Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
3275 results(76 / 131)
Plan of Sapti Community Garden-Park by Design Charrette
2018Kyoungjin Lee, Junghan Sung · Journal of East Asian Landscape Studies · South Korea
In 2018, Yesan-gun implemented a "Village Community Garden Project" at Sapti Park, Yesan-eup, using a design charrette method. This study describes the design process, from planning to construction, demonstrating how residents' opinions were incorporated into the design drawings for the community garden. The project aimed to advance user-participation design methods and examine the role of storytelling in transforming community garden plans.
CommunityPolicyJustice across Real and Imagined Food Worlds: Rural Corn Growers, Urban Agriculture Activists, and the Political Ontologies They Live By
2018Michael Carolan · Rural Sociology · United States
Understandings of "social justice" and "autonomy" were investigated among conventional corn producers in North Dakota and participants in an urban agriculture cooperative in an anonymized U.S. city. Qualitative interviews and "word cloud" analysis revealed greatly differing understandings of these concepts, but both groups were grounded in a shared neoliberal world that negatively impacts both populations. Interviewees in the rural space failed to understand their marginalization as an artifact of the neoliberal worldview.
Food sovereignty & justiceCommunityUrban–rural linkagePolicyStakeholder-Identified Barriers, Challenges, and Obstacles in Community Gardens
2018Sue Webb, John Diaz · EDIS · United States (Florida)
A Delphi study was conducted to identify the barriers, challenges, and obstacles to starting and sustaining community gardens in Florida. This 3-page document summarizes the results of that study.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyABITARE NISHI-TOKYO. SCENARIO PROGETTUALEPER UN QUARTIERE AGRICOLO.
2018Mattia Scarpellino · · Japan (Tokyo)
This architectural design thesis proposes a redesign of a peripheral area of Tokyo, specifically Nishi-Tokyo, which exhibits both urban and rural characteristics. The study explored how to integrate agri-food production activities in a large metropolitan suburb, its potential social role, and the dynamics generated in relation to contemporary living. Through literature review on living, urbanization, functional nomadism, and digitalization, analysis of urban agriculture aspects focusing on community gardens, and participation in a Tokyo workshop, design scenarios were simulated.
Urban–rural linkageCommunityPolicyAgroecologia: Uma análise do direito humano à alimentação adequada
2018Patrícia Fernandes Forny, Luana Mota e Sá Silva, Wyara Ferreira Melo, Patrício Borges Maracajá, Micheline Braga Lopes, Adrielly Braz Rolim · · Brazil
This study aims to detail and provide an understanding of the human right to adequate food through urban agriculture, within the context of the 1988 Federal Constitution and post-World War II developments in Brazil. This understanding was gained through a bibliographic review on the adequacy of this right, agroecology, and urban agriculture.
Food sovereignty & justicePolicyCivic Stewardship as a Catalyst for Social-Ecological Change in Detroit, Michigancccccc
2018R. Witt, Erika S. Svendsen, Marianne E. Krasny · Cornell University Press eBooks · United States (Detroit)
This chapter explores how civic stewardship has driven social-ecological transformation in Detroit through the work of the nonprofit Greening of Detroit. The organization expanded its mission from restoring the city's tree canopy to include urban agriculture, environmental education, and workforce development, acting as a bridging organization connecting various stakeholders. Sustained community-based stewardship builds resilience, strengthens social networks, and shapes both local change and broader social movements through inclusive green infrastructure and civic participation.
CommunityPolicyFood educationBiodiversityパリと東京の都市の路上で共通。芸術、音楽、都市ガーデニングを通じて通りを充当 (Commonality on the urban street in Paris and Tokyo. Appropriating the street through arts, music and urban gardening)
2018Monika Salzbrunn · IRIS · France (Paris)
This study analyzed street phenomena in the Belleville district of Paris, demonstrating how artistic engagement and the use and occupation of land through urban gardening create commonality. This movement achieved a political victory by preserving 19th-century workers' homes and transforming private into public space. Similar commonality and resistance against the privatization of public space are observed in Tokyo through arts and urban gardening.
CommunityPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceThe landscapes of professional farms in mid‐sized cities, France
2018Pascale Scheromm, Christophe‐Toussaint Soulard · Geographical Research · France
This paper provides a spatial analysis of agriculture in three mid-sized French cities, focusing on professional farms. It confirms the existence of significant agricultural spaces within cities and the persistence of field-based, market-oriented agriculture. Key determinants in the observed dynamics include the cities' geographies, the impact of land speculation and urbanization on farmers, and the resistance and adaptation processes implemented by some farmers.
Economic viabilityEconomicsUrban–rural linkagePolicyINTEGRASI SISTEM DIGITALISASI DAN ANALYSIS LAPANGAN DALAM PERENCANAAN PENGEMBANGAN DAERAH: EVALUASI KEMAMPUAN LAHAN MILIK SWASTA
2018Melinda R.S. Moata, Oskar Kollo, Yofris Puay, Yos Rhuma, Charles Tlonaen, Zakharias Duka · PARTNER · Indonesia (Kupang)
This survey evaluated 10,078 hectares of unmanaged land in Lasiana, Kupang city, Indonesia, to assess its capability for urban agriculture. The study found that two land units were classified as Class III land capability due to limiting factors such as soil depth, erosion level, soil fertility, drainage, and stoniness. Recommendations for land management included increasing soil depth and applying urban forest or urban farming development with multifunctional land uses.
Limited or null effectPolicyOrganic cycleClimate changePolitics of urban gardening
2018Marit Rosol · · Global
This chapter discusses the politics of urban community gardening, positioning it ambiguously between neoliberal/austerity urbanism and progressive urban politics. It argues that urban community gardening can reinforce neoliberal urbanism through land use struggles and gentrification, the role of volunteering in neoliberal urban governance, and governing through community and technologies of the self. The continuous emphasis on self-help in urban green spaces is problematic when civic engagement focuses exclusively on certain groups and values.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsClimate changeLondon’s Urban Agriculture: Building Community through Social Innovation
2018Les Levidow · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · United Kingdom (London)
This research examines the role of 'community' in London's food initiatives and how it stimulates congenial activities through social innovation. These initiatives involve forms of social innovation such as enhancing socio-political capabilities, fulfilling unsatisfied needs, and redefining societal problems. London's food initiatives face challenges in combining these diverse aims and activities.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyWelfareThe Challenges of Governing Urban Food Production across Four European City‐Regions: Identity, Sustainability and Governance
2018Matthew Reed, Evy Mettepenningen, Paul Swagemakers, M.D. Domínguez García, Ingrid Jahrl, Marlinde Koopmans · Urban Agriculture & Regional Food Systems · Europe
This paper examined urban food governance in four European city-regions: Bristol (UK), Ghent (Belgium), Vigo (Spain), and Zurich (Switzerland). The case studies demonstrated the role of citizens in urban food and the challenges this presents to city-region governance. Urban food activists, through horizontal networking and clear communication of demands, have raised significant questions about how cities are governed.
Governance failurePolicyCommunityFood sovereignty & justiceGoverning urban gardens for resilient cities: Examining the ‘Garden City Initiative’ in Taipei
2018Jeffrey Hou · Urban Studies · Taiwan (Taipei)
This study examined the ongoing outcomes of Taipei's 'Garden City Initiative' amidst rising concerns for food security and climate adaptation. Based on interviews and participant observations during the initial period of advocacy, planning, and implementation between 2014 and 2017, it suggested that policy formation and implementation may require opportunistic actions involving a variety of actors. The case of Taipei indicates the need for strategic adaptation of the existing bureaucratic structure, while mobilizing its strengths and resources.
PolicyCommunityClimate changeMarcos temáticos y multifuncionalidades de los huertos comunitarios en el área urbana de A Coruña (Galicia): un estudio de caso
2018Juan Soriano-Baeza, Raimundo Otero-Enríquez, Estefanía Calo · Semata: Ciencias sociais e humanidades · Spain
This study conducted a quantitative sociological investigation in three community gardens on the periphery of A Coruña, Galicia, Spain. The research aimed to theoretically define the concept of urban community gardens and to extrapolate data and reflections on their multifunctionality and the motivations supporting their production to the Galician territorial context.
CommunityPolicyEconomicsEstablishing Inner City Urban Agriculture in Stockholm: Exploring social and political logics at work in the public park Bellevue
2018Ida Åberg · · Sweden (Stockholm)
This study explores the social and political logics at work in establishing inner-city urban agriculture in Stockholm, focusing on the public park Bellevue. It notes that access to public space embodies highly valued normative democratic values, where anyone can participate and communicate politically.
PolicyCommunityPlacemaking and urban gardening: Himmelbeet case study in Berlin
2018Toni Karge · Journal of Place Management and Development · Germany (Berlin)
This participatory action research examines the Himmelbeet urban community garden in Berlin from an urban planning perspective, using placemaking principles for ex-post analysis. The study found that the garden functions as a placemaking scheme, despite not being planned with placemaking instruments. Its process demonstrates strategies to address exclusion, disinvestment, and depoliticization of public spaces, showcasing the potential of citizen-controlled placemaking.
CommunityPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceA Review Mapping the Use of Food Sovereignty
2018Chihambakwe, Michelle, Mafongoya, Paramu, L., Jiri, Obert · University of Zimbabwe Institutional Repository (University of Zimbabwe) · Africa
This review examines the application of food sovereignty principles in urban and peri-urban agriculture in Zimbabwe. It notes that despite urban households integrating these practices into their livelihoods, institutional arrangements governing them remain ambivalent. The review concludes that the failure to involve all stakeholders undermines urban and peri-urban agriculture, leading to increased food insecurity and unsustainable practices.
Governance failureFood sovereignty & justiceUrban–rural linkagePolicyCommunityCharacteristics of Urban Farmers
2018Kwaku Obosu-Mensah · · Ghana (Accra)
This study examined the general characteristics of urban farmers in Accra, Ghana. It showed that people of all socio-economic statuses are involved in urban agriculture. Farmers were found to be reluctant to approach government officials, and the most important reason for urban farmers to quit farming was sickness or death.
CommunityEconomicsPolicyWhen the growth of the town produces gardens
2018Luciana Macaluso · Nova Science Publishers (Nova Science Publishers, Inc.) · Europe
This paper discusses the historical perspectives of architects Leberecht Migge (1919) and Giuseppe Samonà (1976) on urban and rural connections. Both recognized the necessity of gardens within large towns and saw urbanization as a partial solution to agricultural production crises. The authors suggest that integrating gardens into urban design, inspired by these ideas, can contribute to soil conservation, especially as soils are increasingly recognized as cultural heritage.
Urban–rural linkageCommunityPolicy도시농업 발전방향에 따른 도시농업전문가양성 교육과정 연구
2018김정식, 한미영 · · South Korea
This study examined the suitability of urban agriculture expert training programs in South Korea, surveying students in Daejeon in 2018. Over 60% of students viewed experts as knowledge transmitters, with most motivated by qualification acquisition. While major city programs focused on basic cultivation, the study concluded that current curricula are insufficient for future urban agriculture trends. It recommended adding programs on urban community understanding, industrialization, cooperative agriculture, and farm management.
Governance failureFood educationPolicyCommunityDigital agricultureGovernance in urban agriculture: challenges and opportunities
2018Isabel de Felipe · LA Referencia (Red Federada de Repositorios Institucionales de Publicaciones Científicas) · Global
This paper describes urban agriculture as an activity gaining new support but facing difficulties due to inadequate governance. The research identified eight instruments for sustainable urban agriculture, including food security and economic development. It concludes that each city requires specific governance to achieve synergies.
Governance failurePolicyEconomicsHealthCommunityBuilding an Urban Food System Through UDC Food Hubs
2018Sabine O’Hara, Dwane Jones, Harris B. Trobman · Advances in higher education and professional development book series · United States
The Landgrant College of the University of the District of Columbia operates urban food hubs as the only exclusively urban land-grant university in the United States. These hubs utilize bio-intensive hydroponic and aquaponic systems and green roofs to maximize productivity in small urban spaces, and kitchens serve as business incubators and training facilities. They also promote waste and water reuse through composting, rainwater capture, and green infrastructure, offering training, wellness, and leadership opportunities to UDC students and DC residents.
Food educationEconomicsCommunityCompostDigital agriculturePolicyCarving out space for community gardens in Australia
2018Alec Thornton, Kristen Lyons, Scott Sharpe · · Australia
This chapter examines how urban spaces in Australia are being transformed for community gardens through social movements and community interventions for the expansion of urban agriculture. It focuses on community gardeners as part of active social movements, exploring the urban context driven by the challenges of urbanization. The study applies Lefebvre's framework on the social production of space and discusses findings from qualitative interview data collected from two city case studies.
CommunityPolicyFood sovereignty & justiceTipologia de Ação Pública para a Agricultura Urbana
2018Lya Porto, Emmanuel Raufflet, Mário Aquino Alves · · Global
This paper constructs a typology of Urban Agriculture Public Action by analyzing literature from various cities in the Global North and South. The typology is based on a cross-analysis of institutional structures and service delivery to urban agriculture, identifying four main types: "Marginal," "Emerging," "Societal," and "State."
PolicyThe creation of a sustainable urban “green oasis” A qualitative study of the discursive making of an ecological social enterprise
2018S. Parsisson · · Netherlands (Rotterdam)
This study investigated how urban farmers at Rotterdamse Munt, an urban herb garden in Rotterdam, Netherlands, discursively negotiate their status as a 'social enterprise' using ethnographic fieldwork and a semiotic approach. The research found that Rotterdamse Munt has not fully transformed into a sustainable ecological social enterprise. Instead, urban farmers constantly negotiated between altruistic and commercial approaches, failing to fully achieve both, which obliged them to combine two contrasting identities through dual visual identity, services, and products to reach two different populations.
CommunityEconomicsPolicy