Document Type
Working Paper
Date of this Version
2021
Advisor
Shane T. Jensen
Abstract
Previous research has indicated that urban agriculture offers a wide variety of health, economic, and social benefits for participants. Urban farms need to consider what factors and mechanisms allow them to engage more of their community to share these benefits. Examining four case studies of urban farms across Philadelphia, this paper strives to illuminate the lessons and themes of community engagement in urban agriculture. I draw upon information from prior research, online sources, in-person site visits, and semi-structured interviews with farm operators. The findings offer insight into how events and programming, marketing and outreach, leadership and vision, funding and partnerships, and physical design all interact to shape an urban farm’s ability to engage with its community.
Keywords
urban agriculture, urban farm, nonprofit, urban development, urban regeneration, place-making, resiliency, poverty alleviation, neighborhood revitalization, community, social accessibility, social capital, community-building, community development, empowerment, food justice, food access, nutrition, sustainability, green space, environment, environmental stewardship, education, self-sufficiency, youth development, public space
Included in
Agribusiness Commons, Civic and Community Engagement Commons, Community-Based Research Commons, Environmental Studies Commons, Food Security Commons, Food Studies Commons, Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies Commons, Social Policy Commons, Urban, Community and Regional Planning Commons, Urban Studies Commons, Urban Studies and Planning Commons
Date Posted: 09 November 2021