Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
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Group Randomized Trial of Healthy Eating and Gardening Intervention in Navajo Elementary Schools (Yéego!)
2022Shirley A.A. Beresford, India J. Ornelas, Mark Bauer, Geraldine A Garrity, Sonia Bishop, Brandon Francis, Eileen Rillamas‐Sun, Linda Garcia, Filiberto S A Vecenti, Kevin Lombard · AJPM Focus · United States
The Yéego! Healthy Eating and Gardening Study was a group-randomized controlled trial in 6 elementary schools in the Navajo Nation to evaluate a school-based healthy eating and gardening intervention over one school year. Students in intervention schools showed 0.22 points greater self-efficacy for eating fruits and vegetables compared to comparison schools. While self-efficacy to grow fruits and vegetables increased in intervention schools, it did not increase significantly more than in comparison schools.
Food educationCommunityHealthMerging Different Disciplines to Create a Sustainable School Garden
2022Michael Wells · · United States
This study describes "Project GREEN," a school-wide program led by Michael Wells, principal of Munster High School in Indiana, aimed at creating a sustainable school garden. The program seeks to increase high school students' engagement in STEM disciplines and introduce them to real-world problems.
Food educationCommunityGrowing Character: A Model For Incorporating SEL & Social Justice In Agriculture Education
2022Corona-Munoz, Sergio · DigitalCommons - CalPoly (California State Polytechnic University) · United States
"Growing Character" is a three-lesson series modeling how agricultural spaces, particularly school gardens, can integrate social emotional learning (SEL) and social justice education. The program aims to empower students with skills for healthy emotional management and socially conscious behavior through an educational experience.
Food educationCommunityWelfareDemonstration gardens as informal education strategies in rehabilitation efforts
2022Rachel Bechtold, Catherine W. Shoulders, Jennie Popp, Donald M. Johnson, Lisa S. Wood · Natural sciences education · United States
This study evaluated the process and efficacy of installing a demonstration plot along a multiuse trail in Southeast Kansas to educate the community on rehabilitative plots. The greatest perceived challenges for this case study were the allotment of time and money for initial costs of the demonstration plot and addressing methodology for plant blindness in viewers.
CommunityBiodiversityPollinatorsFood educationPROGRAMA PLANTA RORAIMA: PRODUÇÃO DE ALIMENTOS E SUSTENTABILIDADE NO MEIO URBANO
2022Antônio Carlos Ribeiro Araújo Júnior, Roberto Xavier da Costa, Mirian Pereira dos Reis Oliveira · LA Referencia (Red Federada de Repositorios Institucionales de Publicaciones Científicas) · Brazil
The "Programa Planta Roraima" project, initiated by the civil society organization Movimento ID, proposes establishing a Reference Center for Food and Nutritional Security in the Cidadão Housing Complex. This center will create an urban community garden to promote sustainable integration among immigrants, refugees, and socially/economically vulnerable nationals. The project aims to understand access to knowledge for food production, transformation, distribution, and consumption in small urban spaces, and to analyze access to income-generating technologies for vulnerable populations. Based on an analysis of the "PROJETO PLANTA RORAIMA: Minha Horta Comunitária Cidadã" developed by SETRABES, the project is relevant as it provides basic technical training in food production, fostering autonomy and integrating vulnerable populations as productive citizens, and demonstrates that idle urban spaces can be valuable for collective uses like community gardens.
CommunityFood educationWelfareFood sovereignty & justicePerceptions of nutrition education classes offered in conjunction with a community-supported agriculture intervention among low-income families
2022R.A. Seguin, A.S. Ammerman, W. Wang, I. Lu, J. Kolodinsky, J. Garner, L.C. Volpe, E.H. Belarmino, L. Gonsalves, S.B. Jilcott Pitts, M. Sitaker, K.L. Hanson · UNC Libraries · United States
This qualitative study examined the experiences of 96 low-income participants in 28 focus groups across rural and micropolitan communities in New York, North Carolina, Vermont, and Washington (USA) regarding nutrition education classes complementing a cost-offset community-supported agriculture (CSA) program. Participants reported improved nutrition knowledge, food preservation skills, and cooking behaviors, and a promoted sense of community. However, other obligations and class logistics were barriers to attendance, with recommendations for flexible scheduling and better integration of CSA produce into lessons.
CSA & TeikeiFood educationHealthWelfareMindfulness and Meditation: Stress Reduction, Yoga, School Gardens, Nature
2022Linda Goldman · · United States (Baltimore)
This chapter presents how young people can reduce stress and worry by practicing mindfulness and meditation. The Holistic Life Foundation (HLF), a non-profit organization in Baltimore, Maryland, is highlighted as a pioneering model for incorporating meditation, mindfulness, yoga, school gardens, and nature into school systems' daily routines and curricula. Students plant in school gardens, clean outdoor environments, and take trips to visit nature, enhancing the mindfulness approach.
Food educationHealthCommunityCome Grow With Us: An Action Plan for Morrow Community Garden
2022T. E. H. Williams · Digital Archive @ GSU · United States
The Morrow Community Garden, established in 2012, expanded from 14 to 32 beds, enabling residents to grow produce and donate to a local clinic. Facing unstable membership, limited space, and reliance on membership dues, the garden requires an action plan to achieve its goals. An action plan was created to help stabilize membership, expand the garden, educate residents, and create a youth engagement program.
CommunityFood educationHealthWelfareCobb County Public Library Garden
2022Vidhya Jagannathan · Georgia Library Quarterly · United States
The Cobb County Public Library Garden is a community garden that expands library services and promotes patron collaboration. This garden was envisioned for teaching, demonstrating, donating, and involving families in growing food and experiencing the satisfaction of harvesting produce. Library gardens serve as a natural setting for promoting nutritional literacy and hands-on environmental learning, reflecting the Cobb County Public Library's mission.
CommunityFood educationDIYCRIAÇÃO DE GALINHAS EM ÁREAS URBANAS: DEBATENDO OS CAMINHOS E DESAFIOS PARA SUA LEGALIZAÇÃO
2022Raquel Yurie Hioki, Moacir Roberto Darolt · Archives of Veterinary Science · Brazil (Curitiba)
This study, conducted in Curitiba, Brazil, and its metropolitan area, aimed to discuss the risks and benefits of legalizing urban poultry farming. Through interviews with key informants, challenges were identified across sanitary, legislative, and commercial areas, urban chicken breeders, and bird management. The main challenges cited were sanitary and environmental risks, mistreatment, irregular slaughter, and neighborhood disturbances, which could be addressed through activity regulation, registration of farms, technical monitoring, and implementation of pilot projects.
Governance failureOrganic cycleFood educationFood sovereignty & justicePolicyCommunitySchool Garden Prevalence Before and After the Implementation of the Healthy Hunger‐Free Kids Act
2022Naomi Reyes, Montserrat Ganderats‐Fuentes, Francesco Acciai, Jessica Eliason, Punam Ohri‐Vachaspati · Journal of School Health · United States (New Jersey)
This study examined school garden prevalence in 148 K-12 schools across four low-income New Jersey cities between 2010-2011 and 2017-2018, before and after the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act (HHFKA) of 2010. Garden prevalence increased from 19% in 2010-2011 to 32% in 2013-2014, but this increase was not sustained over time. Furthermore, schools with a majority Hispanic student enrollment had approximately half the odds of having a garden compared to schools with a majority Black student enrollment.
Equity & displacementFood educationPolicyHealthCommunityEconomicsProcesso de criação de uma horta comunitária orgânica em espaço subutilizado de uma creche: relato de experiência do projeto Calanguinho / Process of creation of organic community garden in underutilized space of a nursery: experience in partnership with the Calanguinho project
2022Leila Graziele de Almeida Brito, Marilete Calegari Cardoso, Mainara Mizzi Rocha Frota, Leandro Nascimento Bertoldi · Brazilian Journal of Animal and Environmental Research · Brazil
This paper reports on the experience of establishing an organic community garden at the Casinha do Sol Children's Living Center, UESB, Brazil, with the support of the Calanguinho project. Using a collaborative work methodology, the project fostered partnerships between the nursery, families, and the university. This initiative facilitated the development of active practices and reflection, promoting ecological and sustainable awareness among the nursery, families, and the academic community.
CommunityFood educationOrganic cycleImpact of a Farm-to-School Nutrition and Gardening Intervention for Native American Families from the FRESH Study: A Randomized Wait-List Controlled Trial
2022Tori Taniguchi, Alyson Haslam, Wenjie Sun, Margaret Sisk, Jann Hayman, Valarie Blue Bird Jernigan · Nutrients · United States
The six-month FRESH study in the United States evaluated the impact of a farm-to-school nutrition and gardening intervention for Native American families. It involved 193 children and 170 adults from Osage Nation Early Childhood and Education programs, finding that intervention children significantly increased vegetable intake for squash and beans, and showed increased willingness to try beans.
Food educationHealthCommunityEffects of a School-Based Garden Program on Academic Performance: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial
2022Jaimie N. Davis, Katie Nikah, Matthew J. Landry, Sarvenaz Vandyousefi, Reem Ghaddar, Matthew Jeans, Michele Hockett Cooper, Bonnie Martin, Lyndsey Waugh, Shreela V. Sharma, Alexandra E. van den Berg · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · United States (Austin)
A cluster randomized controlled trial conducted in Austin, TX, United States, from 2016 to 2019, with primarily low-income, Hispanic children, examined the effects of the school-based gardening, nutrition, and cooking program 'TX Sprouts' on academic performance. Sixteen elementary schools were randomly assigned to either the intervention (8 schools) or control (8 schools) group, with the intervention consisting of 18 one-hour lessons in an outdoor teaching garden throughout the academic year. Results showed that schools receiving the intervention had a 6.5-percentage-point increase in fourth-grade reading State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) scores compared with control schools (P = .047). However, there were no significant differences in reading scores for fifth-grade students or math scores for either fourth- or fifth-grade students between groups.
Food educationHealthCommunityImplementing a community garden in a socially vulnerable urban area of Brazil
2022Michele Hartmann Feyh · Revista Verde de Agroecologia e Desenvolvimento Sustentável · Brazil
A community garden was implemented in Vila Buritis II, Planaltina, Brasília, Federal District, Brazil, a socially vulnerable urban area with low purchasing power. The garden transformed an idle area into a productive space, planting 27 edible species, and 30 to 40 residents regularly visit to collect food. However, the maintenance and increase of garden productivity still require technical assistance and resources.
CommunityFood educationWelfareHealthFull Issue
2022Contingent Horizons · Contingent Horizons The York University Student Journal of Anthropology · Canada (Winnipeg)
This paper uses the Rainbow Community Garden in Winnipeg as a case study to discuss the benefits and challenges of community gardening for new immigrant and refugee families. Through a literature review and interviews with gardeners, the study emphasizes the role of food and community gardens in facilitating cross-cultural interactions, providing culturally appropriate food, and expressing cultural identity. The main conclusion is that for new immigrant and refugee participation, a garden is not only physical soil but also an important place for practicing culture and engaging in meaningful cross-cultural interaction beneficial for adjusting to a new life in Canada.
Equity & displacementCommunityWelfareFood sovereignty & justiceFood educationImpact of a School-Based Gardening, Cooking, Nutrition Intervention on Diet Intake and Quality: The TX Sprouts Randomized Controlled Trial
2021Landry M., van den Berg A., Hoelscher D., Davis J. · Nutrients, 13(9):3081 (MDPI) · United States
A randomized controlled trial across 16 mostly Hispanic, low-income elementary schools in Texas evaluating the TX Sprouts intervention, which embedded gardening, cooking and nutrition lessons. Children in intervention schools significantly increased vegetable intake, showing that garden-centered food education can improve children's dietary quality.
Food educationHealthCommunitySchool-based gardening, cooking and nutrition intervention increased vegetable intake but did not reduce BMI: Texas sprouts - a cluster randomized controlled trial
2021Davis J. N., Pérez A., Asigbee F. M., Landry M. J., Vandyousefi S., Ghaddar R., Hoover A., Jeans M., Nikah K., Fischer B., Pont S. J., Richards D., Hoelscher D. M., Van Den Berg A. E. · International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity 18:18 · United States
Cluster RCT in 16 elementary schools. A one-year gardening, cooking and nutrition program significantly increased children's vegetable intake but did not reduce BMI or other obesity outcomes.
HealthFood educationSmall-scale urban agriculture: Drivers of growing produce at home and in community gardens in Detroit
2021Carola Grebitus · PLOS ONE · United States (Detroit)
Using an online survey of 420 residents in Detroit, Michigan, this study analyzed behavioral and socio-demographic drivers of growing produce at home and in community gardens. It found that trust, attitude, and knowledge affect home growing, while involvement and personality drive community gardening; household size affects home growing, and gender, age, and income affect community gardening. The findings offer implications for fostering small-scale urban agriculture through city planning and nutrition education.
CommunityDIYFood educationUrban Agriculture Education and Youth Civic Engagement in the U.S.: A Scoping Review
2021· Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems · USA
A scoping review of how urban agriculture education programs foster youth civic engagement, leadership, and understanding of social justice in the United States.
Food educationCommunityPolicyOrganization of a Community Garden Program through Utah State University Food $ense and Master Gardener Extension Programs for Low-Income Families in Logan, Utah
2021Jackie Hendrickson · Digital Commons - USU (Utah State University) · United States (Utah)
Utah State University's Food $ense and Master Gardener programs partnered to create the "Create Farm Fresh Gardens" community gardening program, targeting low-income families in Cache Valley, Utah. Piloted during the 2018 growing season, the program aimed to improve food security by increasing access to fresh vegetables and enhancing participants' self-efficacy in gardening and nutrition. Participants provided supportive feedback, and the program was slated for statewide implementation in Utah during the 2019 growing season.
CommunityFood educationWelfareHealthErvaterapia: Horta comunitária com ervas medicinais.
2021Tatiane Sueli Coutinho, Adrian José Ramos, Eric Schwamberger, Kassia Kathellyn Barboza, Eduarda Nunes, Roberta Hoepers Mascarenhas, Vinícius Verwiebe, Gabriela Santos Patriarca, Rossie Katherine dos Santos, Alicia Weber, Giovana Schwamberger, Jamily Assini, Samuel Carvalho de Matos-Filho, Isadora Bombassaro, Vitor Gomes Pinheiro · Extensão em Foco · Brazil
The Ervaterapia extension program, established in 2018 in Brusque, Brazil, aimed to create medicinal herb gardens and integrate students with the community. Activities included distributing approximately 300 seedlings, lectures, workshops, and creating school gardens, alongside a "Super Ervas" comic book. The project observed increased community awareness of medicinal herbs, leading to greater demand for natural products to alleviate symptoms and reduced consumption of allopathic medicines, as well as children's understanding of plant care.
CommunityFood educationHealthEvaluation of the effect of a school garden as an educational didactic tool in vegetable and fruit consumption in teenagers
2021Diana Gabriela Figueroa-Piña, Jorge Luis Chávez‐Servín, Karina de la Torre‐Carbot, María del Carmen Caamaño, Gabriela Lucas-Deecke, Patricia Roitman Genoud, Laura Regina Ojeda-Navarro · Nutrition Research and Practice · Mexico (Queretaro)
A 3-arm controlled comparative impact study was conducted with 126 teenagers aged 12-18 at a private middle/high school in Queretaro, Mexico, to evaluate the effect of an educational intervention with a school garden (FE+SG) versus food education only (FE) and a control group (CG) on vegetable and fruit consumption. Both the FE+SG and FE groups significantly increased the frequency and daily intake of vegetables and fruits compared to the CG. The FE+SG group showed greater understanding, reflection, analysis of information, and willingness to include these in their daily diet. It was concluded that FE accompanied by a school garden is more effective than education alone or control in promoting vegetable and fruit consumption in middle-upper income teenagers.
Food educationHealthEducation From a Gardener’s Perspective
2021Stephanie C. Boddie · Social Work & Christianity · United States
In Fall 2018, a social work professor in the United States designed a course for graduate students across social work, education, and seminary schools, based on permaculture design principles. Students addressed community challenges like food insecurity and K-12 student disengagement by supporting a local school garden. This pedagogy aimed to foster holistic and relevant learning experiences.
Food educationCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceFood pedagogy for transformative social change
2021Chelsea Klinke, Gertrude Korkor Samar · Canadian Food Studies / La Revue canadienne des études sur l alimentation · Canada (Calgary)
This paper argues for an academic paradigm shift in food studies to bridge the gap between scholarship and community-based transformative engagement, supporting social justice frameworks. Through a case study of urban farming in Calgary, it explores place-based learning and participatory approaches that integrate Indigenous ways of knowing. The paper provides strategies for supporting local food systems through activist scholarship and capacity building in urban farming.
Food educationFood sovereignty & justiceCommunity