As urban populations continue to increase it is essential to consider ways of reducing their impact in terms of the use of natural resources, waste production and climate change. The increasing number of people in cities requires new strategies to supply the necessary food with limited provision of land and decreasing resources. This will become more challenging unless innovative solutions for growing and distributing food in urban environments are considered. The scale of modern food production has created and exacerbated many vulnerabilities and the feeding of cities is now infinitely more complex. As such, the food system cannot be considered secure, ethical or sustainable. In the last few years, there has been a rapid expansion in initiatives and projects exploring innovative methods and processes for sustainable food production. The majority of these projects are focused on providing alternative models that shift the power back from the global food system to communities and farmers improving social cohesion, health and wellbeing. It is therefore not surprising that more people are looking towards urban farming initiatives as a potential solution. These initiatives have demonstrated that urban agriculture has the potential to transform our living environment towards ecologically sustainable and healthy cities. Urban agriculture can also contribute to energy, natural resources, land and water savings, ecological diversity and urban management cost reductions. The impact urban agriculture can have on the shape and form of our cities has never been fully addressed. How cities embed these new approaches and initiatives, as part of new urban developments and a city regeneration strategy is critical. The 2nd International Conference on Urban Agriculture and City Sustainability addressed these challenges and the search for new solutions. The presented papers which form this volume detail research works looking at how urban agriculture can contribute to achieving sustainable cities.

Papers presented at the 1st International Conference on Urban Agriculture and City Sustainability are contained in this book. The research reviews ways in which urban agriculture can contribute to achieve sustainable cities and considers ways of reducing the impact in terms of use of natural resources, waste production and climate change.

Urban areas result in a series of environmental challenges varying from the consumption of natural resources and the subsequent generation of waste and pollution, contributing to the development of social and economic imbalances. As cities continue to grow all over the world, these problems tend to become more acute and require the development of new solutions. The challenge of planning sustainable contemporary cities lies in considering the dynamics of urban systems, exchange of energy and matter, and the function and maintenance of ordered structures directly or indirectly supplied and maintained by natural systems. The task of researchers, aware of the complexity of the contemporary city, is to improve the capacity to manage human activities, pursuing welfare and prosperity in the urban environment. Any investigation or planning for a city ought to consider the relationships between the parts and their connections with the living world. The dynamics of its networks (flows of energy-matter, people, goods, information and other resources) are fundamental for an understanding of the evolving nature of today’s cities. Large cities are probably the most complex mechanisms to manage. They represent a fertile ground for architects, engineers, city planners, social and political scientists, and other professionals able to conceive new ideas and time them according to technological advances and human requirements. Papers presented at the 14th International Conference on Urban Regeneration and Sustainability address the multidisciplinary components of urban planning, the challenges presented by the increasing size of cities, the number of resources required and the complexity of modern society. Various aspects of the urban environment are covered and a focus is placed on providing solutions which lead towards sustainability.

Urban agriculture (UA) is a dynamic concept that comprises a variety of livelihood systems ranging from subsistence production and processing at the household level to more commercialized agriculture. It takes place in different locations and under varying socio-economic conditions and political regimes. The diversity of UA is one of its main attributes, as it can be adapted to a wide range of urban situations and to the needs of diverse stakeholders. This paper aims to provide pertinent information on profitability and sustainability of UA to a wide audience of managers and policymakers from municipalities, ministries of agriculture, local government, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), donor organizations and university research institutions. It aims to highlight the benefits of linkages between agriculture and the urban environment, leading to a more balanced understanding of the conflicts and synergies. It examines how UA can contribute substantially to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), particularly in reducing urban poverty and hunger (MDG 1) and ensuring environmental sustainability (MDG 7).

In the vibrant discourse of urbanization and climate change, Sustainable Urban Agriculture: New Frontiers investigates emerging needs, rising challenges, and opportunities to support urban agriculture. Navigating the dynamic interplay of urbanization and environmental challenges, the book introduces two pivotal agendas for urban sustainability—the "green" agenda, focusing on environmental health, and the "brown" agenda, emphasizing human well-being and social justice. The book embraces a global perspective by confronting geographical biases and advocating for context-specific understanding and early interventions in small and medium cities. This transformative journey guides readers through uncharted territories, fostering profound awareness of urban agriculture's role in shaping a sustainable and resilient future in agriculture. Features Presents information on socio-ecological resilience, shaping a sustainable urban future Unveils practical implications, traversing frontiers where urban cultivation extends beyond crops, cultivating a thriving urban ecosystem Discusses diverse urban agriculture practices, from traditional methods to cutting-edge technologies Providing readers with an understanding of the multifaceted layers inherent in urban agriculture, this volume in the NextGen Agriculture: Novel Concepts and Innovative Strategies series is essential for academics, students, practitioners, and experts in urban agriculture and planning, horticulture, landscape architecture, and plant sciences.

Most of us live in cities. These are becoming increasingly complex and removed from broad-scale agriculture. Yet within cities there are many examples of greenspaces and local food production that bring multiple benefits that often go unnoticed. This book presents a collection of the latest thinking on the multiple dimensions of sustainable greenspace and food production within cities. It describes the diversity of 'urban agriculture' and seeks a balanced representation between the biophysical and the social. It deals with urban agriculture across scales - from indoor plants to farm-scale filtration of greywater. A range of examples and initiatives from both developed and developing countries is described and evaluated.

Consisting of presented papers from the 15th International Conference on Urban Regeneration and Sustainability, the included works address various aspects of the urban environment and provide solutions leading towards sustainability. Urban areas result in a series of environmental challenges varying from the consumption of natural resources and the subsequent generation of waste and pollution, contributing to the development of social and economic imbalances. As cities continue to grow all over the world, these problems tend to become more acute and require the development of new solutions. The challenge of planning sustainable contemporary cities lies in considering the dynamics of urban systems, exchange of energy and matter, and the function and maintenance of ordered structures directly or indirectly supplied and maintained by natural systems. The task of researchers is to improve the capacity to manage human activities, pursuing welfare and prosperity in the urban environment. Any investigation or planning on a city ought to consider the relationships between the parts and their connections with the living world. The dynamics of its networks (flows of energy matter, people, goods, information and other resources) are fundamental for an understanding of the evolving nature of today’s cities. Large cities represent a fertile ground for architects, engineers, city planners, social and political scientists, and other professionals able to conceive new ideas and time them according to technological advances and human requirements. Coastal areas and coastal cities are an important area covered in this volume as they have some specific features. Their strategic location facilitates transportation and the development of related activities, but this requires the existence of large ports, with the corresponding increase in maritime and road traffic and all its inherent negative effects. This requires the development of well-planned and managed urban environments, not only for reasons of efficiency and economics but also to avoid inflicting environmental degradation that causes the deterioration of natural resources, quality of life and human health. These research papers put a focus on sustainability across the multidisciplinary components of urban planning, the challenges presented by the increasing size of cities, the number of resources required and the complexity of modern society.

This book profiles various cases that are emerging in addressing global challenges in the context of SDGs for society in the era of climate change and covers case studies of projects being undertaken to tackle biodiversity, food security, climate change, energy and water security. The book is written by 37 authors, and will appeal to various stakeholders including academics working within the identified thematic areas, policy planners, development agencies, governments and United Nations agencies. The adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015 ushered a new era in the global development agenda as the world transitioned from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The new era of SDGs that are all-inclusive, unlike the MDGs with the focus now being on ensuring human success that is predicated on environmental protection. The year 2020 marked five years post the adoption of the SDGs with increased calls for stock-taking of progress made amid strong calls for a decade of action to accelerate the delivery of the SDGs by 2030. These calls have been louder now given the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which reset the global economy and increased intensity of extreme weather events across the world. Since climate change has emerged as one of the biggest threats to the achievement of the SDGs, there has been growing concerns on its impact on biodiversity loss and the extinction of some species. There are also concerns regarding increased food insecurity at the household level in some parts of the world, particularly in Asia and Africa. With the demand for climate change action on the increase, there have also been growing calls for the big carbon emitters to drastically cut their emissions and invest in clean energy to save the planet by following development pathways making emissions stay under the 1.5°C increase in temperature.

There has been growing attention paid to urban agriculture worldwide because of its role in making cities more environmentaly sustainable while also contributing to enhanced food access and social justice. This edited volume brings together current research and case studies concerning urban agriculture from both the Global North and the Global South. Its objective is to help bridge the long-standing divide between discussion of urban agriculture in the Global North and the Global South and to demonstrate that today there are greater areas of overlap than there are differences both theoretically and substantively, and that research in either area can help inform research in the other. The book covers the nature of urban agriculture and how it supports livelihoods, provides ecosystem services, and community development. It also considers urban agriculture and social capital, networks, and agro-biodiversity conservation. Concepts such as sustainability, resilience, adaptation and community, and the value of urban agriculture as a recreational resource are explored. It also examines, quite fundamentally, why people farm in the city and how urban agriculture can contribute to more sustainable cities in both the Global North and the Global South.