Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
1961 results(78 / 79)
Community gardens and sustainable land use planning: A case‐study of the Alex Wilson community garden
1999Seana Irvine, Lorraine Johnson, Kim Peters · Local Environment · Canada
This case study provides an analytical account of the Alex Wilson Community Garden in Toronto, Canada, examining the connections between ecological restoration and community gardening. The garden, opened in June 1998, reflects Alex Wilson's work by linking these two enterprises to nurture relationships between people, communities, and the landscape. Its design reconstructs the natural and cultural history of southern Ontario with native plant species, aiming for a positive impact on local biodiversity. The participatory planning process involved various stakeholders and utilized planning tools like conservation easements.
CommunityPolicyBiodiversityUrban–rural linkageIs This a Women's Movement? The Relationship of Gender to Community-Supported Agriculture in Michigan
1999Laura DeLind, A. Ferguson · Human Organization · United States
This paper explores the role of gender within Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) using a Michigan CSA as a case study. It notes that women constitute a majority of active CSA membership and seeks to understand what attracts them and the nature of their involvement. The study finds preliminary answers within the wider context of new social movements.
CSA & TeikeiCommunityEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceTierra Nueva -- A passive solar cohousing project
1999K. Haggard, Phillip J. Cooper · Solar today · United States (California)
The Tierra Nueva Cohousing Project in California comprises living units, a common house, community orchard, community gardens, play space, future shop space, and parking. The units incorporate thermal mass, solar heating, passive solar cooling, and perimeter insulation on slabs. The design of the project was collectively agreed upon by the entire community.
CommunityDIYClimate changeIdentifying Policy Opportunities to Increase Physical Activity in the Southeast Asian Community in Long Beach, California
1999Mary Anne Foo, Jason Robinson, Monica Rhodes, Lillian S. Lew, Maichew Chao, Sadira Sokhan Dy, William Eir · Health Education · United States (California)
This article describes how implementing policy changes in organizations and communities supported physical activity in the Southeast Asian community in Long Beach, California. Case studies from the Families in Good Health program illustrate the components of successful policy development for physical activity. Increased policy opportunities occurred when high levels of five factors were present: program champions were cultivated; strong partnerships were formed; the community gave approval of program results; community leaders were involved; and organizations or resources were ready for policy development.
PolicyHealthCommunitySchool Gardening: Improving Environmental Attitudes of Children Through Hands-On Learning
1999Tina M. Waliczek, Jayne M. Zajicek · Journal of Environmental Horticulture · United States
Project GREEN, a school garden program, was integrated into seven elementary and junior high schools in Kansas and Texas to evaluate its impact on students' environmental attitudes. Students' environmental attitudes were significantly more positive after participating, with post-test mean scores 0.26 points higher than pre-test scores. Demographic analysis showed that female, Caucasian, and rural students exhibited more positive environmental attitudes compared to other groups.
Food educationCommunityFarmers' markets offer new business opportunities for farmers
1999Gail Feenstra, Christopher Lewis · California Agriculture · United States (California)
A survey of farmers' market managers in California indicated that farmers' markets provide growers with opportunities to expand their businesses through new market venues, value-added products, and connections with agritourism. Rural markets offered strong community support and tourist links, while small-town markets showed the most new vendors and room for growth. Metropolitan markets, though harder to access, yielded the highest gross sales and increased demand for value-added products.
EconomicsCSA & TeikeiCommunityUrban–rural linkageConsumer Benefits from Community Supported Agriculture Membership
1998Jack P. Cooley, Daniel A. Lass · Review of Agricultural Economics · United States (Massachusetts)
This study focused on consumer benefits, specifically cost savings, from Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) membership. It measured quantities of produce in weekly shares for three CSA farms in Massachusetts and calculated retail values. Cost savings, determined by the difference between share prices and retail values for organic produce, ranged from 60% to 150% of share prices for the studied CSA farms.
CSA & TeikeiEconomicsCommunitySchools, Children, and Gardening: The Results of a Children's Garden Competition among Florida Elementary Schools
1998Sonja M. Skelly, Jennifer Bradley · HortScience · United States (Florida)
In Spring 1998, the University of Florida hosted a children's garden competition for approximately 100 elementary schools across Florida. The competition required schools to establish or use an existing garden and for teachers to integrate it into classroom instruction. A random sample of 500 students from participating schools completed an environmental attitude survey at the beginning and end of the competition, and teachers also completed a survey on garden use and its effect on students.
Food educationCommunityUrban agriculture in the metropolitan zone of Mexico City: changes over time in urban, suburban and peri-urban areas
1998H. Losada, H. Martínez, J. Vieyra, R. Pealing, R. Zavala, J. Cortés · Environment and Urbanization · Mexico
This paper describes the scale and nature of agricultural production in urban, suburban, and peri-urban zones of Mexico City and how these have adapted to changing urban demands for food, wood, and recreation. Agricultural producers have successfully adapted their products and production methods, including building on traditional systems, despite environmental deterioration from urban development and lack of government support. These producers have also devised new ways to use degraded land and large volumes of waste.
EconomicsPolicyClimate changeUrban–rural linkageFactors Influencing the Decision to Join a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Farm
1997Jane Kolodinsky, Leslie L. Pelch · Journal of Sustainable Agriculture · United States (Vermont)
This study estimated the probability of becoming a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) member using a binomial logit regression model, based on data collected through phone interviews with members, ex-members, and non-members of three CSA farms in Vermont. Results indicated that price, productivity shifters, consumer beliefs, and awareness impact the probability of membership.
CSA & TeikeiEconomicsCommunity1997 construction & design survey.
1997Carlos Alberto Schettini Pinto · PubMed · United States
A 1997 survey on healthcare construction and design in the United States notes that managed care, despite appearances, creates opportunities for architectural and design firms. An example of this trend is the 1995 west campus expansion of East Texas Medical Center in Tyler, which included a nine-story medical office building featuring artwork and rooftop gardens.
CommunityHealthRutgers Urban Gardening: A Case Study in Urban Agriculture
1996Ishwarbhai C. Patel · Journal of Agricultural & Food Information · United States (Newark)
The Rutgers Urban Gardening (RUG) program in Newark, New Jersey, transformed 30 acres of wasteland into 1,900 food gardens in 1994, engaging 6,500 residents. This initiative produced over $915,000 worth of food and recycled nearly 4,000 tons of city leaves, saving participants approximately $4 million over five years. The program also fostered social interaction, improved diets for 44% of participants, and enhanced neighborhoods.
CommunityHealthEconomicsCompostSustainable living demonstration center creates solar markets
1996J. Lambie, W.T. Osborn, A. Dominski · OSTI OAI (U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information) · United States (Florida)
The Florida House Foundation, Inc. (FHF), a non-profit regional economic incubator, developed a demonstration house and yard in Sarasota County, Florida, in partnership with the Cooperative Extension Service. This model home, designed to appeal to consumers and be marketable by the construction industry, aimed to stimulate interest in solar and resource-efficient technologies. It incorporated active and passive design, solar photovoltaic and water heating systems, daylighting, cisterns, gray water, and native edible landscaping.
DIYClimate changeFood educationSchool garden projects: A qualitative research project
1996Serr, Elisabeth N · CommonKnowledge Research Repository (Pacific University Oregon) · United States (Eugene)
This qualitative research project focused on school garden projects in the Eugene, Oregon area, exploring how teachers integrate classroom curriculum in the garden. Information was gathered through interviews, primarily with elementary teachers, and visits to school gardens. The research aims to answer questions regarding the pervasiveness of gardening projects, how schools can collaborate with communities to form garden projects, and how teachers can integrate a garden project with class curriculum.
Food educationCommunityBenefits of Community Gardening on Quality-of-Life Issues
1996Tina M. Waliczek, Richard H. Mattson, Jayne M. Zajicek · Journal of Environmental Horticulture · United States
A nationwide survey of community gardeners in the United States investigated the relationship between community gardens and quality-of-life perceptions, based on Maslow's hierarchy of needs. The study found that race, gender, and city size influenced perceptions, with significant differences observed across racial/ethnic divisions and between gardeners in Los Angeles and New York. Community gardens were particularly important to African-American and Hispanic gardeners, and while men and women rated overall benefits similarly, women valued saving money and garden beauty more highly.
CommunityHealthPolicyThe Effect of School Gardens on Self-Esteem, Interpersonal Relationships, Attitude toward School, and Environmental Attitude in Populations of Children
1996Tina M. Waliczek, J.M. Zajicek · HortScience · United States
This study initiated an environmental education garden program, "The Green Classroom," in eight schools across the Midwest and Texas, involving approximately 1000 third- through eighth-grade students. The program aimed to integrate garden activities into classroom lessons to reinforce curriculum. Researchers administered pre- and post-tests, including a psychological inventory and an environmental attitude survey, to examine the relationship between garden program participation and students' self-esteem, interpersonal relationships, attitude toward school, and environmental attitudes.
Food educationCommunityHealthUrban Community Gardens as Contested Space
1995Karen Schmelzkopf · Geographical Review · United States (New York City)
This article examines community gardens in Loisaida, a high-crime, poverty-stricken area of Manhattan's Lower East Side in New York City. The gardens provide social and economic functions, serving as safe open spaces for socialization and sources of food. A major problem identified is the competition for these sites between gardening and housing development.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyEconomicsRutgers Urban Gardening: A Study in Cultural Diversity and Gardening
1994Ishwarbhai C. Patel · HortTechnology · United States
The Rutgers Urban Gardening (RUG) program in the United States fosters cultural diversity by employing six ethnic minority workers and reaching over 30 ethnic groups through various educational programs. It creates an environment where people can connect, share concerns, and solve problems, bridging social, economic, cultural, and racial barriers.
CommunityFood educationWelfareUrban Agriculture in the United States
1991Nelson L. Bills, Bills, Nelson L. · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · United States
A National Agricultural Lands Study (NALS) in the United States did not provide conclusive evidence of serious conflicts between urban development land requirements and the nation's agricultural production capacity. The study was also flawed by faulty data on farmland conversion rates.
PolicyUrban–rural linkageEconomicsThe Meaning of Gardens: Idea, Place, and Action
1990Mark Francis, Randolph T. Hester · · United States
This publication is a collection of essays exploring the multifaceted meanings of gardens. It examines gardens through the lenses of metaphor, power, ordering, cultural expression, personal expression, and healing. Each section features various authors discussing how gardens relate to faith, social structures, design, community, individual experience, and well-being.
CommunityUrban–rural linkageUrban Agriculture: Research Questions and Zambian Evidence
1988Rakodi C. · The Journal of Modern African Studies · Zambia (Lusaka)
A field-based study of Zambian urban settlements in the 1970s-1980s, finding that urban cultivation serves as a vital survival strategy for low-income households and warrants integration into urban development planning.
CommunityEconomicsPolicyHealthUrban Farming Has Financial Advantages
1988Mary Clare Ahearn, David E. Banker, Ahearn, Mary, Banker, David · AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) · United States
Nearly one-third of all U.S. farms are located in metropolitan areas. These urban farms produce the majority of the nation's high-value crops, such as fruits and vegetables. They also contribute almost a third of the total value of U.S. farm sales and typically exhibit a stronger financial position compared to non-metropolitan farms.
EconomicsPeri-urban agricultureHorticultural activities and demographic factors influence childrens's self-esteem
1987Williams, Patrick Neal. · K-State Research Exchange (Kansas State University) · United States (Manhattan, Kansas)
A five-month study of children gardening in the Manhattan Community Garden, Manhattan, Kansas, investigated differences in self-esteem, horticultural knowledge, and garden quality. Children without other siblings gardening showed higher self-esteem, gained more horticultural knowledge, and had better appearing gardens than children with other siblings gardening.
Food educationCommunityHealthUrban Agriculture: Who Cultivates and why? a Case-Study of Lusaka, Zambia
1985Bishwapriya Sanyal · Food and Nutrition Bulletin · Zambia (Lusaka)
Urban agriculture in Lusaka, Zambia, is an innovative response by the urban poor facing insufficient income. Low-income households view urban cultivation as a long-term investment, requiring permanent urban residence (7-11 years) and access to land to ensure a return. Variations in cultivation patterns result from relative differences in land access and the need to maximize the return on domestic labor time.
WelfareEconomicsTilapia culture in conjunction with irrigation and urban farming. Final report
1983K. Bondari, E. D. Threadgill, J. Bender · OSTI OAI (U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information) · United States
This study conducted two experiments on tilapia culture. Experiment I aimed to determine the potential of Tilapia aurea in an integrated irrigation system for algae removal and resource recovery. Experiment II investigated the potential use of blue tilapia in urban farming, utilizing a passive solar greenhouse, an indoor pond for overwintering, and an outdoor pond for summer growth.
DIYOrganic cycleUrban–rural linkage