vegetables more frequently and had higher dietary diversity scores than those without. NCP also promoted nutritional values through TV ads featuring student-written poems, which received an award in 1985.
Food educationHealthDIYHorta comunitária como atividade lúdica para idosos institucionalizados
2020Francisco Glauber Peixoto Ferreira, Cácia Aline Costa Santos, Carolina Maria de Lima Carvalho, Vanessa Emille Carvalho de Sousa Freire · Revista Enfermagem Atual In Derme · Brazil (Fortaleza)
An experience report describes the implementation of a community garden in a Long-Term Care Institution for the Elderly in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil, in 2018. The activity aimed to promote a welcoming eco-social environment and a recreational activity for the well-being of the elderly. Developed through interdisciplinary integration between Nursing and Agronomy courses, it provided an opportunity to learn about the residents' personalities, stories, and aspirations. The implementation of the community garden significantly contributed to the well-being of the elderly, broke the monotony and feelings of abandonment, and enabled the use of an unused space.
CommunityElderlyHealthWelfareAnalysis on the Types of Benefits of Gardens in Urban Areas: Comparison of Korea and Overseas Cases
2020Jiwon Park, Mi‐Ae Jeong · Journal of people, plants, and environment · Global
An analysis of 63 Korean and 90 overseas articles on urban gardens compared the types of physical and social benefits provided by gardens in urban areas. Community gardens were the most significant type in both Korea and overseas. Due to narrow urban structures, Korea focused on using rooftop, wall, and alley spaces, while overseas focused on promoting health and reducing food inequality through larger allotment and kitchen gardens. Urban gardens were found to have a positive effect on urban biodiversity, providing comprehensive environmental (37.73%) and social (62.27%) benefits.
CommunityHealthFood sovereignty & justiceRooftop Urban Agriculture Model with Two Tomato Varieties (Lycopersicum esculentum Mill) and Toppings in the High Jungle – Peru
2020J. M. Alomia-Lucero, Jorge Castro-Bedriñana, Doris Chirinos-Peinado · Advances in Science Technology and Engineering Systems Journal · Peru
This study designed and evaluated an agroecological system for a rooftop agricultural model in the high jungle of Peru, associating tomato plants (Rio Grande and Cherry varieties) with vegetable covers. The system demonstrated benefits for family food safety through pesticide-free tomatoes and created a plant barrier on roofs to reduce solar radiation. A new medium-sized tomato variety, suitable for the organic market, was also obtained through natural crossbreeding.
DIYHealthBiodiversityClimate changePERCEPÇÃO DE UNIVERSITÁRIOS PARTICIPANTES DO PET-SAÚDE INTERPROFISSIONALIDADE SOBRE O PLANEJAMENTO ESTRATÉGICO SITUACIONAL
2020Paloma Silva Oliveira, Alaine Azevedo Barbosa, Alícia Cynthia Bispo dos Anjos, Aldaisa Oliveira da Silva, Ana Paula de Souza Cunha, Carlos Henrique Silva, Iasmin Adami Almeida Rolim, Vinícius Santos Barros, Charles Souza Santos, Gisele da Silveira Lemos · Saberes Plurais Educação na Saúde · Brazil
This descriptive study, conducted from July 2019 to February 2020, described the experience of eight PET-Saúde Interprofissionalidade students implementing Situational Strategic Planning (PES) at a Psychosocial Care Center for alcohol and drugs (CAPS ad) in Brazil. Students identified problems like physical structure issues, team disharmony, and lack of collaborative therapeutic projects. The PES process, which included a community garden, qualified user assistance and provided a more effective work basis for the health team.
CommunityHealthFood educationDerivation of Indicators for Value Assessment of School Gardens
2020In-Kyoung Hong, Hyung-Kwon Yun, Young-Bin Jung, Sang-Mi Lee · Journal of people, plants, and environment · Global
To derive indicators for assessing the service value of educational farming experiences using school gardens, literature review, the Delphi method, exploratory factor analysis, and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) were employed. The study classified indicators into four criteria: educational value, health value, economic value, and ecological and environmental value, comprising 13 items and 33 sub-factors. Experts rated educational value as the most important, followed by health, ecological and environmental, and economic values.
Food educationHealthEconomicsBiodiversitySoil-Transmitted Protozoans and Helminths from Market Gardening Sites of Yaounde, Cameroon
2020Herman Parfait Awono-Ambene, Laurelle Djieukap Njieyap, Patrick Akono Ntonga, Josiane Etang, Christophe Antonio‐Nkondjio, Cyrille Ndo, Jacques Étamé, Flobert Njiokou, Serge Hubert Zébazé Togouet · Journal of Environmental Science and Public Health · Cameroon (Yaounde)
This study analyzed water and soil samples from three market garden sites in Yaounde, Cameroon, from October to December 2016, for physicochemical characteristics and parasite identification. The analysis of 82 samples revealed the presence of 3 protozoans (Entamoeba histolytica, Sarcocystis sp., and Giardia intestinalis) and 11 helminths in the soil. The presence of viable helminths suggests that harmful soil pathogens such as protozoans and helminths can spread through market gardening.
Contamination & food safetyHealthRethinking Urban and Food Policies to Improve Citizens Safety After COVID-19 Pandemic
2020Andrea Galimberti, Hellas Cena, Luca Campone, Emanuele Ferri, Mario Dell’Agli, Enrico Sangiovanni, Michael Belingheri, M Riva, Maurizio Casiraghi, Massimo Labra · Frontiers in Nutrition · Global
This paper provides an integrative overview of the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasizing the need for a systemic approach that considers the connection between infection, environment, and human behaviors, including diet and urban management. A faculty group of experts identified two main aspects: human health depends on sustainable natural resource exploitation in populated areas, and cities have a strategic role in developing sustainable food systems. Priority issues include enhancing urban and peri-urban agriculture, supporting smallholder producers, and maintaining ecosystem services and local biodiversity to improve food safety and security.
PolicyHealthClimate changeFood Supply and Urban Gardening in the Time of Covid-19
2020Silvana Nicola, A. Ferrante, Giacomo Cocetta, Roberta Bulgari, Carlo Nicoletto, Paolo Sambo, Andrea Ertani · Bulletin of University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine Cluj-Napoca Horticulture · Global
The Covid-19 pandemic revealed the vulnerability of the agrifood system, with lockdowns disrupting long-distance fresh vegetable supply chains and causing dramatic declines in local market sales. While purchases concentrated in supermarkets, increasing crowding risks, gardening can increase opportunities for local and fresh food availability. Scaling up local food production is important to enhance community resilience.
Limited or null effectFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityHealthClimate change