No abstract

Between aspirations and reality Making farming, food systems and rural areas more resilient, sustainable and equitable

Abstract

The development of food production in cities has raised some important questions about the governance of these activities and the role of city-regions. In this paper through four European case studies-Bristol (UK), Ghent (Belgium), Vigo (Spain), and Zurich (Switzerland) -we consider the ways in which food is governed at the city level. Our case studies demonstrate the role played by citizens in urban food and the challenges this brings to city-region governance. Through horizontal networking, being inspirational to other cities and citizens, communicating their demands and successes very clearly, urban food activists have raised significant questions about how cities are governed. Using the creation of localized identities, which are inclusive and embracing but rooted in their city, these food activists are looking to a future controlled by a democratic impulse rather than the technocracy of professional city managers. This paper uses a range of Weberian influenced theory to explore the topic of urban agriculture not as one simply about environmental performance but of the construction of new civic identities.

This paper focuses on the phenomenon of multifunctional urban food initiatives (MUFIs) and how, using food as a vehicle, they provide integrative solutions for a number of social, environmental and economic problems in European cities. Through an in-depth investigation of three MUFIs in the UK, Latvia, and Belgium, the paper aims to increase understanding on how different activities are combined within MUFIs, leading to the creation and strengthening of synergies: both internal, between the different activities performed within MUFIs, and external synergies between the MUFI and the (peri-)urban environment in which it operates. The three cases illustrate that the dense and complex urban environment in which they are situated provides possibilities to create a wide, diverse network around food, leading to a high potential for synergies to occur. In this way, MUFIs can respond to specific urban needs, which are not addressed by the state, and therefore have an important signaling function. For the MUFIs themselves, although being multifunctional increases opportunities, it is also a challenge to find the right balance between the different functions and not to lose sight of the economic side of the business. Local governments can support MUFIs by providing space for them, room to experiment, adapting regulations to getting MUFIs out of the "grey zones" of legislation, and by starting to strategically think about food in their city region.

No abstract

Vlaanderen is open ruimte OmiA Casus 1: WATER+LAND+SCHAP Ontwikkelen van een tool voor het verfijnen van de projectdoelstellingen en het vergroten van het draagvlak OmiA begeleidingsdag met EVALUEER_WLS tool VLAAMSE LAND MAATSCHAPPIJ vlm.be inbo.be ilvo.be Auteurs: Marlinde Koopmans, Lies Messely (ILVO), Wim Verheyden, Francis Turkelboom, (INBO), Bert Barla (VLM) Het INBO is het onafhankelijk onderzoeksinstituut van de Vlaamse overheid dat via toegepast wetenschappelijk onderzoek, data-en kennisontsluiting het biodiversiteits-beleid en -beheer onderbouwt en evalueert. Wijze van citeren: Koopmans M., Messely L., Verheyden W., Turkelboom F., Barla B. (2019). OmiA Casus 1: WATER+LAND+SCHAP -Ontwikkelen van een tool voor het verfijnen van de projectdoelstellingen en het vergroten van het draagvlak OmiA begeleidingsdag met EVALUEER_WLS tool. Rapporten van het Instituut voor Natuur-en Bosonderzoek 2019 (24). Instituut voor Natuur-en Bosonderzoek, Brussel.