Creating new industries and livelihoods
Generating employment, work and livelihoods
Linked with processing, sales, tourism and educational services, farms create new jobs and livelihoods. Even where produce sales alone fall short, combined revenue models open employment and work opportunities.
157 related cases
Cases where this shows up
BK ROT Bike-Powered Composting (Brooklyn)
USBrooklyn, New York, United States
A fossil-fuel-free, bike-powered community-compost enterprise founded in Bushwick, Brooklyn, that collects and composts food scraps while creating good jobs for youth and green space, countering environmental racism and gentrification.
bkrot.org+2
Kyomaru-en (Universal Agriculture Farm)
JPHamamatsu, Japan
Kyomaru-en in Hamamatsu is a pioneer of agriculture-welfare collaboration, employing people with disabilities since 1996. Under its 'universal agriculture' approach it designs tasks around each worker's abilities, building a farm business where anyone can work regardless of disability.
agrijournal.jp+1
Gardens of the Future — a shared community garden in central Nicosia (Cyprus)
CYNicosia, Cyprus
In central Nicosia, a citizens' group turned a derelict plot into a sustainable shared garden. It started from winning the Climathon Nicosia competition in October 2019, and hundreds of volunteers helped build it. Beyond growing, it sets out to build community, practise a circular economy that treats waste as material, and create a dynamic urban food-sharing ecosystem. It runs learning programmes for local youth on open-source technology and sustainability, and supports women refugees in agricultural entrepreneurship. The project was shortlisted for the EU's New European Bauhaus Awards in the 'Regaining a sense of belonging' category.
citycenters.eu+1
Réseau Cocagne (France)
FRBesançon, France
Starting from the first garden opened in 1991 by Jean-Guy Henckel at Chalezeule near Besançon, France, the model of jardins d'insertion — organic market gardens that employ unemployed and precariously placed people — spread across the country, and the national network was formally constituted on 13 July 1999. The vegetables produced are delivered as weekly baskets to subscriber members, and the workers receive socio-professional support alongside the farming. Its distinguishing feature is that one mechanism is asked to serve both city residents' food supply and people excluded from the labour market.
fr.wikipedia.org
Work Happiness Farm (Social Farm)
JPTachikawa, Japan
A network of social farms run by Es-Pool Plus, sited in urban areas such as Tachikawa, Itabashi and Yokohama. Companies directly employ people with disabilities to do farm work, and the scheme has grown to more than 60 sites nationwide.
plus.spool.co.jp+4
Kobe Rural Startup Program
JPKobe, Japan
A roughly six-month intensive program focused on starting businesses and livelihoods in the rural districts of Kobe's Kita and Nishi wards. In areas facing depopulation and vacant houses, it aims to create a new rural culture unique to Kobe, where a big city sits compactly beside the countryside, training people through lectures and fieldwork on using vacant houses and satoyama resources.
kobenoson.jp+3
Supporting research
Examining the Business Case and Models for Sustainable Multifunctional Edible Landscaping Enterprises in the Phoenix Metro Area
This study assessed the business case for multifunctional edible landscaping enterprises in the Phoenix metro area. Semi-structured interviews with four landscaping entrepreneurs and a GIS landscape analysis of seven cities revealed that multifunctional edible landscaping offers a greater range of value propositions and revenue streams, with over 180,000 acres of suitable landscapes identified. Scenario analysis estimated potential value creation from $3.9 to $66 billion, with positive return on investment (ROI) achievable in 11 out of 12 scenarios within one to five years.
Christopher Robinson, Scott Cloutier, Hallie Eakin · 2017 · Sustainability
Public perceptions on the role of urban green space development and management in Gondar City, Amhara Region, Northwest Ethiopia
This study investigated public perception of the economic, social, and environmental roles of urban green space (UGS) development and management in Gondar City, Ethiopia, using household surveys and semi-structured questionnaires. Most participants strongly agreed that UGS provides raw materials (54.5%), creates employment (54.5%), attracts businesses (53.5%), aids food production (51.8%), and increases government revenues (51.7%). Socially, UGS was strongly agreed to improve healthy lifestyles (64.3%) and promote mental health (60.1%). Environmentally, strong agreement was found for UGS reducing climate change impacts (89%), improving urban forests (78%), and mitigating urban heat island effects (75.3%). Chi-square tests showed most demographic, socio-economic, and biophysical factors were not significantly associated with these perceived roles.
Getaneh Bizuayehu, Kassahun Gashu, Belete Debebe · 2026 · Sustainable Futures
Social entrepreneurship in obesity prevention: A scoping review
A scoping review of social ventures in obesity prevention identified 512 social ventures across 32 countries, with 93% originating from developed countries, including urban farming among their intervention areas. Social ventures developed diverse business models with multiple revenue streams, offering financially self-sufficient approaches. However, the review did not provide detailed data on specific successful cases or the scale of economic viability for these ventures.
Audrey Chia, Junyu Ong, Anjali Bundele et al. · 2021 · Obesity Reviews
Business model and cost performance of mini-plant factory in downtown
Analyzes the business model and cost performance of downtown mini plant factories with artificial lighting, finding their profitability high enough to attract entrepreneurs but highly sensitive to output prices, system acquisition cost and wage rates.
Lu N., Kikuchi M., Takagaki M. · 2022 · Plant Factory Basics, Applications and Advances (Elsevier), pp. 271-293