Global population growth reached a tipping point in mid-2009, when the world population became more urban than rural for the first time in history.  Sixty percent of the global population is expected to live in cities by 2050, challenging local governments’ institutional capacity to improve urban livability and maintain food security. This presentation outlines city greening and urban agriculture zoning ordinances as opportunities for mitigating urban environmental impacts and reducing regulatory burden through collaborative governance. 

Urban rooftop farms (URF) combine urban greening and agriculture techniques that reduce environmental impacts associated with urban areas. This webinar will discuss established urban agriculture zoning laws in the United States, examine successful city-greening models from Europe, and examine local regulatory measures that could promote URFs. There will also be a discussion of the benefit of URFs in improving food security, reducing food mileage cost internalization, and the economics of climate change. Improving food security in large cities by insourcing food production can partially address resource waste associated with high food mileage, while encouraging city greening to mitigate climate change. Finally, the webinar will present information on how local governments can tackle climate change and urban food security challenges with an inside-out approach that closes systemic gaps and combats resource wastefulness.

Approved for  1.25 CM credit