Research & reports
Peer-reviewed research and reports on community urban agriculture, food education, composting, welfare and more.
Theme
Critical findings
3275 results(81 / 131)
A view from the south: bringing critical planning theory to urban agriculture.
2017Stephanie White, Michael W. Hamm · CABI eBooks · Global South
This chapter discusses urban agriculture's role in urban food systems, particularly in the Global South, and proposes theoretical framings of urban agriculture as an 'urbanistic practice'. It argues that urban agriculture studies can enhance understanding of regional food provisioning and exchange, especially concerning informality, shed light on urban socio-ecological processes including food insecurity and marginalization, and provide case-study accounts of peripheral livelihoods that challenge conventional understandings of urban construction.
Food sovereignty & justicePolicyCommunityUrban rooftop farming : sustainability, practices and stakeholder perception on case studies in Europe (Torino, Paris, Rotterdam)
2017Jonida Alliaj · · Europe
This qualitative investigation examined rooftop farming in Turin, Paris, and Rotterdam, focusing on local practices, policies, and stakeholder perceptions of sustainability and social impact. Findings reveal significant differences in governance: Turin's OrtiAlti project faced difficulties due to absent city strategies and policies, while Paris has a moderate number of rooftop farms with recent supportive policies. Rotterdam's Dakakker is a consolidated project, supported by local government through multi-stakeholder participation.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyClimate change도시정원 도입을 위한 고밀 시가화지역 내 녹지 네트워크 구축 가능성 평가
2017최희준, 이정아, 손희정, 조동길, 송영근 · · South Korea (Seoul)
This study analyzed the landscape ecological characteristics of green spaces in the high-density built-up area of Yeoksam-Dong, Seoul, and evaluated the potential for establishing green networks through urban garden introduction. The current condition of green spaces was identified across five categories: street trees, private gardens, public pocket gardens, rooftop gardens, and parks, followed by landscape index analysis and connectivity assessment. Results indicated that street trees, private gardens, and public pocket gardens show high potential for creating green networks in high-density urban areas.
CommunityBiodiversityPolicyDIY1990年以降の兵庫県の都市における農業の変化 ―都市農業振興基本法の施行をふまえて―
2017肇 石原, Hajime ISHIHARA · Institutional Repositories DataBase (IRDB) · Japan
This study examined changes in urban agriculture in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan, since 1990, finding a weakening of the agricultural management base. While the decline in productive green space and full-time farmers was limited, engagement in agriculture-related businesses, excluding direct sales, was not widespread. The preservation of productive green spaces in some cities remains a challenge for future land use planning.
Economic viabilityPolicyEconomicsUrban–rural linkageSustainability's incomplete circles: towards a just food politics in Austin, Texas and Havana, Cuba.
2017Jonathan Lowell, Sara Law · CABI eBooks · United States (Texas), Cuba
A comparative study of urban agriculture projects in Austin, Texas, and Havana, Cuba, revealed that sustainability discourses primarily focus on food production methods, with little attention paid to persistent food insecurity issues that urban agriculture has yet to address, or to the cultural politics of food, where race, class, and gender shape access to food choices. While agricultural practices and their perceived value were similar in both cities, the study found comparable outcomes in how food exposed spatial and social divisions.
Equity & displacementFood sovereignty & justicePolicyWelfareCommunityPaisaje rururbano en el borde sur de Bogotá, Usme, veredas la Requilina y el Uval : lineamientos de ocupación para la consolidación de un paisaje agroecológico sostenible
2017Daniel Balcero Benitez · · Colombia (Bogotá)
This study proposes a rururban landscape (urban-agricultural) for the Usme district in southern Bogotá. It is based on a model for ordering rururban fringes and sustainable occupation typologies for these territories, responding to expansive pressures from high environmental impact uses (mining, landfill) and urban growth on peasant territories. The proposal starts from the preservation and strengthening of the environment and current peasant ways of life.
Peri-urban agricultureUrban–rural linkageFood sovereignty & justicePolicySmart Environment Program, Smart Way to Smart City
2017Tutik Rachmawati, Priska Diah Pertiwi · Policy & Governance Review · Indonesia (Bandung)
This research aims to evaluate the best practices of the smart environment program in Bandung City, Indonesia, and analyze the positive transformations it brings. The analysis is based on three core activities (creation of thematic parks, restoration and revitalization of rivers, urban gardening/farming) and eight aspects of smart environment (provision of public open space, good waste management, slum areas management, river revitalization, eliminating "chopsticks syndrome" in building construction, alternative energy, reducing CO2 production, urban farming). A qualitative research method was used, and data was collected from 30 interviews.
PolicyCommunityUrban–rural linkageAnalysis of Urban Agricultural Characteristics along Land Use Gradient in Lagos State, Nigeria
2017Olalekan John Taiwo · · Nigeria (Lagos)
A study in Lagos State, Nigeria, analyzed the characteristics of urban agriculture and the influence of land use diversity using 300 questionnaires and personal interviews. The research noted the rapid disappearance of urban agricultural sites within built-up areas, framing it within the concept of "survival of the fittest." Results indicated that land use characteristics where urban agriculture is located moderate its size, rental cost, profit, and accessibility to road networks, while having little to no influence on its distance from markets and water sources.
Governance failureUrban–rural linkagePolicyEconomicsThe potential of urban agriculture for sustainability of cities in Poland
2017Rafał Jasionkowski, Anna Lewandowska-Czarnecka · Ecological Questions · Poland
This paper aims to present the possibilities of food production in cities in Poland, particularly in the context of sustainable development. Urban agriculture can play an important role in the sustainable development of cities, with the idea of crop cultivation and its implementation dating back centuries, and new forms of ecological farms being designed with technological advancements.
CommunityClimate changePolicyFloods and Food in the City: Lessons from Collaborative Governance Within the Policy Network on Urban Agriculture in Bangkok, Thailand
2017Piyapong Boossabong · Palgrave Macmillan US eBooks · Thailand (Bangkok)
This chapter examines how the policy network on urban agriculture in Bangkok, Thailand, developed collaborative governance mechanisms to cope with food distribution disruption caused by floods. It argues that deliberation between policy network members and flood victims determines meaningful collective actions that enhanced victims' resilience and promoted fair distribution, political and cultural recognition, and parity of participation.
PolicyCommunityClimate changeFood sovereignty & justiceNeoliberalism and alternative food movements: markets, the state, and knowledge production in Southern California
2017Rebecca Gresh · Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) · United States (California)
This qualitative study investigated two alternative food projects in San Diego, California, to reveal how food justice is envisioned and practiced. "Project New Village (PNV)" in a low-income area resists institutional racism and class inequality through a community garden and farmers market. In contrast, the affluent "San Diego Roots Sustainable Food Project (SDRS)" resists suburban sprawl and environmental destruction through sustainable food production. PNV faces obstacles like law enforcement patrols interrupting community rebuilding, indicating that alternative food movements may reproduce structures of oppression.
Equity & displacementCommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyGardening in the desert: a spatial optimization approach to locating gardens in rapidly expanding urban environments
2017Elizabeth A. Mack, Daoqin Tong, Kevin Credit · International Journal of Health Geographics · United States (Phoenix)
This study used spatial optimization models in the Phoenix, Arizona metropolitan area to identify optimal locations for urban gardens near food deserts and on vacant land. Spatial analysis found that existing gardens are primarily in areas with good food access, providing an alternative food source to only 8.4% of food desert residents. The optimization model, however, identified 53 alternative garden locations that could cover 96.4% of all food deserts, demonstrating a significant improvement over the current distribution.
CommunityHealthPolicyGrowing for health: community agriculture in Sandwell
2017Veronica Barry · BCU Open Access Repository (Birmingham City University) · United Kingdom
This paper discusses the recognized link between spatial planning and public health, highlighting urban agriculture (UA), gardening, and food growing as contributors to healthier urban environments. It states that UA can benefit health at community and individual levels through land regeneration, while also supporting broader health policy development.
CommunityHealthPolicyKsiążki z serii „Biblioteka Młodych Miczurinowców” jako przykład łączenia popularyzacji wiedzy i ideologizacji młodego pokolenia w latach 50. XX wieku
2017Bogumiła Staniów · Roczniki Biblioteczne · Poland
This article discusses the "Young Michurinist Library" series, popular science books about nature for children and young people published in post-war Poland from 1953 to 1956. The books in this series provided readers with information on plants, animals, and amateur husbandry, alongside elements of communist ideology. They aimed to disseminate Michurinism and teach pupils how to cultivate crops, maximize the use of available plants, and enrich their diet with easily managed farm animals, often through fictionalized stories.
Food educationCommunityPolicyAlternative food and gentrification: Farmers’ markets, community gardens and the transformation of urban neighborhoods
2017Pascale Joassart‐Marcelli, Fernando J. Bosco · · United States (San Diego)
The alternative food movement (farmers' markets, community gardens) in San Diego, United States, was investigated in relation to gentrification. Uneven urban food landscapes were shown to be intimately connected to gentrification processes, shaped by race, class, political decisions, and capital flows. Farmers' markets and community gardens are primarily located in affluent and gentrifying areas, providing evidence of a growing appropriation of alternative food spaces by urban developers and cultural elites.
Equity & displacementCommunityEconomicsPolicyHealthHow Can Botanical Gardens Support Sustainable Urban Development? A Case Study of Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden
2017Yonghong Hu, Gilles Vincent, Xiao‐Ya Chen · Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden · China (Shanghai)
This case study examines the role of Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden in Shanghai's sustainable development over six years. The garden collaborates with local government on the "City Green Master Plan," supports urban horticulture and phytoremediation, and conserves 14 critically endangered plant species in East China. It also develops new plant varieties for functional food and educates the public on plant conservation.
PolicyBiodiversityHealthLos huertos urbanos y el cultivo de sí. La agricultura urbana en España y el País Vasco como experiencia de ocio emergente y fenómeno social en expansión
2017Fernando Richter Iturregui · Dialnet (Universidad de la Rioja) · Spain (Basque Country)
This study aimed to understand the current significance of urban agriculture in Spain and the Basque Country as an emerging leisure experience and expanding social phenomenon. It employed a dual-pronged investigation, quantitative to assess the magnitude and qualities of urban agriculture in the Basque Country within the Spanish context, and qualitative to understand how users interpret the practice. The research sought to identify the characteristics describing urban agriculture as a leisure experience.
CommunityHealthPolicyUrban gardens and institutional fences
2017Nadia Tecco, Federico Cóppola, Francesco Sottile, Cristiana Peano · Future of food: journal on food, agriculture and society · Italy (Turin)
This paper, based on fieldwork in two urban communal gardens in Turin, Italy, examined the spatiotemporal dimension of urban gardening, focusing on governance and the impact of regulations. It found that urban garden management is problematic due to the complex relationship between gardeners and allotments. Local government and promoting associations face challenges in adapting to and managing the evolving phenomenon, encountering internal conservative resistance and external pressures for change. These governance aspects have not been sufficiently considered.
Governance failureCommunityPolicyGrace Lee Boggs
2017· Policy Press eBooks · United States (Detroit)
This interview chapter features Grace Lee Boggs discussing revolution, evolution, and change in Detroit. Boggs posits that revolutions stem from communities claiming spaces to realize their desired world, viewing urban agriculture and grassroots movements as acts of revolution that "grow our souls." She highlights Detroit as a pioneer in this new form of revolution, advocating for revolution as a way of life rather than a power grab.
CommunityFood sovereignty & justicePolicyPeri-urban farming, Grugliasco
2017Zohreh Hamrang · · Italy
This study indicates that peri-urban territory provides a wide range of functions and services for surrounding urban areas, contributing to the quality of life in urban regions. These include food production, recreational services, and other services related to cultural landscape management, which in turn contribute to the ecological capacity of the landscape. Peri-urban agriculture (PUA) is characterized by two elements: intensified production with high productive value, and an extensive lifestyle with environmentally guided land use.
Peri-urban agriculturePolicyUrban–rural linkageNew urban ecologies
2017John Rennie Short · · Global
This chapter focuses on the developing imaginary of the green and resilient city and the emergence of new urban ecologies. It examines the changing city-nature dialectic, discusses cities and climate change, explores city metrics of urban sustainability, and presents urban environmental issues. In 1976, the US Department of Agriculture established an Urban Gardening Program, and Singaporean city authorities are working to green the city-state.
CommunityClimate changePolicyACPNS Legal Case Notes Series: 2017-23 Densham v The Charity Commission For England And Wales
2017Myles McGregor‐Lowndes, Frances Hannah · QUT ePrints (Queensland University of Technology) · United Kingdom
On August 14, 2017, the First Tier Tribunal, General Regulatory Chamber (Charity) in the United Kingdom, ruled on the case of Densham v The Charity Commission For England And Wales. An allotment holder in a community garden failed in their claim that the allotments were not a charity, and the existing Scheme was allowed to stand.
CommunityPolicyThe role of urban agriculture in climate change mitigation and adaptation in Ghanaian cities
2017David Anaafo, G. A. Akolgo · · Ghana
A study on urban agriculture in Ghanaian cities found that it faces challenges including difficult access to land and water resources, and a lack of extension services and credit support. Despite these issues, urban agriculture may help reduce flooding impacts, improve water infiltration, and enhance environmental sanitation. The study recommends policy measures to address these challenges.
Governance failureClimate changePolicyEconomicsFood sovereignty & justiceThe redefinition of the role of agricultural areas in the city of Catania
2017Alessandro Scuderi, Luisa Sturiale, Claudio Bellia, Vera Teresa Foti, Giuseppe Timpanaro · RIVISTA DI STUDI SULLA SOSTENIBILITA · Italy (Catania)
This study addresses the proposal by the Municipality of Catania to create one of Europe's largest urban gardens in a marginalized, socio-economically degraded area of the city. Starting from an analysis of urban agriculture at the European level, the work aims to highlight the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of this new form of urban green space through a participatory SWOT analysis.
CommunityEconomicsPolicyWelfareZwischen grüner Imageproduktion, partizipativer Politik und Wachstumszwang: urbane Landwirtschaft und Gärten im Kontext neoliberaler Stadtentwicklung in Wien
2017Sarah Kumnig · transcript Verlag eBooks · Europe
This study, titled "Between green image production, participatory politics, and growth pressure: urban agriculture and gardens in the context of neoliberal urban development in Vienna," was published in Umkämpftes Grün on page 139.
Governance failurePolicyCommunityEconomics