2 Reassessment of Urban Sustainability …
45
2.5.3 Paradigm Shift
The Agenda 21 (1992) slogan ‘think global, act local’ caught the fancy of many
and importance was given on local actions to abate global issues. Local self-reliance
emphasises the principle that the localities should be able to derive their basic necessities from within their own physical footprints. To achieve this, local communities have to learn efficient and sustainable use of the limited resources available
to them generating resilience. However, at the same time it is overzealous to think
of a system which would be completely cut-off from the rest of the world; there
would be obviously interactions and exchanges but the thrust would be primarily
on the local production system. The relationship between urban forms and its corresponding bioregion decides whether it is consumption-oriented or is able to meet its
dietary requirements from its own boundaries or surroundings, delineating the city’s
ecological footprint [32].
The same has to be applicable for the urban areas too. Food production in the cities
can be initiated in home gardens, windowsill gardens, community gardens in the
vacant places, rooftop gardens in commercial spaces, government-supported urban
farms—depending on the circumstances and choice of the residents. Various scholars
have pointed out the importance of urban agriculture highlighting the potential a) in
reducing the local economic leakages; b) in providing increased access to indigenous
nutritious food and healthy lifestyle; c) in reducing detrimental environmental impact
due to anthropogenic activities and d) in generating a kind of close-knit community
feeling.
2.6 Role of Urban Agriculture in Delivering Results
Urban agriculture has been defined by Smit et al. [49] as an industry which
produces food (crops and livestock) and fuel mainly through intensive production
methods, processes them and even markets them as a response to the daily demand
of the consumers of the urban and peri-urban areas. The most befitting answer to
food insecurity in urban centres will be home gardening and urban agriculture which
can provide regular access to fresh produce and assure a balanced, nutritious diet.
Urban agriculture can be defined as all sorts of agricultural production occurring in
or around cities.
The modern cities characterised by urban sprawl face amplified travel distance
in procuring food through complicated distribution networks which lead to growing
carbon footprints and higher cost of procurement—affecting the urban poor. To
address these challenges rethinking about vacant spaces, available logistics and
existing manpower has to be done, where urban agriculture comes in. It has the
potential to modify the entire urban and agricultural landscape, improving local food
security and nutrition especially for the urban poor.
45
2.5.3 Paradigm Shift
The Agenda 21 (1992) slogan ‘think global, act local’ caught the fancy of many
and importance was given on local actions to abate global issues. Local self-reliance
emphasises the principle that the localities should be able to derive their basic necessities from within their own physical footprints. To achieve this, local communities have to learn efficient and sustainable use of the limited resources available
to them generating resilience. However, at the same time it is overzealous to think
of a system which would be completely cut-off from the rest of the world; there
would be obviously interactions and exchanges but the thrust would be primarily
on the local production system. The relationship between urban forms and its corresponding bioregion decides whether it is consumption-oriented or is able to meet its
dietary requirements from its own boundaries or surroundings, delineating the city’s
ecological footprint [32].
The same has to be applicable for the urban areas too. Food production in the cities
can be initiated in home gardens, windowsill gardens, community gardens in the
vacant places, rooftop gardens in commercial spaces, government-supported urban
farms—depending on the circumstances and choice of the residents. Various scholars
have pointed out the importance of urban agriculture highlighting the potential a) in
reducing the local economic leakages; b) in providing increased access to indigenous
nutritious food and healthy lifestyle; c) in reducing detrimental environmental impact
due to anthropogenic activities and d) in generating a kind of close-knit community
feeling.
2.6 Role of Urban Agriculture in Delivering Results
Urban agriculture has been defined by Smit et al. [49] as an industry which
produces food (crops and livestock) and fuel mainly through intensive production
methods, processes them and even markets them as a response to the daily demand
of the consumers of the urban and peri-urban areas. The most befitting answer to
food insecurity in urban centres will be home gardening and urban agriculture which
can provide regular access to fresh produce and assure a balanced, nutritious diet.
Urban agriculture can be defined as all sorts of agricultural production occurring in
or around cities.
The modern cities characterised by urban sprawl face amplified travel distance
in procuring food through complicated distribution networks which lead to growing
carbon footprints and higher cost of procurement—affecting the urban poor. To
address these challenges rethinking about vacant spaces, available logistics and
existing manpower has to be done, where urban agriculture comes in. It has the
potential to modify the entire urban and agricultural landscape, improving local food
security and nutrition especially for the urban poor.