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The spaces and times of community farming

Author

Listed:
  • Pingyang Liu

    (Fudan University)

  • Paul Gilchrist

    (University of Brighton)

  • Becky Taylor

    (Plumpton College)

  • Neil Ravenscroft

    (University of Brighton)

Abstract

This paper uses a multiple case study approach to researching people’s everyday lives and experiences of six community farms and gardens in diverse settings in China and England. We argue that collective understandings of community are bound up in everyday action in particular spaces and times. Successful community farms and gardens are those that are able to provide suitable spaces and times for these actions so that their members can enjoy multiple benefit streams. These benefits are largely universal: in very different situations in both England and China, CSA members make strong connections with the land, the farmers and other members, even in cases where they rarely visit the farms and gardens. This suggests that community farming and gardening initiatives possess multi-dimensional transformational potential. Not only do they offer a buffer against industrialised and remote food systems, but they also represent therapeutic landscapes valued by those who have experienced time spent at or in connection with them. Our findings indicate that—regardless of location or cultural context—these benefits are durable, so that people who have been engaged in multiple activities at a community farm or garden continue to enjoy these benefits long after most of their engagement has ceased.

Suggested Citation

  • Pingyang Liu & Paul Gilchrist & Becky Taylor & Neil Ravenscroft, 2017. "The spaces and times of community farming," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 34(2), pages 363-375, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:agrhuv:v:34:y:2017:i:2:d:10.1007_s10460-016-9717-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s10460-016-9717-0
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Čajka, Adam & Novotný, Josef, 2022. "Let us expand this Western project by admitting diversity and enhancing rigor: A systematic review of empirical research on alternative economies," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    2. Si Tan & Weiping Chen, 2019. "Can members’ WeChat engagement affect relational outcomes in community‐supported agriculture? Empirical evidence from China," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 35(1), pages 36-52, January.
    3. Mirka Erler & Christoph Dittrich, 2020. "Middle Class, Tradition and the Desi-Realm—Discourses of Alternative Food Networks in Bengaluru, India," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-15, March.
    4. Antonella Samoggia & Chiara Perazzolo & Piroska Kocsis & Margherita Del Prete, 2019. "Community Supported Agriculture Farmers’ Perceptions of Management Benefits and Drawbacks," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(12), pages 1-21, June.
    5. Francesca Gori & Alessandra Castellini, 2023. "Alternative Food Networks and Short Food Supply Chains: A Systematic Literature Review Based on a Case Study Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-18, May.
    6. Shinichi Kitano, 2020. "Formation Factors and Effects on Common Property Resource Conservation of Community Farms," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-19, June.

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