Multifunctional benefits

The global theme ‘multi-functional benefits’ has been identified as one of the main recurring themes. The respondents, i.e. state and non-state actors, have highlighted the different positive impacts that urban community gardening have created from a social, environmental, aesthetic and well-being perspective in the different areas of the city. These four main categories of benefits represent our organizing themes: ‘urban regeneration’, ‘environmental resilience’, ‘social resilience’ and ‘well-being’ (appendix 8 (b)).

6.1.1 Urban regeneration

Within the organizing theme of ‘urban regeneration’, we have grouped all the answers suggesting that urban community gardening contributes to the requalification of areas of the city.

Such requalification might happen as a contribution to beautification or improved aesthetic to create a sense of respect and place.

(1) “we have converted an anti-terrorist wall into a beautiful bench on top, that is pleasant to look at” [...] nobody wants Copenhagen to be transformed in a concrete jungle” (Respondent 11); “we make the city greener and more beautiful” (Respondent 10; Respondent 9).

Or as an intervention to the socio-economic deterioration of an area which presents poor conditions for public spaces and public life e.g. affected by crime, vandalism, unemployment and homelessness among others:

(2) “with drug addicts we wanted to create a sense purpose in their lives”

(Respondent 11); “after we started this gardening program, less criminality has been noticed in the area [...] it is really easier to talk to homeless people when all are working in the garden and ask each other for advices” (Respondent 4);

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“the gardening project in Tingbjerg started in a ‘ghetto’ in Nordvest that it is very well known for the criminal activities but it gained a lot of success among the residents” (Respondent 7).

6.1.2 Environmental Resilience

In ‘environmental resilience’ we have grouped all the benefits resulting from engagement in urban community gardening e.g. spreading environmental awareness, contribution to climate change adaptation and mitigation etc.

Among them, some relate to promoting and introducing nature and biodiversity in the city and reconnecting citizens to food and nature, both geographically and through education to environmental sustainability and sustainable agriculture.

The multiple ecosystem services performed by urban gardening have been acknowledged by the different social innovators and entrepreneurs as well as the members of the municipality:

(3) “the urban farmers provide people with new connections to food and environment” (Respondent 1); “the municipality loves what we are doing for the city and they are well aware of the immense potential of urban farming for the environment” (Respondent 9, Respondent 11, Respondent 10).

The mere engagement in gardening or farming is in itself a leisure activity for the participants, but also an opportunity to expand knowledge about food and environment. As some respondents highlighted:

(4) “we want people to learn about plants and animals so they can start taking care of it now and in the future” (Respondent 7); “gardening and contact with nature and learning about it, changes people mentality for the better”

(Respondent 11), “We get people the chance to grow things so they become knowledgeable [...] our product could be seen as a small supplement to our diet” (Respondent 6).

The majority of urban gardening initiatives engage in ad-hoc projects with schools in the area and see that investment on children for environmental education is necessary for a sustainable and resilient society of the future:

(5) “we are also involved in some school projects, where we can combine our knowledge with the school curricula enriching the classroom experience through hands on learning” (Respondent 10; Respondent 7; Respondent 11;

Respondent 3).

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The majority of respondents have mentioned a willingness to reconnect people living in cities with the food they eat, by getting production of food closer to where it is going to be finally consumed:

(6) “we place our production where customers and resources are, so we don’t use transportation: it is much healthier, fresher and you get it directly supplied to you [...] the climate impact it has is so huge!” (Respondent 3); “I give my recipe to make pesto out of wild herbs that can easily be found in the urban nature, so people can make it at home” (Peter).

Finally, urban gardening and multifunctional green areas, more generally, seem to be used as nature-based solution for climate adaptation purposes. The professionalism of some leaders of experts in urban gardens have co-designed and consulted the municipality for climate adaptation plans for specific areas of the city:

(7) “City gardens ensure a comfortable climate in the city” (Bynatur Strategi 2015-2025); “I was involved and I got to cooperate with Østergro and many other stakeholders to the climate adaptation plan for the St. Kjeld’s Neighborhood, where plants and gardens would be the solution to flooding caused by cloudburst” (Respondent 11).

6.1.3 Social resilience

The development of a sense of togetherness, respect for each other, common identity and trust seems to be, for the majority of respondents, a key benefit of engaging in urban community gardening. Some participants, mentioned that urban gardening activities played a crucial role in transforming the neighborhood into a:

(8) “close community of people living in the area, by favoring social interactions and engagement in common projects” (Respondent 5;

Respondent 4; Respondent 2).

Another ‘basic theme’ that has frequently emerged relates to the strengthening of an already existing community. Both state and non-state actors mentioned that activities collateral to gardening such as “communal dinners” are potentially as important as the gardening itself to make the community members bond.

Moreover, other respondents related the same theme to the business context to an education context:

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(9) “I see my clients becoming more cohese, more patient and respectful towards one-another” (Respondent 11); “in schools, kids learn how to work together to achieve common results, learn that we depend from one another and need each other” (Respondent 10).

Finally, the last basic theme relating to social resilience concerns the aspect of community creation. Some respondents further mention the high degree of demographic, social, and ethnic diversity of the people frequenting the gardens.

They portray as a place of integration, and inclusion for different minorities:

(10) “It is open to everybody, there is no fence as you can see [...] we want everyone in principle” (Respondent 7); “it is a nice mix of people [...] some Afghan and Somali women are also part of the community [...] we work often with homeless and people with drug difficulties” (Respondent 4).

6.1.4 Well-being

Lastly, urban gardening activities are seen as responsible for promoting a sense of well-being. This might result from, among others, a sense of accomplishment and skill development,

(11) “we really want to empower people, to learn some new abilities”

(Respondent 10), “we give them a sense of responsibility towards something other than themselves” (Respondent 11); “we feel that with our initiatives we contribute to improve our society and we can already see the direct impact on our neighborhood” (Respondent 4, Respondent 6)

As well as socialization:

(12) “kids are not used to talking to elderlies in their daily lives, but the elderlies see kids and they just want to hug them” (Respondent 7); “this is a place where we want everybody to feel welcomed and accepted [...] our recipe is to always create a fun and friendly atmosphere, therefore it is very important to always bring some good cakes or coffee” (Respondent 10).

The feeling of wellbeing seems to also be linked with the healthy and environmentally conscious lifestyle promoted through the implementation of urban gardening initiatives:

(13) “people are tired of busy lives and to eat things that are produced God knows where, [...] through gardening they learn to develop patience and learn how to exercise care” (Respondent 11), “a while after starting to garden in

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communities you realize that people want to start eating organic and enjoy living “slow”” (Respondent 11, Respondent 10).

Reflections

Overall, urban gardening initiatives seems to result in multiple benefits which are recognized by different set of actors. However, as we will discuss later, two respondents have also highlighted the by-products of the beautification aspect of urban gardening.

Also, when discussing their perspectives on diffusion of their social impact, a clear distinction emerged between not-for profit and for-profit actors. The former either do not have the possibility or the willingness to grow but engage in education projects and open up the garden to external visits. The for-profit actors instead are also interested in growing organically (geographically, enlarging the customer base, diversifying their social business) as they believe their business expansion will also increase their “social returns”.