Redefining Urban Agriculture: From Hobby to Integrated Urban System

Why It Matters

Understanding this shift is crucial for designers and urban planners. It opens opportunities to design integrated systems that leverage urban agriculture for ecological, social, and economic benefits beyond simple cultivation.

Key Finding

While laws still view urban agriculture narrowly as a hobby, research and broader discourse recognize it as a complex system involving public participation, integrated urban and rural spaces, and a wider range of economic and social functions.

Key Findings

• Current domestic laws define urban agriculture primarily for hobby, leisure, study, or experience.
• Distinction between farmers and urban farmers is based on purpose and economic activity.
• Literature expands the definition to include all agricultural activities in and around cities, encompassing secondary and tertiary industries and public participation.
• Spatial scales are broadening beyond specific administrative districts to include connected and hybridized urban-rural contexts.
• The functions and values of urban agriculture have significantly expanded.

Research Evidence

Aim: How have the definitions, scales, and perceived functions of urban agriculture evolved in South Korea, and what are the implications for its integration into urban systems?

Method: Literature and legal document analysis

Procedure: Collected and analyzed narratives related to urban agriculture from 1980 to 2022, focusing on definitions, distinctions between farmers and urban farmers, spatial scales, and multidimensional functions and values.

Context: Urban agriculture policy and practice in South Korea

Design Principle

Design for multi-functionality and systemic integration in urban environments.

How to Apply

When designing urban spaces or systems, consider how urban agriculture can be integrated to serve multiple purposes, such as food production, community engagement, education, and ecological enhancement.

Limitations

The study focuses on South Korea, and findings may not be directly transferable to other geographical or cultural contexts. The analysis relies on existing narratives and legal frameworks, which may not fully capture emergent practices.

Student Guide (IB Design Technology)

Simple Explanation: Urban farming isn't just for fun anymore; it's becoming a bigger part of how cities work, offering more than just food.

Why This Matters: This research shows that the idea of urban agriculture is changing, which means designers have new opportunities to create innovative solutions that fit these evolving needs.

Critical Thinking: To what extent do current urban planning policies reflect the expanded, research-driven narratives of urban agriculture's potential?

IA-Ready Paragraph: Research indicates a significant evolution in the perception and scope of urban agriculture, moving from a hobby-centric definition within legal frameworks to a broader understanding encompassing integrated urban functions and diverse stakeholder participation, as evidenced by analyses of South Korean policies and literature (Kim et al., 2023). This shift presents opportunities for design to address multifaceted urban challenges.

Project Tips

• When researching urban agriculture, look beyond just the 'growing' aspect to understand its social, economic, and environmental roles.
• Consider how different stakeholders (residents, businesses, government) perceive and interact with urban agriculture.

How to Use in IA

• Use this research to justify a broader scope for your design project, moving beyond a simple product to a system or service.
• Cite this study when discussing the evolving definitions and functions of urban agriculture in your design context.

Examiner Tips

• Demonstrate an understanding of how the context of a design problem (like urban agriculture) evolves over time and across different sources (laws vs. literature).
• Show how your design responds to these evolving definitions and functions.

Independent Variable: Time period (1980-2022), source type (laws, literature)

Dependent Variable: Definition of urban agriculture, perceived functions and values, spatial scales, stakeholder definitions

Strengths

• Comprehensive analysis of a long time-series of data.
• Distinguishes between legal definitions and broader academic/practical narratives.

Critical Questions

• How can design actively bridge the gap between narrow legal definitions and broad functional potentials of urban agriculture?
• What are the key drivers behind the evolution of urban agriculture narratives, and how can these be leveraged in design?

Extended Essay Application

• Investigate the diffusion of innovation for urban agriculture technologies and practices across different scales (household, community, city-wide).
• Analyze the role of narrative framing in influencing policy and public adoption of urban agriculture initiatives.

Source

Scales and Narratives of Urban Agriculture in South Korea · Journal of people, plants, and environment · 2023 · 10.11628/ksppe.2023.26.6.597