Research & reports

H. C. Agada, E. A. Obienusi, Emma E. Ezenwaji · Journal of environment and earth science · Nigeria

This study evaluated urban forestry and housing patterns in Awka metropolis, Anambra State, Nigeria, over a ten-year period (2001-2010). Analysis of land use data using linear regression and correlation coefficients confirmed a significant correlation between housing patterns (urbanization) and the distribution of trees (forestry). The least square regression results indicated that the rate of forest displacement is a direct consequence of increasing structural development in the study area.

Yu Wang · · China (Xi'an City)

This study analyzed the dynamic changes in urban agricultural landscape (arable lands and garden plots) due to urbanization in Chang'an District, Xi'an City, China, using remote sensing, GIS, and FRAG-STAT techniques. Compared to 1999, arable land area decreased and aggregation declined by 2.45% in 2011, while garden plot area increased and aggregation rose by 10.44%. Improved urbanization levels decreased arable land area and increased fragmentation, but correlations with garden plot landscape indexes were insignificant.

Tian Lib · Chinese Journal of Tropical Agriculture · China (Hainan)

This paper summarized the status of protected horticulture in Hainan, China, identifying major problems such as a deficiency of special varieties, unsuitable introduced facility types, lack of a non-nuisance production system, and insufficient capacity for resisting natural disasters and environmental control. To achieve sustainable development, the local government needs to strengthen funding and policy support, enhance farmers' awareness of pollution-free production, and improve management techniques.

Wenyan Yang, Zhongxue Zhou · PubMed · China (Xi'an)

This study estimated the water and soil conservation service value of agricultural ecosystems in Xi'an metropolitan, China, from 2000 to 2011, using remote sensing and GIS methods. The total value increased significantly over the period, with cultivated land, forest, and grassland providing higher values than other land uses. The value decreased from south to north and showed a negative correlation with urbanization level, indicating lower values in more urbanized areas.

Yaw Kofi, Abena Adwoa, Kwasi Anane · Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research) · Ghana

Urban drainage systems in coastal Ghana are vulnerable to climate-induced flooding due to rising sea levels and increased rainfall intensity. Hydrological models indicated a need for increased stormwater infiltration capacity in ATMA, especially along the coastal belt where sea levels could rise by up to 50 cm. Designing drainage systems with enhanced permeability and elevated flood walls is recommended to ensure resilience against projected climate change risks over the next three decades.

Guang Zhao · Applied Mechanics and Materials · Global

This paper presents a concept for building-integrated decentralized technologies for wastewater and organic waste treatment with energy and nutrient recovery, termed a "sustainable implant," for deep green housing districts. It explores the potentials of integrating solutions for energy and sanitation flows near their origin, linking sanitation to energy and food production. The system layout and dimensioning are explained, noting scale limitations and its application in a unique intentional community, with no other similar urban district-scale projects found worldwide.

Meng Fan-ru · Jieshui guan'gai · China (Tianjin)

This paper investigates the pre-control mechanism for water-saving irrigation costs in coastal urban agriculture in Tianjin, China, from an engineering design innovation perspective. It analyzes the operational and maintenance cost trends of water-saving facilities and the complexity of water-saving irrigation requirements. The study identifies engineering design innovation as key to cost pre-control and discusses obstacle factors, governance approaches, and the impact of investment and financing models on both fund shortages and cost pre-control.

Chen Shan-sha · Ganhanqu dili · China (Xi'an)

This paper evaluated the water conservation service of Xi'an urban agriculture in 2011, using socioeconomic and geographical data. The total water conserved by urban agriculture was 16.6×10^8m^3, with a monetary value of 1.05×10^8 yuan. Water conservation capacity varied by district, with cropland providing a large proportion of the total value and orchards having the largest per unit area value. The spatial pattern of urban agriculture's water conservation was opposite to that of the urban district, suggesting that urbanization could negatively impact urban agriculture development.

Heidi Thomas · Maryland Shared Open Access Repository (USMAI Consortium) · Global

This paper discusses how urban agriculture can repair environmental and sociocultural divisions within urban communities, which often manifest as racial and class barriers. It posits that the convergence of environment and foodways through urban agriculture fosters a culturally democratic co-development process. This process, involving the growing and sharing of food, can sustain existing cultural communities and inspire new forms of community aligned with sustainability.

Andrew Salman · TopSCHOLAR (Western Kentucky University) · United States (Bowling Green)

This research documented the transformation of a house in Bowling Green, KY, into a model sustainability home by the WKU Office of Sustainability as a case study. Using LEED Core Concepts, the study assessed the benefits of weatherization, solar energy array installation, and the conversion of the backyard into an edible landscape and community garden to mitigate stormwater flooding. Procedural and institutional barriers to sustainability initiatives were analyzed, and exceptional results, such as the collaborative community gardening organization Project Grow, were described as a model for other institutions.

Zhang Yu-me · Jingji wenti · China (Beijing)

This study analyzed the decoupling relationship between urban agriculture development and carbon emissions in Beijing, China, using the Tapio elastic method. Findings indicate that Beijing maintained agricultural self-sufficiency while carbon emissions decreased annually. The relationship between agricultural economic growth and carbon emissions shifted from recession decoupling to strong decoupling. Livestock, particularly cattle, swine, and poultry, were major carbon sources, suggesting the need for scientific feeding and improved feed conversion rates for sustainable urban agriculture.

Dominique Hes, Chrisna du Plessis · · Global

A discussion piece on regenerative sustainability organized around the concepts of biomimicry and permaculture. It presents Janine Benyus's definition of biomimicry as "the conscious emulation of life's genius" and describes permaculture, jointly developed in the 1970s by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren as a practical and ethical response to declining energy and resource availability. It links permaculture to what Philip Ackerman-Leist calls "rebuilding the food shed" — building multi-scale, resilient food systems — and to cross-scale relationships from soil-organism communities up to larger communities of fauna and flora, from kitchen gardens to urban food forests. It also describes Singapore's ABC Waters Programme as encouraging green roofs, vertical gardens and rain gardens to improve water filtration and harvesting.

Milica Koscica · Journal of international affairs · Global

This article traces the history of urban agriculture and analyzes current practices and policies to argue for its role in addressing food insecurity in developing cities, noting that more than half the world's population is urbanized and that global food demand is projected to rise 70-100% as urban population reaches a projected 70% by 2050; it frames urban agriculture as a means to expand access to land and water for food production through innovative growing techniques, without presenting new primary empirical data.

Jamal Mohammadi, Soleimani Shiri Mortez · International Journal of Agriculture and Forestry · Iran

A study addressing how urbanization and rising living standards bring both destructive environmental impacts and pressure on resources needed for urban life—food, energy, materials—and examines global experiences with urban agriculture to propose strategies for developing urban agriculture in Iran that would address the growing urban population and its resulting problems while achieving sustainable development.

Travis P. Marcotte · Journal of Agricultural & Food Information · United States

An article based on a speech by Travis Marcotte, Executive Director of the Intervale Center in Vermont, USA, recounts the Center's innovation and leadership over more than 25 years, spanning agricultural land reclamation, Community Supported Agriculture, riparian restoration, and large-scale composting through to farm incubation, food hubs, and community celebrations of local food. It also describes the Center's response to climate change, environmental healing, and efforts to connect people with good food and the benefits of a healthier food system.

Vide Adedayo, Mayowa Fasona, Taiwo Kuti · Journal of Geography and Geology · Nigeria

Using rainfall and temperature data from 1971 to 2006 alongside pesticide sales data from selected vendors and farmers, this study analyzed the relationship between climate elements, pest activity and pesticide usage in urban farming communities in Lagos, Nigeria. Rainfall was found to have increased by about 42 mm per year per decade and temperature by about 0.27°C per year per decade over the period. Maximum recorded temperatures were 32.6°C in February and 28.2°C in August. Pest activity was widespread during the dry season when temperatures were high, stimulating increased pest attacks on crops and increased pesticide use. Pesticide usage was estimated at roughly 30,000 liters in February and 15,000 liters in August.

Timm Bliss, IM Dickinson · Leeds Beckett Repository (Leeds Beckett University) · United Kingdom

This is a descriptive account, not an empirical study, of the Leeds Edible Schools Sustainability Network, an unconstituted, informal group of organizations and academics based in the Leeds district in the UK. It is described as sharing values around wellbeing and sustainability and supporting educational establishments in growing and consuming food on school premises, promoting resilient and healthy practices including outdoor work, and teaching sustainability.

Annika Carlsson‐Kanyama, Eva-Lotta Thunqvist, Tore J Larsson · KTH Publication Database DiVA (KTH Royal Institute of Technology) · Sweden

A report from a project called "The sustainable greenhouse as a complement to buildings," funded by Sweden's Delegation for Sustainable Cities, describes solutions for cultivating under roofs in or close to dwellings that researchers, consultants, and students developed, tested, and evaluated during 2013. These included a plot in a rooftop greenhouse, a circular cultivation balcony, and kitchen or living-room cultivation using combined fish-and-vegetable furniture, a green wall, a green lamp, or a wall-mounted green frame, preceded by a literature survey of examples from cities worldwide. The results show many inspiring international examples of cultivating under roofs and some momentum behind the practice, but the practical trials found that while urban agriculture seemed challenging and appealing to many, the tested solutions tended to be too expensive and too time-consuming; people who liked cultivating did so because it was enjoyable and produced good-quality crops, and while reducing environmental impact was also cited as a motivation, the trials indicated productivity would need to be higher than what was achieved for the products to be considered "climate-friendly." Growing fish at home proved unpopular, with many participants finding the idea of slaughtering the fish themselves unpleasant. Other project outputs included four prototype water-cooled LED lamps installed in a fish-and-vegetable production unit and drawings and cost estimates for a cultivation bench; further study is proposed on light and nutrient requirements and productivity measurements for under-roof cultivation, along with lower-cost glass-cultivation solutions.

Da Wang · · China (Beijing)

This study evaluates and analyzes urban agriculture in Beijing by focusing on the relationships among its subsystems and their relative influence. Results show that the comprehensive evaluation index of urban agriculture has risen steadily with a positive trend, but that the comparative advantages of both the population subsystem and the social subsystem have weakened, due to the loss of agricultural labor force and the urban-rural income gap. Meanwhile, the function of the environment and resource subsystems has strengthened, promoting a shift in Beijing's urban agricultural mode from one led by the economic subsystem toward one led jointly by the environment and economic subsystems. Given increasing pressure on environment and resources, the study concludes Beijing needs to build an ecological urban agriculture system and move away from an industrial development approach.

T. A. Russo, Katherine Alfredo, Joshua Fisher · Water · Global

This review assesses sustainable water management (SWM) across three sectors — urban, agricultural, and natural systems — addressing four questions: how SWM is defined and evaluated, the challenges associated with sustainable development in each sector, where the greatest potential for improvement lies in urban and agricultural water management, and what role a country's development status plays in SWM practices. Methods for evaluating water management range from simple indicator approaches to integration of multiple models, depending on problem complexity and investigator resources. The review's two key findings and recommendations are: (1) all forms of water must be treated as usable and reusable resources, and (2) increasing agricultural crop water production efficiency represents the largest opportunity for reducing total water consumption, needed to meet global food security requirements. It states that the level of regional development should not dictate sustainability objectives, though local infrastructure conditions and financial capabilities should inform the details of water system design and evaluation.

YU Ju-shen · Shanghai nongye xuebao · China

To scientifically and objectively evaluate the overall effect of continuously returning rice and wheat straw to fields in urban agricultural areas of China, the study built an evaluation index system centered on economic, ecological and social benefit indicators, drawing on a questionnaire of agricultural, economic and ecological experts, and used the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and cluster analysis to formulate a comprehensive-effect scoring formula. The results showed that the eco-efficiency indicator carried the largest weight (0.6453) within the overall comprehensive effect.

Nerea Morán Alonso · · Europe

Framed by the need for new processes to regenerate urban space amid the current ecological crisis, this study positions urban gardens as instruments that help close urban metabolic cycles and improve residents' quality of life, and it analyzes three European cases -- London, Berlin, and Madrid -- to identify the legal and regulatory conditions most favorable to the development of urban garden projects.

Rubén D. Piacentini, Laura Bracalenti, Graciela Marisa Salum, Erik Zimmermann, Lattuca, Ricardo Abel Terriles, S. Bartolomé, Mario Vega, L. Tosello, Néstor Di Leo, Susana R. Feldman, Alejandra Coronel · Americanae (AECID Library) · Colombia

With the world's urban population now exceeding its rural population, this report frames urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) as a strategy relevant not only to feeding people but also to mitigating climate change. In the city of Rosario, Argentina, supported by the RUAF Foundation and the Climate and Development Knowledge Network (CDKN), a detailed study was underway to monitor the urban heat island effect, reductions in food transportation, and the impact of green infrastructure on flooding. The abstract describes the scope of this ongoing study rather than reporting specific measured results.

Guoyu Qiu, Hong-yong LI, Qingtao Zhang, Wan Chen, Xiao-jian LIANG, Xiang-ze LI · Journal of Integrative Agriculture · Global

A literature review examined the effects of evapotranspiration (ET) from vegetation and urban agriculture on urban temperatures. The review indicated that vegetation and urban agricultural ET can reduce urban temperatures by 0.5 to 4.0°C. Green roofs and water bodies also effectively reduce urban temperatures, with cooling effects on ambient temperature ranging from 0.24-4.0°C and on roof surface temperature from 0.8-60.0°C. Water bodies can be 2-6°C cooler than surrounding built environments, and a 16 m² water body can cool 2,826 m³ of nearby space by 1°C.

Leigh Whittinghill, D. Bradley Rowe, Bert M. Cregg · Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems · Global

This study evaluated vegetable and herb production across three growing systems—a green roof, raised green roof platforms, and in-ground—over three seasons (2009–2011). Tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, peppers, basil, and chives were cultivated. All plants except pepper survived and produced biomass in all systems, yielding crops for analysis in 2009 and 2010. Yields and basil biomass were higher in-ground in 2009, while roof and platform systems showed similar results. The study suggests that vegetable and herb production is possible and productive in extensive green roof systems with proper management.