| Urban agriculture is a dynamic concept, given the wide range of urban situations and stakeholders. This diversity is one of its main attributes. Urban farming systems are in constant development as urban farmers adapt their existing practices or come up with new ones. Innovation is continuously taking place. Previous UA-Magazines have looked at its multiple functions, its role in community building, experiences with policy development for urban agriculture and support to urban farmer organisations. Taking this line further, this issue looks at how urban farmers can be supported in their efforts to improve their livelihoods. As in rural areas, farmers in cities are constantly adapting to changing circumstances and are experimenting and innovating on their own. This issue of the UA-Magazine takes stock of a broad range of experiences related to innovation by urban farmers and the efforts of other actors to support the farmers’ initiatives. It explains concepts and gives examples of farmers’ innovation and how it is being stimulated. Contributions are on technical innovations in vegetable farming for confined spaces, in water use, in livestock production, and in waste recycling, but also on social innovation as in community based agriculture or innovation in marketing and entrepreneurial agriculture. These experiences show that technical innovations often have to go together with organisational or institutional innovations. Special emphasis in this issue is given to the use of participatory methodologies for promoting innovation in urban farming systems. | |
This issue of Urban Agriculture Magazine is a collaborative effort of the RUAF Cities Farming for the Future Programme; PROLINNOVA (Promoting Local Innovation), an international learning and advocacy network that currently involves governmental and non-governmental organisations in 16 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America on promoting local innovation in ecologically-oriented agriculture and natural resource management (www.prolinnova.net); and Urban Harvest, a system-wide initiative of the Consultative Group of International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) to direct and coordinate the collective knowledge and technologies of the Future Harvest Centres towards strengthening urban and periurban agriculture (http://www.cipotato.org/urbanharvest/home.htm).
The issue starts with two articles that systematise rural and urban experiences in enhancing local innovation processes. In the first introductory article, Will Critchley, Chesha Wettasinha and Ann Waters-Bayer present lessons learnt in a series of programmes that sought to scale up and institutionalise participatory approaches to innovation development in agriculture and natural resource management. The second introductory article, by Henk de Zeeuw and Gordon Prain discusses how specific urban conditions influence the process of innovation in urban farming. The urban setting, the authors argue, offers numerous opportunities and challenges for technical, organisational and institutional innovation. Following these two introductory articles, this issue presents 19 case studies on agricultural innovation in cities around the world. Together, these articles cover a wide spectrum of experiences from a total of 18 countries in the North and the South.
We would appreciate your comments on the articles in this issue and welcome further reports on your own experiences in stimulating innovation in urban agriculture.
René van Veenhuizen
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Urban agriculture is a dynamic concept, given the wide range of urban situations and stakeholders. This diversity is one of its main attributes. Urban farming systems are in constant development as urban farmers adapt their existing practices or come up with new ones. Innovation is continuously taking place.
William Critchley, Chesha Wettasinha and Ann Waters-Bayer
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Since agriculture began some 10,000 years ago, it has been shaped and spread almost exclusively by the farmers themselves, and for the most part without the help of scientific research or extension agencies. Farmers came up with ideas, carried out experiments and arrived
at their own conclusions. Innovation by farmers was the way forward: this local innovation, indeed, was the dynamic process that led to the
development of farming traditions.
William Critchley, Maxine Brown and Judith Ann Francis
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Dickie Morrison keeps goats in his yard, between his house and his neighbour’s place within a residential suburb in Jamaica. Dickie is an
innovator, producing fattened goats from his own feed-mix that he skillfully formulates himself. His goats are fed on a concoction of by-products from food processing plants, chopped-up fodder grass and leucaena leaves (a leguminous tree). Visitors are proudly shown how Dickie chops the vegetation with his specially modified electric chaff-cutter and mixes the feed. It is clear that the goats enjoy the food; and they appear sleek and healthy as well. Visitors likewise enjoy the spectacle.
Gordon Prain and Henk de Zeeuw
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
The preceding article by Critchley et al. presents important experiences gained in rural development programmes regarding how to support technological and socio-organisational innovation in farming systems. To what extent can such rural-based experiences be applied in the urban context? How do the specific urban conditions influence the process of innovation in urban farming systems? What are the main technological and socio-organisational challenges at hand in the urban context? In what ways can local innovation processes in urban farming systems
Marit Brommer and William Critchley
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
It is increasingly recognised that in rural areas of developing countries the microenvironment around the household/ home garden is the centre of productive resources (Chambers, 1990; Scoones, 2001; Critchley et al.,in preparation). Not only are people based there, but animals tend to be housed close by and crop production is more intensive and diversified around the homestead. The most common hotspot of fertility and production is thus around the house and compound. From the point of view of water, the home is again a concentration point: not only is water brought there for various domestic purposes (and wastewater thus available after use), but also roof tops and compacted compounds give rise to runoff.
Bernard Keraita, Pay Drechsel, William Agyekum and Lesley Hope
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Irrigated vegetable farming is a common practice in and around many cities in low-income countries. It is also an important means for attaining urban food security and balanced diets, and it provides a livelihood to many urban dwellers. However, increasing contamination of irrigation water sources makes this practice a major risk factor for public health, especially as most vegetables grown are consumed raw. Urban vegetable farmers in Ghana use different water sources for irrigation, depending on the location of their farming sites. Surface water is most commonly used as it is easily accessible and thus most economical. Farmers collect it from streams, stormwater drains
and gutters with greywater. However, these water sources are usually heavily contaminated with untreated wastewater.
Zhang Feifei, Cai Jianming and Ji Wenhua
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Beijing is a city faced with a shortage of water. Less than 600 mm of rain falls per year; but this figure is highly variable and actual rainfall has been lower than average in the past eight years. Less than 300 cubic metres of water is available per person per year; this is one eighth of the average volume per person available in the country as a whole and one thirtieth of the world average. Because of the downward trend in rainfall, surface water is gradually drying up and the level of ground water is declining.
Thilak T. Ranasinghe
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Home gardening is usually seen as a subsistence-oriented production system. However, in urban and suburban areas land is a precious
resource, which is why home gardening can be turned into a profitable production system. In this context the concept of the Family Business Garden was launched on World Environment Day 2000 in Sri Lanka.
Roxanne Christensen
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Cities are impulsive, boisterous, spontaneous, and competitive, while agriculture is plodding, tranquil, deliberate and deferential. SPIN-Farming is helping to create a world where for one to be right, the other does not have to be wrong.
Claudia Patricia Gonzalez Rojas
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
The population of the Bogota Capital District is increasing rapidly. A major reason for this is internal migration. The need for housing for these displaced people has contributed to the accelerated use of periurban and urban areas for construction of houses, affecting the availability of land suitable for urban agriculture. Meanwhile, there is an increase in the demand for arable land and for food that contributes to a balanced diet.
Awa Ba and Ngouda Ba
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Micro-gardening is an innovative response by farmers to urban constraints, but also to urban demands with respect to the quality of products. The urban context in that sense is conducive to technological innovation because of the numerous developments and interactions which take place.
Jessica Alegre, Gordon Prain and Miguel Salvo
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Pig raising is an important livelihood activity in the District of Lurigancho Chosica, which is a low-income periurban neighbourhood located in the Rimac valley in the eastern part of the city of Lima. As many as 1600 families are thought to depend on this activity for some or all
of their income. Without organisation, technical support or regulation, they mostly operate in small clusters of informal livestock units perched on the arid hillsides of this desert city. This type of production raises concerns about public health risks and environmental pollution, and yet relatively simple changes in management can make pig raising a profitable, sustainable activity that can contribute
significantly to the well-being of urban and periurban families.
Hans Peter Reinders and Hans Repko
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Wine production in the Netherlands is increasing. Since the Netherlands is not a traditional wine-producing region there is a tremendous need for new knowledge. This knowledge is partly imported from other regions with similar characteristics, such as Germany. But since every location is unique, specific knowledge also needs to be developed. Research is limited for such a small sector in the Netherlands, so a lot of innovations are developed by the growers themselves. A good example of an innovative enterprise is the Dutch vineyard El Placer, located in the city of Lelystad.
Sanderijn van Beek and Rebecca L. Rutt
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Uncollected solid waste is one of Kampala’s most visible environmental problems, and one of the main causes of environmental degradation within the city. While this poses a critical health hazard to the livelihoods of the urban poor, it also hinders economic growth and social achievement (Sengendo, 1994). However, amidst the gloom, there are local initiatives – developed by enterprising individuals and groups – which are helping to address waste problems through the creative reuse of organic waste in urban farming. Some of these innovations are rapidly becoming common practice; others are still experimental.
BJ Njokwe and M. Mudhara
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
In Msunduzi Municipality of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, backyard gardens are growing in popularity. People use small pieces of land to
produce crops, often municipality-owned open grounds or wastelands in their vicinity. Some councillors encourage this and may provide tools and seeds. This policy support is also based on the realisation that sustainable agriculture can contribute to a reduction in pollution in the city.
Berihun Tefera and Getachew Tikubet
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Solid waste management is a major challenge facing the cities in the developing world. The commercial recycling of organic waste into a valuable organic fertiliser called “Bio-compost” is new in Addis Ababa and it is having a noticeable impact on improved organic waste management and urban agriculture.
Augustin Cihyoka
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
The city of Bukavu, the administrative centre of South-Kivu Province, is situated in Eastern DR Congo some 2,000 km from the capital, Kinshasa. It is an important commercial, administrative and university centre with a population of over 600,000 inhabitants. For several
reasons many of them have turned to farming to secure their livelihoods.
Nieves Gonzales, Miguel Salvo and Gordon Prain
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Organically-produced food is increasingly in demand among more affluent urban populations of developing countries, and these city dwellers are willing to pay a premium for food quality and safety. Agricultural producers living in and around these cities are well placed
to take advantage of this lucrative market.
Erika R. Allen
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Growing Power is a national nonprofit organisation and land trust that supports people from diverse backgrounds and the environments
in which they live. Growing Power provides hands-on training, on-the-ground demonstration, outreach and technical assistance through the
development of Community Food Systems that help people grow, process, market and distribute food in a sustainable manner.
Juan Izquierdo, Gilda Carrasco, Juan José Estrada and Sara Granados
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Urban and periurban agriculture requires the use of appropriate technologies that reduce environmental impacts, are easy to implement by the urban farmers, are low-cost, and use local inputs. Since 1996, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has
been promoting the use of a number of appropriate technologies.
Nevin Cohen
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Innovative US developers are integrating farmland into their residential areas (subdivisions), providing space for food production and linking residents to their farmer-neighbours, with positive consequences for both. Suburban farms can be an important part of a sustainable regional food system.
Hailu Araya, Alemayehu Ayalew, Azeb Werqu and Nigusie HaileMariam
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
As urbanisation increases in Ethiopia, city dwellers are responding in innovative ways to problems of high unemployment and opportunities of high market demand by growing crops and raising animals. Many people in poor families, especially women and youth, take these initiatives because they already knew farming before they migrated to town, or they learned it from others who were farming in town.
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Please find attached the books section.
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Please find attached the Websites section.
In: UA Magazine no. 19 - Stimulating Innovation in Urban Agriculture
Please find attached the events section.
STRENGTHENING URBAN PRODUCER ORGANISATIONS
ISSN 1571-6244
no. 19, december 2007
UA Magazine is published two times a year by the network of resource centres on Urban Agriculture and Food Security (RUAF), under the Cities Farming for the Future Programme, which is financed by DGIS, the Netherlands, and IDRC, Canada.
UA Magazine is translated into French, Spanish, Chinese, and Arabic, and distributed in separate editions through the RUAF regional networks, and is also available on www.ruaf.org.
The RUAF Partners are:
• Latin America: IPES Promoción del desarrollo Sostenible, Lima, Peru; email: au@ipes.org.pe; Website: www.ipes.org/au
Magazine in Spanish and Portugese
• Frenchspeaking West Africa: IAGU Institut Africain de Gestion Urbaine, Dakar, Senegal; email: moussa@iagu.org; Website: www.iagu.org/ruaf/ruafiagufr.php Magazine in French• English-speaking West Africa: International Water Management Institute, IWMI-Ghana; email: o.cofie@cgiar.org ; Website: www.iwmi.cgiar.org/africa/west_africa/projects/rUAFii-cFF.htm
• East and Southern Africa: MDP Municipal Development Partnership (MDP); email: tmubvami@mdpafrica.org.zw ; Website: www.mdpafrica.org.zw/urban_agriculture.html
• South and South East Asia: International Water Management Institute, IWMI-India; email: r.simmons@cgiar.org ; Website: www.iwmi.cgiar.org/southasia/index.aspnc=9106&msid=119
• North Africa and Middle East: American University of Beirut, email: zm13@aub.edu.lb; Website: www.ecosystems.org/urbanagriculture ; Magazine in Arabic
• China: IGSNRR Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resource Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences; email: caijm@igsnrr.ac.cn; Website:http://www.cnruaf.com.cn/ ; Magazine in Chinese
• Coordination and Support: ETC Foundation; email: ruaf@etcnl.nl; Magazine in English: www.ruaf.org
Editors, No. 19
This issue was compiled by René van Veenhuizen (responsible editor), together with Will Critchley, Ann Waters Bayer and Chesha Wettasinha of ProLinnoVA, and Gordon Prain of CIP - Urban Harvest.
Web Editing, Events, and Books
Femke Hoekstra and René van Veenhuizen
Administration
Ellen Radstake
Language Editor
Catharina de Kat-Reynen
Design, Layout and Printing
Koninklijke BDU
Subscriptions
The Editor: ruaf@etcnl.nl
Address
Urban Agriculture Magazine
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3830 AB Leusden
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