Beyond the urban/rural divide

Bio-intensive farming, garden sharing, grow bags, garden roofs, green facades, hothouses, hydroponics: the powerful revival of farming in urban areas takes many forms and is challenging, once again, the traditional distinction between the urban and the rural domain. The program will look at the wide ranging benefits of urban farming: from a traditional core of activities associated with the production, processing, marketing, distribution, and consumption, to recreation and leisure, individual and community health, social cohesion, energy efficiency, quality of food, landscape beautification, and environmental remediation. There are powerful implications in city planning as well: urban farming is gaining currency as credible alternative to traditional development in revitalizing declining post-industrial cities in the US – such as Buffalo and Detroit – by using empty lots to grow vegetables. The recent revival of allotment gardens in Berlin, created in the early 19th century as a response to poverty and food insecurity, presents yet another opportunity for integration, as gardens and buildings lie side-by-side within the urban area, with little or no connection.