Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
2091 results(48 / 84)
Can participating in school gardens increase fruit and vegetable intake, subsequently enhancing students’ academic performance?
2019Victoria Holmes · Proceedings of Student Research and Creative Inquiry Day · Global
This literature review analyzed research data from 2002-2018 to investigate the effects of school garden programs on students' fruit and vegetable intake and the impact of increased intake on academic performance. Findings support the claim that school garden programs promote an increase in fruit and vegetable consumption among participating students. In one study, nutrition education and garden-based activities doubled daily fruit and vegetable servings among sixth graders. A positive relationship was shown between academic performance and fruit and vegetable consumption, but more studies are needed to understand long-term effects.
Food educationHealthCommunitySocial Entrepreneurship and Social Movement Learning: A Reflective Account of the History of the TPSS Food Cooperative
2019Neal Chalofsky · Advances in Developing Human Resources · Global
This paper reflects on the 35-year growth experience of the TPSS Food Cooperative, examining challenges faced by social entrepreneurship. It notes that individuals with vision often lack social movement learning (SML) and human resource development/organization development (HRD/OD) skills to grow and direct organizations, leading to their demise or a shift towards business over social aspects. The paper argues that lessons from the 1970s food cooperative movement can benefit contemporary social entrepreneurships.
Governance failureCommunityEconomicsCompostConflation in political gardening
2019Lucy Rose Wright, Ross Fraser Young · Manchester University Press eBooks · Global
This chapter introduces the concept of political gardening, contextualizing its rise within neoliberal processes and academic interest in urban gardening. It conflates political gardening with injustice, drawing on Rawls' theory of social justice. The chapter uses case study examples to define political gardening as a six-stage iterative process that participants undergo to address injustices and become engaged, democratized citizens.
Equity & displacementPolicyCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceUrban Farming Movement
2019Pierluigi Nicolin · IGI Global eBooks · Global
This article describes the urban farming movement as a global phenomenon, emerging in cities worldwide from Mumbai to Tokyo, where cultivated areas produce food distributed locally. Driven largely by the poor and women on small farms, this politico-cultural movement integrates with urban ecosystems through food production, educational aims, and sustainability. It creates new landscapes that warrant aesthetic analysis and could influence urban visual conventions and lifestyles if scaled up.
CommunityFood educationUrban–rural linkageWelfareFood sovereignty & justiceA CASE STUDY FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SCHOOL GARDENS IN DAKAHLIA GOVERNORATE
2019A. Hegazy · Scientific Journal of Flowers and Ornamental Plants /Scientific Journal of Flowers and Ornamental Plants · Egypt
This landscaping study, conducted from 2017-2018, investigated eight school gardens in Mansoura City and Talkha District, Dakahlia Governorate, Egypt. The study revealed that most school gardens contained toxic plants like weeds and cacti, and that utilized areas were not correctly used with poor maintenance. Roof gardens and improved irrigation systems were suggested.
Limited or null effectFood educationCommunityOrganic cycleGuerrilla gardening and green activism: Rethinking the informal urban growing movement
2018Hardman M., Chipungu L., Magidimisha H., Larkham P.J., Scott A.J., Armitage R.P. · Landscape and Urban Planning, 170:6-14 · Global
Reviews informal urban-growing (guerrilla gardening) practices across Europe, North America and Africa, showing how in Salford, UK, local authorities have begun tolerating and even encouraging informal growing. It rethinks how a movement of residents greening and growing food on gap spaces and vacant land without permission can be integrated into urban planning and green-space policy.
CommunityPolicyBiodiversityBuilding sustainable university-based community gardens: Volunteer perceptions of enablers and barriers to engagement and benefits received from volunteering in the Moving Feast
2018Anderson C., Maher J., Wright H. · Cogent Social Sciences · Australia
Qualitative study of volunteers at a university-based community garden in Queensland, Australia, identifying enablers, barriers, and the social, educational, and career benefits relevant to sustaining institution-supported community gardens.
CommunityWelfareFood educationHybrid governance tensions fuelling self-reflexivity in Alternative Food Networks: the case of the Brussels GASAP (solidarity purchasing groups for peasant agriculture)
2018Manganelli A., Moulaert F. · Local Environment · Belgium (Brussels)
Applies a Hybrid Governance Approach to the Brussels GASAP solidarity purchasing network, identifying three phases in its development and demonstrating how organizational, resource, and institutional tensions drive self-reflexivity and scaling dynamics in Alternative Food Networks.
CommunityPolicyEconomicsUrban Gardens in Greece: A New Way of Living in the City
2018Haniotou H., Dalipi E. · In: Glatron S., Granchamp L. (eds) The Urban Garden City: Shaping the City with Gardens Through History. Springer, Cham, pp. 245–268 · Greece
The chapter surveys the proliferation of urban community gardens across Greek metropolitan areas, situating their emergence in the context of economic crisis and examining their effects on urban residents' livelihoods and relationship to green space.
CommunityPolicyWelfareEconomicsMapping the Agrodiversity in Bogotá – the Platform Mapeo AgroEcoBogotá
2018Pinilla K., Hoinle B., Mahecha-Groot A., Cepeda J. · International Journal of Design & Nature and Ecodynamics · Colombia (Bogotá)
This paper presents AgroEcoBogotá, an open counter-mapping platform that cartographically documented 47 urban agroecological initiatives in Bogotá to promote visibility of the local agroecology movement and foster solidarity networks between urban and peri-urban food producers.
CommunityBiodiversityFood educationIs urban agriculture urban green space? A comparison of policy arrangements for urban green space and urban agriculture in Santiago de Chile
2018Contesse M., van Vliet B.J.M., Lenhart J. · Land Use Policy · Chile (Santiago)
This study used the policy arrangement approach to compare urban green space planning and urban agriculture policies in Santiago, finding that urban agriculture can complement (but not replace) parks as green space, provided that policy mechanisms clarify stakeholder roles and benefits.
PolicyCommunityBiodiversityIs community management of resources by urban households, feasible? Lessons from community gardens in Gweru, Zimbabwe
2018Mwakiwa E., Maparara T., Tatsvarei S., Muzamhindo N. · Urban Forestry & Urban Greening · Zimbabwe (Gweru)
This study used econometric methods to analyze participation factors in NGO-introduced community gardens in Gweru, Zimbabwe, finding that food-insecure households with strong social capital were most likely to engage in community resource management, while tenure insecurity and water access were key barriers to sustained participation.
CommunityFood educationEconomicsWelfareRole of Urban Agriculture in a Secure, Healthy, and Sustainable Food System
2018· BioScience · Global
Comprehensive analysis of urban agriculture's role in achieving secure, healthy, and sustainable food systems. Examines how citizen-driven agriculture can transform food systems.
Food educationWelfareBiodiversityCommunityCommunity gardening in Stockholm: participation, driving forces and the role of the municipality
2018Madeleine Bonow, Maria Normark · Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems · Sweden
Research on Stockholm community gardens. Analyzes participation mechanisms, driving forces, and municipal support role. Examines implementation mechanisms for sustainability improvement.
CommunityPolicyFood educationThe Role of Urban Agriculture as a Nature-Based Solution: A Review for Developing a Systemic Assessment Framework
2018Martina Artmann, Katharina Sartison · Sustainability · Global
A systemic literature review of 166 academic articles focusing on the Global North examined urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) as a nature-based solution. The review found that UPA contributes to ten key societal challenges of urbanization, including climate change, food security, and public health, by providing social, economic, and environmental co-benefits. The study developed an integrative assessment framework for evaluating UPA implementation and impact efficiency, which should be tested using edible cities as an example.
CommunityBiodiversityClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceSustainability of Urban Agriculture: Vegetable Production on Green Roofs
2018S. Alan Walters, Karen Stoelzle Midden · Agriculture · Global
Vegetable production on green roofs faces multiple challenges, resulting in minimal current activity despite its potential for urban agricultural sustainability. While intensive green roof systems are considered suitable for vegetable production, extensive systems with shallow-rooted crops like lettuce, kale, and radish show the greatest potential for sustained productivity due to building weight restrictions. Deeper-root crops like tomatoes require constant monitoring of fertility and moisture. Green roofs are not presented as a total solution for urban food provision.
Economic viabilityDIYCommunityClimate changeEconomicsUrban green infrastructure: The role of urban agriculture in city resilience
2018Τhomas Panagopoulos, Ilze Jankovska, Maria Boștenaru Dan · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Global
This article examines the role of urban agriculture as green infrastructure in city resilience, noting its ecological, cultural, social, and socio-economic value. It highlights that municipal intervention is crucial for urban agriculture, providing communal infrastructure and defining rules. The article concludes that urban agriculture, supported by municipal intervention, is instrumental for city resilience by serving as a vital source of food and occupation during crises and aiding adaptation to climate change.
CommunityEconomicsWelfareClimate changeHow community gardens may contribute to community resilience following an earthquake
2018Naomi Shimpo, Andreas Wesener, Wendy McWilliam · Urban forestry & urban greening · New Zealand (Christchurch)
This paper examines the community benefits provided by an established community garden in Christchurch, New Zealand, following the 2010/2011 Canterbury Earthquakes. Based on surveys and interviews, findings indicate the garden helped gardeners cope with the post-quake situation by serving as a place to de-stress, share experiences, and gain community support. Garden features encouraging social interaction, such as central meeting and communal working areas, reportedly supported disaster recovery.
CommunityHealthClimate changeHUERTOS URBANOS COMO DESARROLLO SOSTENIBLE
2018Doris Laury Beatriz Dzib Moo, Sandra Patricia Dzib Moo, L.E. Gerardo González García · · Venezuela (Falcón)
This proposal introduces urban gardens for Colonia Lindavista in Tabasco, Mexico, aiming to demonstrate the benefits of urban farming. The project, initiated in January 2017 as a pilot, seeks to raise awareness and secure institutional support. It also aims to show how urban gardens can promote daily consumption of organic produce for health benefits and support family economies, thereby increasing the community's resilience.
CommunityClimate changeEconomicsOrganic cycleUna aproximación a la agricultura urbana en el estado Falcón, Venezuela
2018Ángela Castillo, Sandra Leonela López Álvarez · Dialnet (Universidad de la Rioja) · Venezuela (Falcón)
A study characterized the urban agriculture project in Falcón state, Venezuela, finding it was organized by the CIARA Foundation under the Simón Bolívar National Project. The program is prevalent in 100% of implementing municipalities, with activity ranging from 0.71% to 100%, and 44.44% of the total municipalities showing potential for resuscitation. The Miranda municipality, the state capital, has the most Agricultural Production Units but only 15% activity.
PolicyCommunityUsing the Perceptions of Residents to Determine Key Priorities for Planning a Community Garden
2018Nara Jeong, Seung-Won Han, Kwang Jin Kim, Young-Bin Jung · Journal of East Asian Landscape Studies · Global
This study analyzed local residents' perceptions in a town-development project to determine how community garden spaces should be used for village-rehabilitation. Participants desired community gardens to offer shade, relaxation, children's play areas, green spaces, and conversation spots. The findings suggest that uniform garden designs are inappropriate, recommending 20-25% allocation for community, ornamental, and relaxation spaces, with plant selection prioritizing environmental benefits over aesthetics.
CommunityHealthCounter crimes and food democracy: Suspects and citizens remaking the food system
2018Sue Booth, John Coveney, Dominique Paturel · Policy Press eBooks · Global
This chapter examines the concept of food crime within the global industrialized food system and explores citizen resistance, termed 'counter crimes,' which use food for public statements. Counter crimes encompass both oppositional activities, focusing on the current food system, and constructivist activities, which foster new food systems like farmer's markets and community gardens. These democratically-driven actions form a participatory movement, known as food democracy, enabling citizens to exert control over their food system.
Food sovereignty & justiceCommunityPolicyTHE EVALUATION OF THE URBAN AGRICULTURE AS URBAN ECOSYSTEM SERVICES ABOUT THE MITIGATING EFFECTS AT CLIMATE CHANGES
2018Neslihan Demircan · ATLAS JOURNAL · Global
This workshop evaluated the impact of urbanization and population growth on urban agriculture. Amid challenges to food security and hygienic maintenance due to decreasing urban agricultural lands, global urban allotment models and research on their benefits to local ecosystems and the negative aspects of climate shifts were revealed.
Climate changeUrban–rural linkageFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityLa lombriz Roja Californiana (Eisenia foetida) una Aliado en la Agricultura Urbana Sustentable
2018Lisbeth Gallardo, Yelitza Contreras, J. Saavedra Jaramillo, Raúl Ernesto Alban · Cadernos de Agroecologia · Venezuela
This paper investigated the population growth index of the Red Californian Earthworm (Eisenia foetida) to produce solid and liquid humus from urban organic waste. Conducted at the Artisanal Bioisumes Laboratory at the Bolivarian University of Venezuela, the study compared compost and egg shells with coffee waste as substrates. The egg shell and coffee waste substrate yielded better earthworm population growth and humus production.
CompostOrganic cycleDIYCommunityHuman Practice Centered Design : Service Designing Practice Transition - Community Supported Agriculture as a Case Study
2018Christiana Lackner · KiltHub Repository · Global
This project explored new ways for designers to model human behavior by using social practices, an approach relatively unexplored in design. It extended social practice models into service design to create tools and approaches that support the development of social practices. Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), a system where community members buy shares from local farmers for weekly produce, was used as a case study to test these new approaches.
CSA & TeikeiCommunityEconomics