1
Number Number
Sudents Courses
Undrg 2909 14
Master 1718 44
PhD 642 20
Total 5269 78
The Faculty of Social Sciences and
Humanities (Faculdade de Ciências
Sociais e Humanas - FCSH) forms part
of theUniversidade Nova de Lisboa.
Created in 1977 to offer social sciences
courses that were absent in the
Universidade de Lisboa.
Number Number
Sudents Courses
Undrg 2909 14
Master 1718 44
PhD 642 20
Total 5269 78
Teaching
Staff
306
Adm Staff 107
research
Units
25
(2012)
3
Master Program in Human Ecology
and Contemporary Social
Problems
4 semesters, 120 ECTS (6 seminars
during 2 semesters plus 2
semestres to write the thesis)
PhD in Human Ecology
8 semesters (5 seminars during 2
semesters plus 6 semesters to
write the thesis)
Post Graduate Offer in Human Ecology at FCSH-Nova
PhD research Issues
Environmental refuges;
Management of the
commons; artisanal
fisheries; local
ecological knowledge;
Eco critic, earth
condominium;
management of
protected areas; health
and the environment
4
Prof. Zbynek Ulcak Lukáš Kala
Department of Environmental Studies
Masaryk University, Brno, Check Republic
5
http://ecologiahumanafcsh.weebly.com/
Urban Gardening in
Lisbon City
Iva Pires Im.pires@fcsh.unl.pt
Brno, May 2016
6
7
What is Urban Gardening
“an industry that produces, processes, and
markets food, fuel, and other outputs, largely
in response to the daily demand of consumers
within a town, city, or metropolis, on many
types of privately and publicly held land and
water bodies found throughout intra-urban
and peri-urban areas. Typically urban
agriculture applies intensive production
methods, frequently using and reusing natural
resources and urban wastes, to yield a diverse
array of land-, water-, and air-based fauna and
flora, contributing to the food security, health,
livelihood, and environment of the individual,
household, and community industry located
within or on the fringe of a town, city or
metropolis, which grows or raises, processes
and distributes a diversity of food and nonfood
products” Smit et al. (2001: 1)
- Smit, J., Nasr, J. & Ratta, A. (2001a). Cities that feed themselves. In Urban Agriculture: Food, Jobs and Sustainable Cities. USA:
The Urban Agriculture Network
Elements that tended to be present:
- the location in which urban
agriculture occurs;
- the types of activities included
under urban agriculture;
- the legality and type of land
tenure under which the urban
agricultural activities occur;
- the scale of urban agricultural
activities;
- the purposes of the activity,
- and the types of groups involved
in agricultural production
8
Land tenure
- Private urban gardens - found in
backyards or balconies of private
homes
- Institutional urban gardens where
property and land
management are done by
institutions such as schools,
prisons and hospitals – and
- Urban gardens located on vacant
land that is public property.
FAO (2007)
Urban Gardens
Location
Peri-urban
Intra- urban
FAO (2001). Urban and Peri
Urban Agriculture: A briefing
guide for the successful
implementation of Urban and
Peri-urban Agriculture in
Developing Countries and
Countries of Transition
9
“UA practitioners’ actions are based on the resources in the urban setting. Often
utilizing vacant lots or other abandoned places within the neighborhood” (Opitz
et al, 2016)
Apartments in Phuket, Thailand. Pic viasreetartutopia.com
10
The War Food Administration created a
National Victory Garden Program, which set
five main goals.
1. lessen demand on commercial vegetable
supplies and thus make more available to
the Armed Forces and lend-lease programs.
2. reduce demand on strategic materials
used in food processing and canning
3. ease the burden on railroads transporting
war munitions by releasing produce carriers
4. maintain the vitality and morale of
Americans on the home front through the
production of nutritious vegetables
outdoors
5. preserve fruit and vegetables for future
use when shortages might become worse
https://sidewalksprouts.wordpress.com/history/wwii/
“Victory Gardens“ during WW2
(Heimer, 2008)
11
Urban Gardeners in Berlin, 1946.
https://sidewalksprouts.wordpress.com/hist
ory/wwii/
During the post war period the
Urban Gardens flourished
throughout Europe in order to
respond to the economic
difficulties and the scarcity of food
As a result, in Russia and other
Eastern European countries, many
families began to produce food in
their backyards, on patios
factories, hospitals, in parks and
even along roads (Heimer, 2008).
12
Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)
It was introduced in 1962 and though a system
of agricultural subsidies to farmers and other
programmes increased the food production in
the EEC .
It has undergone several changes since then to
reduce the cost (from 71% of the EU budget in
1984 to 39% in 2013) and to also consider rural
development in its aims.
13
Urban Farming
Periods of economic crises, of
conflict../less developed
countries
Food production to ensure food
safety
Periods of stability/more
developed countries
Recreational, aesthetic, social,
environmental, didactic
Food safety Recreational
14
The benefits of urban gardening are well reported
creation of social capital and social support through social
connections (Kingsley & Townsend, 2006; Firth, et al., 2011)
environmental education and to combat "social amnesia" regarding
our dependence on nature (Bendt, et al., 2013)
15
acting as reservoirs of "socio-ecological memory” and
contributing to maintain ecosystem services (Barthel et al.,
2010)
promoting social justice and public participation through
environmental practices (Milbourne, 2012)
contributing to food security (Barthel &Isendahl ,2013)
16
The main concern regarding the practice of urban
agriculture has to do with its proximity to populated areas
that in some cases are polluted.
Food produced in polluted environments by chemical and
debris may cause contamination to the population either
by direct contact with the products - for gardeners - either
by residues in food that they eat - for consumers
Pollution and chemical contamination
17
Urban gardening is also enjoying a revival, which is appeased
by several factors, among them, the desire of people to
connect with the production of healthy food and with the
Nature, and to develop a spirit of community.
“Community gardens have enjoyed a resurgence in popularity in many
developed market economies in recent years, including in the UK, the
USA and Australia. This upsurge is influenced by the desires of people
to reconnect with food, nature and community. e” - Firth, Maye &
Pearson (2011: 555)
Firth, C., Maye, D. & Pearson, D. (2011). Developing “community” in community
gardens. Local Environment, 16, 555 - 568;
18
Urban farming has become an increasingly relevant topic in the
science and planning of urban food systems aimed at reducing
food insecurity at the level of the household and community.
The current global crisis and the acknowledgment that, in coming
decades, the world population will be predominantly urban,
brings about new necessities and demands for innovative
approaches to food systems’ planning.
The need urges to identify the most efficient and consistent ways
to deal with problems concerning economic and energetic
efficiency, environmental quality, food security, job creation and
urban development.
19
In the past few years, the international political and scientific agendas,
strategies for food security in metropolitan areas, both in and out of
Europe, highlight the need to re-localize production-consumption systems
through more efficient shorter supply chains, as a means to promote
sustainable urban development via place-based approaches.
Looking into an urban food system
as a Foodscape considered as the
spatialization of foodways and the
interconnections between people,
food and places (in Kenneally and
Lebel, 2009:69) relies on an
integrated and systemic approach
that is useful either to the
conceptual framework or the
communication ability on a
collaborative urban food planning
process.
20
Lisbon City
548,000 inhabitants in 2011
LMA 2.5 million
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-
G4AWJ9KjzJ0/Tdb7qxIfacI/AAAAAAAAUfI/qKeMAdqKcCY
/s1600/portugal_mapa.gif
the term "Urban Gardens" refers to
the Intra-urban Agriculture on land
owned by the Municipality of Lisbon,
and were the vegetable production is
used to meet a variety of needs of
gardeners.
21
Lisbon City
On the reverse of other European cities
where urban gardening has been
integrated on the urban planning, in
Lisbon it occurred spontaneously as a
response to social and economic needs.
They started to grow spontaneously since the early 60’s mainly in the peri-urban
areas related first with the migration from rural areas to the city and in the 80’s
associated with migrant communities especially those coming from former
Portuguese colonies. (Cabannes and Raposo, 2013). They used private void
spaces or mostly municipality owned lands.
http://jregiao-online.webnode.pt/products/hortas-%C3%A0-beira-do-
ic19-ajudam-a-alimentar-desfavorecidos/
22
The economic crises transformed this small
farming production into a fundamental mean
of subsistence for many families
increasing demand for allotments
More recently middle income families are
showing increasing interest mainly driven by
the desire to establish a healthy life style, to
connect to nature and to ensure the quality of
food products they eat.
https://www.publico.pt/ciencia/noticia/lisboa-vai-ter-mais-e-
melhores-hortas-urbanas-ate-2011-1382724
http://jra.abae.pt/plataforma/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/221.jpg
23
The Municipality decided to intervene
Integrating them in the city
green infrastructure and
incorporate them into urban
planning
to control and organize the
allotments
24
Within this framework a Strategy for Urban Agriculture was defined
and projected the construction of 20 horticulture parks (sets of urban
farms integrated in defined areas) until 2017.
In 2015 10 horticultural parks already opened to the public.
This process of
reorganization of illegal
urban farming is part of
the Lisbon’s Green Plan,
adopted in 2007, were
agriculture was
assumed as an
important component
of the ecological
structure of the city
25
This Strategy for Urban Agriculture aimed at responding to several
challenges:
- The scarcity of available green spaces in the city ( green space
availability: 27.8m2 per capita, Mata, 2014).
- the objectives of the Green Plan to link most green spaces through
ecological corridors;
-to mitigate the impact of channeling waterlines by creating water basins
in strategic valleys to reduce the impact of flooding (Telles, 2010).
- The need to reorganize allotments that were growing fast (partly due to
economic crisis and rising unemployment) and unorganized
- Increasing demand for allotments
26
urban gardens should be included in Horticulture Parks, consisting of
urban infrastructures used by farmers but also open to the public
keeping different leisure uses and creating pathways for pedestrian
and bicycles, approaching the agricultural activities of the remaining
population (Henriques, 2009).
multifunctional spaces
27
This orientation is in line with the
European Commission (2013) “Green
Infrastructure – Enhancing Europe’s
Capital Natural”, were there is an explicit
call for the inclusion of this “strategically
planned network of natural and seminatural
areas” in the spatial planning and
territorial development policies.
The urban agriculture provides not only
food but several ecosystem services that
are essential to establish a green
infrastructure to connect urban, periurban
and rural areas in a functional basis.
28
In 2007 the municipality started a process of regularization of
these areas. In 2009 started the implementation by displacing
the famers working there to re-integrating them once the
project was finished.
29
1. Mapping of existent allotments
2. Mapping of potential allotments according to soil conditions (master
plan)
3. Creating a municipal regulation to distribute the allotments
4. Implementation process/creation of Horticultural Parks
5. Provide skills and education programs for urban farmers
6. Supervision
The creation urban farm parks in Lisbon was a step by step process :
(Interview with a staff member from the Municipality)
30
http://ephemerajpp.com/2011/03/06/h
ortas-urbanas/
When the process started farmers in
illegal allotments were afraid of
loosing the access to the land and
feel that the Municipality was not
giving them the adequate
information on what she was
planning.
In 2011 the farmers organized a
“moveable assembly” to discuss
their concerns about the process of
reorganization of allotments and to
share information.
31
The process of organization of urban farming parks
implied
-The reorganization and standardization of the size
of the allotments
- The creation of infrastructures namely:
- access to potable water sources
- collective shelter for tools protection
- The reintegration of previous farmers and the
selection of new ones
-And a supervision:
-to ensure that all farmers are fulfilling the
rules,
-are using the organic mode of production
- to impede the construction unauthorized
types of fences or shelter structures
32
The process of organization of Horticulture Parks implied
- Reorganizing and unifying the plots, providing infrastructures, water
access, and small sheds for tools storage
- The re-integration of previous users and the selection of new ones
-And a supervision to ensure that all farmers fulfill the rules:
- namely the organic mode of production (after technical training
offered by the municipality), composting, no chemical pesticides or
herbicides, no chemical fertilizers, no Genetic Modified Organisms
(GMO) and no use of infesting species.
- to hinder the construction of unauthorized types of fences or
shelter structures, or to plant trees
33
Tipology of Lisbon urban farms according to the
Municipality
Municipal expectant
areas of temporary
occupation
Areas meant for
production and
leisure as classified
in the Municipal Plan
DISPERSED URBAN FARMS
SOCIAL URBAN FARMS
RECREATIONAL URBAN FARMS
PEDAGOCIAL URBAN FARMS
Increase the family
income
Added value for the city
(reduces the
management cost of the
green infrastructure)
Social integration
Benefits for the public
health
Environmental added
value resulting from the
balanced management
of urban spaces
URBAN
FARMS
34
SOCIAL
- Goal: Sustenance.
- Minimum parcel area: > 100m2.
- Price: Yearly, Mandatory
- Organic production mode: no mandatory
- On Municipal Urban Parks:
80% discount over general price of 1,6EUR/m2/Year + MAINTENANCE COSTS
90% DISCOUNT FOR ASSOCIATIONS
RECREATIONAL
- Goal: Recreational, for fun, educational
- Minimum parcel area: > 50m2.
- Price: Yearly, mandatory
- Organic production mode: Mandatory.
- On Municipal Urban Parks
20% discount over general price of 1,6EUR/m2/Year + MAINTENANCE COSTS
90% DISCOUNT FOR ASSOCIATIONS
TIPOLOGY OF MUNICIPAL ORGANIZED URBAN FARMING PARKS IN LISBON
Spontaneous
35
In this process from spontaneous and illegal to regulated urban
gardening:
-What happened to the previous “farmers” (mainly immigrants,
unemployed, low income families)?
-Where they excluded from the process?
-Do they have the conditions to access the new organized plots?
Organized plotsGentrification?
36
Interviews are in course in this reorganized social urban farms in order
to evaluate the integration of the farmers that were settled there
before the city council’s intervention.
To observe if there were a kind of “gentrification” process with the
substitution of the old farmer for a new ones
as nowadays it is a fashion to be a “urban gardener” but also the
demand for the allotments increased due to the economic crisis and the
high unemployment
37
The Horticultural Park in Vale de Chelas is
the city's largest, covering about 15
hectares, of which 4.5 are used for urban
gardens.
This park includes about 200 plots, each
with 150 square meters, with a part directly
attributed to the nearly 100 people who
were already occupying the place, and the
remaining reserved for a public tender that
occurred in 2013.
38
From the 17 farmers interviewed ;13
men and 4 women
5 are unemployed; 8 are retired; and
4 are employed.
Portugal, Cape Verde, Angola and
India.
Within the group of "old" farmers, the
practice of urban gardening varies
from over 30 years to 3-4 years. The
"new" farmers arrived between
December 2013 and February 2014.
39
Motivation
In general people have the will to fill their time with something that gives
them pleasure and that allows them to socialize. The contribution to the
household income, although mentioned by most of the farmers, does not
seem to be the priority among these 17 farmers.
But 7 farmers mentioned the contribution for the household income to be
the main aim before anything else and 4 sell their products on a regular
base.
One women said that she was testing Indian native species in her plot, to
find out if the soil and the weather were appropriate and case of being
successful she intends to sell the products to Indian restaurants in the city.
40
Motivations
In recreational parks
with the growing concern about ingesting better quality products as more
and more people prefer, nowadays, an organic production with the use of
natural resources and mechanisms of natural regulation, in detriment of the
conventional way, specially couples with young children
(Gonçalves, 2014)
41
Social Relations
The relationships among them are reported to be very good and
conflicts are rare.
The exchange seeds, products but also good practices.
The Cap Verdean farmers are known among the urban garners to be
very skilled in the use of water for irrigation and they teach those
techniques to the other farmers.
42
Organic production mode
implies higher production cost
In the case of social farms there is some contradictory information
-On one hand the official information states that it is not mandatory for the
social farms
-But farmers are not aware of this option; they all attended courses on
organic farming and assume that its is a rule that they have to fulfill
-1 old farmer said that he was abandoning his gardening because of the high
cost involved in organic farming and that it was not rentable anymore
-Another one although remaining for the moment wasn´t satisfied not due to
economic difficulties but because in his opinion nobody should pay to have
access these allotments and they shouldn't be obliged to use organic
prodution
43
Also, quality of the soil is reported to be very low.
At the time the city council flattened the irregularities of the
topography, soil was brought to fill the gaps. This soil is said to be
very muddy and very hard to work. When it rains it turns to mud,
and when the sun comes and dries the land it becomes very hard
and compact.
So, to get some results people have to invest on composting and
fertilization which increases the costs.
According to the “old” farmers the land was better before the city
council’s intervention.
Quality of the soil
44
Farmers sometimes report to other farms, such
as the one in Olivais or Quinta da Granja to
compare with their own, namely in what
regards the pathways between the allotments.
“When it rains it becomes impossible to walk
here, the Municipality should do something. I
have been doing it around my allotment, but it
is their duty”. “If you go to the Olivais farms
you will see the difference, everything is
uptight, with stone paths, not as it is here”.
The pathways are perceived as being
responsibility of the Municipality and thus this
situation brings farmers the idea that they
“don’t care about us”!
Quality of the infrastructures
45
The fact that cars are not allowed in the area was reported by most
of the interviewees. People have many difficulties to carry heavy
things through the stairs, it is quite a long way to arrive with 10 kgs
bags of (organic) fertilizer.
Also, families or friends with mobility problems (old people,
disabled people, there were cases of both) just can’t reach the
farms. The state of the pathways on rainy days also hinders the
access to these people.
Accessibility
46
In general farmers don't have any complaints regarding the
project itself.
As one farmer said “well, it is a good project anyway, they
could have just thrown us out but because we were illegal
they didn´t and it is more beautiful now, more organized”.
47
Before After
They have to pay to have access to those
allotments
They have to follow the rules defined for
the use of those spaces
They have to use organic mode of
production
They improve their working conditions
They have access to water and other
infrastructures
They have access to courses and technical
support namely on
Composting and fertilization techniques
Pests and diseases control
Natural hedgerow conceptions
Water management
Increased food production and quality
No infrastructures
Difficult access to water
Poor working conditions
Free use
Total freedom to chose the types of
cultures
Total freedom to chose mode of
production
They new all each other well
They could organize barbecues
48
Nevertheless, the creation of Horticultural Parks was a top-down
very organized process were previous users had no participation.
Activities in the farms are supposed to respect a certain aesthetics
conception. By proposing certain behaviour, such as planting flowers
on the fences, or by prohibiting certain uses which are considered to
be less aesthetic, the Municipality ensures that his aesthetic concept
will be maintained by the farmers.
49
Apart from this top-down process leaded by the Municipality also a
bottom-up process occurred.
In Alta de Lisboa the users created an association (AVAAL – Associação
para a Valorização Ambiental Alta Lisboa) to discuss with the
Municipality the reorganization of the space and had an active
participation in the creation of this park
https://grupocomunitarioalta.files.wordpress.com/2010/01/junho-
2009.jpg?w=450&h=337
50
Discussion
This new Horticultural parks respond to several challenges:
-they improved capacity of producing food and providing quality food
(organic production is mandatory or highly incentivized);
- they provide new green spaces for inhabitants as well as for tourists (they
quickly appropriated this parks for leisure activities);
-They contribute to control flooding which is very common in the city
during the rainy season, providing ecological services
-In general farmers are happy with the change. The availability of water is
considered the most important aspect in their positive evaluation of this
process of reorganization and legalization of allotments
51
Discussion
-In the social farms the users report positive impacts in socialization (those
who are retired), food security of the family (in the case of unemployed)
and even creating opportunities for small scale entrepreneurship;
- in what regards the hypothesis of “gentrification” of the urban farms
through the legalization of these areas, our preliminary results do not
confirm it. In general farmers do not find the fee they have to pay too high,
except for two of them (one that already gave up), all of the others intend
to continue farming in the new allotment parks.
- finally, in the case of Alta de Lisboa it also contributed to a learning
process of participatory governance, for the community as well as for the
municipality .
52
Number of Horticultural Parks created in the main cities in Portugal
Source: internet research
Total
allotment gardens – 3327
Area – 234419 m2
53
The “New Rural”
54
Noocity Urban Ecology is a luso-brazilian start-up, based in
Oporto (Portugal) focused in developing equipment for
urban agriculture. The name Noocity comes from mixing the
prefix NOO, representing collective consciousness (based on
the noosphere concept), with the word CITY, representing
the urban universe.
Pedro
MonteiroCan’t
stop thinking
about the
product!
José Ruivo Plans
to turn each one of
you into a farmer!
Leonor Babo
Keeps
explaining our
dream to
everyone!
55
Further Steps
Continue interviews in other horticultural parks
 Analyze their impact in the city's economy by
estimating its contribution to the urban food supplying.