AGRI-URBAN SPECTRUM: Designed by Stephen’s Planning, this infographic illustrates different sustainable agricultural methods at different points in the rural-urban continuum. As you can see, there are ways for every kind of community to get involved in promoting a sustainable food system:
1. Silviculture/forestry: preserve and manage forests by controlling growth, soil erosion and quality, and various other methods.Â
2. Aquaculture/fishery: cultivating and harvesting marine organisms in a controlled envrionment
3. Agriculture/farm/ranch: traditional forms of harvesting crops or raising livestock
4. Viticulture/vineyard: managing vineyards such as controlling pests, fertilizing, watering and maintaining
5. Organic farming: restrictions on pesticide use, sustainable farming practices. For more information on organics click here
6. Agri-tourism/farm stay: usually increases awareness about farming practices by encouraging the community to visit or stay at the farm.Â
7. Farm stand: a location where farmers sell their own produce
8. Boutique farm: farms that offer other services like bed and breakfasts or unique and special productsÂ
9. Backyard animals: owning your own sources of livestock, like a goat or a chicken co-opÂ
10. Raised garden bed: a form of home gardening with a planter a few feet of the ground, which can keep pests away and keep crops warmer and away from less than ideal soilsÂ
11. Edible landscape: instead of filling your garden with flowers, using vegetables and edible plants to landscape your yard or even in public spaces (e.g., functional fruit trees instead or ornamentals on side walks)
12. Greenhouse: a way of continuing agriculture despite natural weather occurrences. On one hand this keeps food available in winter, but they are heavy on energy use and cost a lot to maintain.
13. Farmer’s Markets: a central location where farmers in the area can sell their produce to the communityÂ
14. Community garden: gardens that are open to all community members where everyone works to maintain the garden, along with having the benefits of taking home the produce grown
15. Civic/park garden: a similar concept as community gardens but sponsored by the city or governing body
16. Market/street festival: similar to a farmer’s market but extends to all community businesses; allows the community to come together by exposion to individual projects.Â
17. Community supported agriculture: members of a community purchase a share of a farms crop, and in return, receives a box of produce from that farmÂ
18. Roof-top gardens: becoming popular in urban settings, adding green vegetation and reducing energy by keeping the building by keeping it cool in the summer and warm in the winter
19: Living building: perhaps the most sustainable architecture conceivable, as the building incorporates living vegetation. For more info click here
20. Vertical farm: Planting tiers of crops throughout highrise buildings. Still conceptual, but relevant to conditions of global urbanization. For more information click here