Learning environmental & circular design
Grasping compost and organic resource cycling
Farms make tangible the loop that turns food scraps and prunings into compost and back into soil. They are places to learn environmental and circular design as lived, hands-on experience.
341 related cases
Cases where this shows up
Vegeta-Kurun (Kanazawa Food-Waste Circulation System)
JPKanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan
Kanazawa City's food-waste recycling loop that collects citizen-made compost at neighborhood points and uses it at community farms. It advances food-loss reduction and organic-resource circulation through citizen participation.
www4.city.kanazawa.lg.jp
Feeding Lima from Within
PELima, Peru
30-month initiative to boost Lima's local food production. Transforms gardens into hubs with composting and organic cycle training, plus fair trade labeling to support sustainable local agriculture.
cusointernational.org
LFC Compost (Local Food Cycling)
JPFukuoka, Japan
A bag-type home composter from Fukuoka-based Local Food Cycling, whose founder Yuiko Taira has promoted kitchen-waste composting for over 20 years, linking food-loss reduction and local soil-building through a 'nutrient cycle within a 2 km radius'.
lfc-compost.jp+1
pick! nic! farm, rooftop of Suma Patio shopping centre, Kobe
JPKobe (須磨区), Japan
A multi-generational community garden on the rooftop of the Suma Patio shopping centre in Suma Ward, Kobe. Rather than simply growing vegetables, it treats "eating" as a year-round, whole-cycle experience, with regular hands-on workshops. Weeds and plant residues from the rooftop beds and workshops are composted and returned to the garden's planters and to nearby fields, closing a small local resource loop.
compost.smartkobe-portal.com+1
Cultiva Ciudad
MXMexico City, Mexico
Cultiva Ciudad manages school gardens in Mexico City and converts 1,500+ kg of food waste annually into fertile soil. Huerto Tlatelolco project features a 1,650 m2 edible forest with 45 tree varieties plus a seed bank, advancing food sovereignty and organic recycling.
zeahungrygoods.com
Madrid Agrocomposta Community Composting Program
ESMadrid, Spain
Joint initiative between Madrid Agroecologico and municipal government managing organic waste from schools, residences, and markets. Local farmers produce compost, closing urban nutrient cycles
link.springer.com
Supporting research
Agronomic Use of Urban Composts from Decentralized Composting Scenarios: Implications for a Horticultural Crop and Soil Properties
June 2025 study examining how decentralized and community composting are emerging as novel scenarios favoring localized management and valorization of organic waste streams. Supports organic waste reduction at community level and nutrient cycling for urban agriculture fertilization, offering alternatives to centralized composting.
Irigoyen I., López M., Orden L. et al. · 2025 · Agronomy
Production and Application of Organic Waste Compost for Urban Agriculture in Emerging Cities
Research on organic waste composting and its application in urban agriculture across emerging Asian cities, integrating circular agriculture with waste reduction.
Asian research network · 2022 · ResearchGate
A Conceptual Framework for Incorporation of Composting in Closed-Loop Urban Controlled Environment Agriculture
Presents a conceptual framework for incorporating composting into closed-loop urban controlled environment agriculture to recycle nutrients from organic waste streams.
Dsouza A., Price G., Dixon M. et al. · 2021 · Sustainability
Exploring compost production potential and its economic benefits and greenhouse gas mitigation in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
2025 study estimating compost production potential from municipal organic waste and human excreta in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with projections through 2050. Quantifies economic benefits (compost sales, fertilizer cost reduction), soil carbon sequestration, and greenhouse gas mitigation. Demonstrates feasibility of organic waste-to-compost systems for urban agriculture in African cities.
Shimelis G., Kim D., Yimer F. et al. · 2025 · Science of The Total Environment