This chapter has the aim to analyze the implications and interrelationships between a sustainable urban agro ecology and the food system. The beginning assumption of this analytical review considers that sustainable urban agro ecology has positive implications in the development of a sustainable urban food system. The analysis is based on the theoretical and empirical literature review confronted with common spatial-functional observations of urban development and configurations. The analysis concludes that the sustainable urban food system based on agro ecology is growing as an alternative movement towards the building and maintenance of a fairer and healthier urban sustainable environmental development.
TopUrban Agro Ecology
Agro ecology requires a fundamental cultural and philosophical approach to productive and efficient agriculture. Farming land had been incorporated by ancient cities. The new colonies of Greeks and Romans were settled around the agricultural activities (Kostof, 1991). Mediterranean and Middle Eastern societies have cultivated gardens for aesthetic and production purposes (O’Brien, 2010a). During the medieval times, agricultural farming land was available around the city walls (Cockrall-King, 2012; Howe et al., 2005; Steel, 2008). Steel (2008) and Van der Schans and Wiskerke (2012).During the pre-industrial times, intensive farming disappeared from cities and agriculture was relocated in an urban-rural divide.
Some former industrial cities in developed countries, now in shrinkage processes have a large supply of vacant lots where a large range of people are engaging in urban agro ecology (Colosanti & Hamm 2010). Urban agro ecology is a strategy for regenerating shrinking cities and leveraging a treatment for vacant land. The shrinking cities context of urban agro ecology in community garden projects have an influence on the benefits to community members contributing to the stability of (Tranel & Handlin, 2006).
The green agricultural revolution has increased the crop production but has proved to be unsustainable due to the side effects that damage the environment, biodiversity losses, etc. A cropping system in traditional agro ecology contributes to the stability and productivity of peasant farming in stressful conditions of the environment. Urban agro ecology practices are questioned if they can overcome the structural drivers, income and health disparities and poverty (Raj, Raja, & Dukes, 2016).