Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
2012 results(58 / 81)
STUDENT LEARNING, CHILDHOOD & VOICES | RESEARCH ARTICLE Community garden: A bridging program between formal and informal learning
2016Ranjan Datta, Rebecca English · · Global
This auto-ethnographic study explores the role of community garden activities in bridging formal and informal learning for urban children's science and environmental education. Based on five years of community garden activities, the author found that these practices promote relational learning methods and adhere to forms of agency such as embracing diversity, sharing power, and trust building. The study offers insights for environmental educators aiming to incorporate ethnic diversity and engage children in research leading to community action.
CommunityFood educationFood sovereignty & justiceHealthImpact of school-based vegetable garden and physical activity coordinated health interventions on weight status and weight-related behaviors of ethnically diverse, low-income students: Study design and baseline data of the Texas, Grow! Eat! Go! (TGEG) cluster-randomized controlled trial
2016Anita Evans, Nalini Ranjit, Deanna M. Hoelscher, Christine Jovanovic, Michael López, Andrew M. McIntosh, Marcia G. Ory, Lisa Whittlesey, Lisako McKyer, A. Kirk, Caitlin A. Smith, Catherine Walton, Natalia I. Heredia, Judith L. Warren · BMC Public Health · United States (Texas)
The Texas Grow! Eat! Go! (TGEG) study is a five-year factorial group randomized controlled trial involving 28 schools, assessing the impact of gardening, nutrition, and physical activity interventions on low-income elementary students. Baseline data from 1369 students and 1206 parents, primarily Hispanic and African American, showed that students did not meet national guidelines for vegetable consumption or physical activity. At baseline, no statistical differences were observed among the four treatment groups.
Food educationHealthWelfareAgricultura urbana a "pequeña" escala
2016Lorena Meneses Medina · Universitas Científica · Colombia
An urban children's garden was created between July and December 2015 at the Fundación Hogar el Divino Niño (FHDN) in Colombia, which feeds approximately 100 vulnerable children daily. Led by Nelson Enrique Casas Leal, the project aimed to build an organic farm with the support of children and youth interested in urban agriculture production practices. The garden cultivated tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, cilantro, squash, oregano, thyme, and medicinal plants, and became a life and survival option for the participating children and their families.
Food educationCommunityWelfareOrganic cycleA study of experience sharing in community engagement
2016Haryani Haron, Natrah Abdullah · · Malaysia
This paper examines the real practices of experience sharing for community engagement within community gardening in Malaysia. A comparative study of two community types found that experience sharing helps communities become engaged. Furthermore, communities engaged more effectively with the advancement of information technology.
CommunityFood education" But Our Hands Are Tied ": Assessing School Gardening Efforts at Title I Elementary Schools in Pinellas County, Florida
2016Alexandra Grace Lancey · · United States (Florida)
This ethnographic study in Pinellas County, Florida, investigated school gardening efforts at Title I elementary schools, focusing on an organization that installs gardens in "failing" schools. The research found that strict public school standards and neoliberal education reform paradoxically prevent teachers and administrators from fully utilizing school gardens for nutrition education. This limits their effectiveness in discussing nutrition, healthy eating, and local food, as the focus shifts to state-regulated education standards, revealing significant infrastructural challenges.
Governance failureFood educationHealthPolicyCommunityPublic Space Design. Three Couples and a Trio
2016Annalisa Metta · Iris (Roma Tre University) · Global
This publication compiles insights from 50 architects, landscape architects, designers, and environmental leaders on sustainability, sustainable design, urbanism, and architecture. Through articles, interviews, and project presentations, they promote good practices and share visions on projects like gardens and community gardens from a sustainability perspective. The work advocates for a complementary convergence of bottom-up practices and traditional design, suggesting design should involve negotiation with places, elements, and people.
CommunityPolicyFood educationCOMMUNITY GARDENS FOR SPECIAL NEEDS AND NURSING HOME COMMUNITIES, APARTICIPATORY ACTION RESEARCH STUDY
2016Mary Ellen Mitchell-Rosen · NSUWorks (Nova Southeastern University) · United States
This participatory action research study in Broward County, Florida, investigated the experiences of geriatric populations and individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities participating in a garden project with health professions students. The project aimed to address obesity, autism, mental health, and elderly services by providing healthy nutrition interventions and group garden activities. Data collection via focus group interviews is complete, and analysis is ongoing, but stakeholders have reported positive changes in nutritional choices and improved mental status among clients.
CommunityHealthWelfareElderlyFood educationAn Ethnographic Examination of Urban Cultivation Practices in Seoul
2016Jae-Youl Lee · 서울도시연구 · South Korea (Seoul)
This ethnographic study examined urban agriculture practices at Nodeul Urban Agriculture Park in Seoul from March to September 2014, using participant observation and in-depth interviews. The research found that cultivation practices generate a virtuous cycle of affective agricultural production and emotional accomplishments, which are associated with practical achievements and socially conscious consumption. Emerging ethics, including rural concerns, also interact with this production-emotion cycle.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justiceEconomicsFood educationFood and Fuel Administration
2016David J. Bettez · · United States (Kentucky)
During World War I, President Woodrow Wilson appointed Herbert Hoover as head of the US Food Administration to promote food conservation and increase production. In Kentucky, Fred Sackett served as federal food administrator, implementing programs like “meatless” and “wheatless” days, encouraging housewives to use substitutes and children to grow school gardens. The federal government also established a Fuel Administration, headed in Kentucky by Wiley Bryan, who encouraged fuel conservation and increased production, and attempted to ensure equitable coal distribution during the 1917-1918 winter shortage.
Food educationCommunityPolicyIntegración de huertos-jardín en espacios públicos: caso de estudio: Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca
2016Aurora Minna Poó Rubio, Aurora Poó Rubio, Esmeralda Soto Carrasquel · Repositorio Institucional Zaloamati (Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana) · Mexico
This study examines the integration of garden-orchards into public spaces in Oaxaca de Juarez, Oaxaca, from the perspective of landscape as the insertion of aesthetic and utilitarian green areas in growing and changing cities. It argues that sustainable green areas like urban gardens enhance social and spatial integration, improving socio-economic aspects. The research aims to understand how implementing garden-orchards in public spaces generates or rehabilitates urban environments and their potential as green infrastructure.
CommunityFood educationEconomicsLong-Term Outcomes of an Urban Farming Internship Program
2016Nancy F. Sonti, Lindsay K. Campbell, Michelle Johnson, Sarita Daftary-Steel · Journal of Experiential Education · United States (New York City)
Long-term impacts of an urban farming youth internship were evaluated in Brooklyn, New York. Alumni surveyed 1 to 9 years after program completion were enrolled in college or graduate school at higher rates than their peers and reported connections to the environment and healthy eating. Participants reported learning job skills through the internship, including farming practices, time and money management, teamwork, and public speaking.
Food educationCommunityHealthWelfareCampUS: co-designing spaces for urban agriculture with local communities
2016Davide Fassi, Laura Galluzzo, Annalinda De Rosa · Virtual Community of Pathological Anatomy (University of Castilla La Mancha) · Italy (Milan)
This paper discusses social innovation-based experiments developed within the "campUS" research project at Politecnico di Milano. Focusing on urban agriculture, it examined the design strategy, methodologies, and social innovation impact of two experiments conducted in a nursery school and a middle school in Milan. These experiments are positioned as a step towards infrastructuring, a more open-ended long-term process where diverse stakeholders can innovate together.
CommunityFood educationIntroduction
2016Tina Marie Waliczek, Jayne M. Zajicek · · United States
This paper outlines urbanization, theories explaining nature's influence on humans, the definition of traditional and urban horticulture, human issues in horticulture, benefits of plants to urban communities, and urban horticulture programs.
CommunityHealthFood educationExamining Feasibility of Mentoring Families at a Farmers' Market and Community Garden
2016Daniel R. George, Monica Manglani, Kaitlin Minnehan, Alexander Chacon, Alexandra I. Gundersen, Cheryl Dellasega, Jennifer L. Kraschnewski · American Journal of Health Education · United States
A program at Penn State Medical Center's farmers' market and community garden integrated medical student mentors with nutritional education for four families with overweight/obese children. Two families completed all visits, spending an average of 32 minutes per visit, with expenditures of $40.68, and reporting one weekly produce item unused. The program was found feasible and beneficial for participating families, students, and vendors.
Food educationHealthCommunityFood Safety and School Garden Pilot Program for Elementary School Students
2016Valerie Calberry, Ingrid E. Lofgren, Lori F. Pivarnik · Journal of Media Literacy Education · Global
The Food Safety and School Garden Program (FSSGP) developed a curriculum integrating food safety into school garden activities for elementary students. A two-lesson intervention with 194 students in grades 1-5 showed an increase in correct responses on a 10-question test from 5.6 to 8.1 (P < .001). Most students rated activities as satisfactory or better and communicated learned topics to their parents.
Food educationHealthThe Role of the School Garden, and its Importance in the school Building - A field study in the social school service
2016هالة فالح احمد · DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) · Iraq
A field study in Iraq investigated the role and importance of school gardens within educational institutions. The research found that school gardens eliminate desertification, moderate weather, and bring happiness to students and teachers, while their neglect obstructs the teaching process. The study recommends organizing teacher courses on school environment and health, and conducting periodic cleaning and repair campaigns for school gardens and buildings.
Food educationCommunityClimate changeBiodiversityA novel dietary improvement strategy: examining the potential impact of community-supported agriculture membership
2016Angie Vasquez, Nancy E. Sherwood, Nicole Larson, Mary Story · Public Health Nutrition · United States
This quasi-experimental study in Minnesota investigated employer-based Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) as a health promotion intervention, involving 324 CSA participants and a matched control group. Participants reported increased vegetables in the household, more frequent family meals, and decreased eating out, along with increased produce consumption. However, health assessment data showed no significant changes in dietary intake, health status, or BMI.
CSA & TeikeiHealthFood educationAGRICULTURA URBANA COMO ESTRATÉGIA DE PROMOÇÃO DA ALIMENTAÇÃO ADEQUADA E SAUDÁVEL
2016Laisa Stefani da Silva Neves, Juliana Pereira Casemiro, Thalita Magdalena dos Santos, Cláudia Valéria Cardim da Silva · 12º Congresso Internacional da Rede Unida · Brazil (Rio de Janeiro)
This qualitative study, conducted with Community Health Agents and a Residents' Association in a Rio de Janeiro metropolitan municipality, presents an experience of implementing a community garden as an urban agriculture strategy for promoting adequate and healthy food (PAAS). The area lacked markets for fruits and vegetables, making healthy eating difficult. Through home visits and discussions, the revitalization of a community garden was identified, enabling poor urban families to produce for self-consumption, strengthen community organization, and generate income.
CommunityHealthFood educationWelfareCommunity: Education and Social Integration
2016Gundula Proksch · · Global
This chapter investigates various approaches to community involvement in urban agriculture, demonstrating how communities and interest groups can be instrumental in creating and operating urban agricultural projects. Urban agriculture has the potential to reestablish lost connections between food production and consumption and restore social, economic, and cultural ties. Community-initiated urban agricultural programs are essential in reducing the divide between producers and consumers.
CommunityFood educationPolicyEconomicsAgricultura urbana conquistando o mercado institucional da alimentação escolar em Belo Horizonte/MG/BR:
2016Ivana Cristina Lovo, Alain Santandreu, José Divino Lopes Filho · Raízes Revista de Ciências Sociais e Econômicas · Brazil (Belo Horizonte)
In Belo Horizonte, the "Productive Garden" project, launched in 2008, promoted urban agriculture and food security. From 2009 to 2011, it integrated into the "From Seed to Table" program, encouraging urban farmers to sell vegetables to the institutional school meal market. Based on action research, the project enhanced farmers' technical and organizational capacity, resulting in public schools procuring vegetables from "Productive Garden," an experience that remains active. This experience demonstrated that urban agriculture is economically viable and contributes to food security.
Food educationEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceCommunityAgricultura urbana y resiliencia
2016Claudia Patricia Osorio Doncel · INGENIO · Colombia (Palmira)
At the "Fundacion Hogar Divino Nino" in Palmira, Colombia, educational and practical workshops are provided for underprivileged youth. A boy named 'El Doc de la granja', who attended the foundation, enjoyed planting and cultivating various green species, including beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, chard, cilantro, bell peppers, and some medicinal and aromatic plants. These crops were used to feed all the children at the foundation.
Food educationWelfareCommunityFood sovereignty & justice[발표] 통합교과 기반 ‘학교 교육형’ 도시농업이 초등학생의 감성지수에 미치는 영향
2016곽혜란, 김명길 · 한국실과교육학회 학술대회논문집 · South Korea
This study developed an 18-session school-based urban agriculture program for first-grade elementary school students, integrated with their curriculum, and investigated its impact on students' emotional intelligence. After applying the program, the experimental group showed a statistically significant increase in emotional intelligence scores compared to pre-tests, with positive effects observed across all five sub-domains. These findings suggest that urban agriculture education based on integrated subjects has a positive effect on improving elementary school students' emotional intelligence.
Food educationHealthSCHOOL GARDENS IN THE CITY
2016Rashawn Ray, Dana R. Fisher, Carley Fisher-Maltese · Du Bois Review Social Science Research on Race · United States (Washington, DC)
This study analyzed quantitative data on fifth graders' math, reading, and science standardized test scores in Washington, D.C., to investigate how school gardens help close the achievement gap. It compared academic performance between students in traditional schools and garden-based learning schools, and examined whether the presence of a school garden reduces race and social class disparities in academic achievement. Findings showed that the presence of a school garden is associated with higher test scores in reading and science, and this association persisted even when controlling for students' race and class composition.
Food educationCommunityWelfareColumbus Community Gardens
2016Amanda Rees, Bert Melix, Chuck Lawson, Cory Hart · CSU ePress (Columbus State University) · United States (Columbus, Georgia)
During the 2016-2017 academic year, a professor and student from Columbus State University collected data from community garden sites in Columbus/Phenix City. This project involved the creation of a GIS digital map, which was then used to develop a quad-fold map for distribution at Georgia Organics events. Georgia Organics provided a mini-grant for the project.
CommunityPolicyFood educationAgricultural Roads in Vancouver
2016Laura Castrejon Violante · Open Collections · Canada (Vancouver)
This paper proposes the concept of an "agricultural road" in Vancouver, reshaping a low-transit street into a multipurpose space for urban agriculture. Defined as a pedestrian-oriented area, it would offer plots for growing food while also achieving sustainable urban development outcomes like social inclusion, recreational space, and greening the urban landscape. The agricultural road aims to reconnect urban life with food by providing a space for growing edible plants and fostering discussion and education.
CommunityFood educationPolicyClimate change