A Holistic Sustainability Assessment Method for Urban Food System Governance

Landert, Jan; Schader, Christian; Moschitz, Heidrun; Stolze, Matthias

doi:10.3390/su9040490

Cited by 52 publications

(59 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…More generally, there are also important questions about how production resources (e.g., seeds) are controlled, and by whom, and the issue of self-determination among producers. Urban food systems, and their impact on ecosystems and socio-economic conditions, form another issue that has already drawn a great deal of attention [32]. All these issues, unfortunately, must fall beyond the scope of this essay, yet they are a constant presence in the backdrop to our considerations [33,34].…”

Section: The Changing World Of Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainable Agriculture and Quality of Working Life: Analytical Perspectives and Confirmation from Research

Gosetti

2017

Sustainability

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Abstract:We begin by examining the multidimensional nature of sustainability, a concept we generally understand in terms of three overarching dimensions (environmental, social and economic), and propose that the concept of social sustainability be translated in terms of those aspects that we believe connote good working conditions. Stepping beyond a concept of sustainability that is dependent on the imposition of limits, we take as our starting point the concept of decent work adopted by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and argue that it is possible to conceive of, and even design, a sustainable job within a sustainable economy and society by thinking in terms of quality of working life. Subsequently, having introduced some of the changes we are witnessing in the world of work, and in the agricultural sector in particular, we provide a theoretical and methodological description of a model framework we propose for analysing quality of working life. In the concluding part of the essay, we include some of the results of a research project that investigated quality of working life among employees of farms and agricultural businesses in a province in northern Italy.

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Section: The Changing World Of Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainable Agriculture and Quality of Working Life: Analytical Perspectives and Confirmation from Research

Gosetti

2017

Sustainability

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“…Recent works are taking this more holistic perspective of urban food systems. For example, Landert et al [46] propose a framework to evaluate urban food system governance. Efforts have also been directed towards assessing and planning city-region food systems [47].…”

Section: What Is Assessed?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…-Theme-based frameworks, which cluster indicators around four dimensions of sustainability (environment, economy, society, and governance). There are many examples in the literature that depart from these dimensions [46] and even expand them, for instance adding cultural and food quality aspects [36]. In the case of Nasir et al, [50] they develop an index for measuring sustainability in food systems using three dimensions of food security: accessibility, availability and utilisation.…”

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confidence: 99%

Measuring Progress in Sustainable Food Cities: An Indicators Toolbox for Action

Moragues‐Faus

Marceau

2018

Sustainability

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Despite the growth of urban food policies across the globe, a key challenge remains around measuring the impact of these initiatives in building more sustainable and just cities. The literature identifies as the main barriers to progress food system assessments the lack of clear definitions of sustainability, insufficient data, the low applicability of global conceptualisations to local conditions and vice versa and low levels of actor involvement. We aim to address these gaps by co-developing a sustainability assessment framework to evaluate food systems performance in UK cities. The framework emerging from this collaborative process overcomes key limitations of previous exercises by providing a place-based and participative definition of sustainability aligned with global conceptualisations, building on the experiences and needs of a wide range of practitioners and taking a holistic but non-prescriptive approach to understanding food system outcomes. However, its application to the city of Cardiff reveals new challenges, mostly regarding the need to incorporate underrepresented stakeholders as well as account for multiscalar food system interdependencies and their positive but also negative impacts. Results show the need to embed critical perspectives in sustainable food assessments that actively expand their transformative capacity by developing further inclusive, participatory, place-based and whole-systems approaches.

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“…Finally, a myriad of grassroots initiatives are also responding to the need for sustainable food systems at the local level, alongside more contextually-relevant measures (e.g., Slow Food Presidia [26] or urban food production [27]). However, to track the contributions of various local initiatives to food system sustainability over time would then be like "comparing apples and oranges".…”

Section: Food System Sustainability: Concepts and Measurement Challengesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Food System Sustainability across Scales: A Proposed Local-To-Global Approach to Community Planning and Assessment

et al. 2017

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Interest in food systems sustainability is growing, but progress toward them is slow. This research focuses on three interrelated challenges that hinder progress. First, prevailing visions lack a concrete definition of sustainability. Second, global level conceptions fail to guide responses at the local level. Third, these deficiencies may lead to conflicting initiatives for addressing sustainable food systems at the community level that slow collective progress. The purpose of this article is to (1) describe the development of a framework for assessing food system sustainability which accommodates local-level measurement in the context of broader national and global scale measures; and (2) to propose a process that supports community determinacy over localized progress toward sustainable food systems. Using a modified Delphi Inquiry process, we engaged a diverse, global panel of experts in describing "success" with respect to sustainable food systems, today's reality, and identifying key indicators for tracking progress towards success. They were asked to consider scale during the process in order to explore locally relevant themes. Data were analyzed using the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development (FSSD) to facilitate a comprehensive and systematic exploration of key themes and indicators. Key results include a framework of indicator themes that are anchored in a concrete definition of sustainability, stable at national and global scales while remaining flexible at the local scale to accommodate contextual needs. We also propose a process for facilitating community-level planning for food system sustainability that utilizes this indicator framework. The proposed process is based on insights from the research results, as well as from previous research and experience applying the FSSD at a community level; it bears promise for future work to support communities to determine their own pathways, while contributing to a more coordinated whole.

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A Holistic Sustainability Assessment Method for Urban Food System Governance

Cited by 52 publications

References 17 publications

Sustainable Agriculture and Quality of Working Life: Analytical Perspectives and Confirmation from Research

Sustainable Agriculture and Quality of Working Life: Analytical Perspectives and Confirmation from Research

Measuring Progress in Sustainable Food Cities: An Indicators Toolbox for Action

Food System Sustainability across Scales: A Proposed Local-To-Global Approach to Community Planning and Assessment

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