CETANA PROOF - Flipbook - Page 115
Creates Safer and more Prosperous Communities
The presence of vegetable gardens in urban neighbourhoods
“is positively correlated with decreases in crime, trash dumping,
juvenile delinquency, fires, violent deaths, and mental illness.”
Part of the reason is the social cohesion that naturally forms
as a result of disparate groups (based on age, ethnicity, and
socioeconomic status) cultivating together.
Participating in urban agriculture also lends to the development
of job skills and offers “entrepreneurial opportunities,” leading
to improved mental health related to personal satisfaction,
fulfillment, and overall well-being.
Reduces Agri-Food-based Pollution
Plant medium “reduces carbon dioxide, ground-level ozone
concentrations, and lowers urban mass temperatures,” while
on a community scale “locally grown food reduces the present
average of 1.300 miles that our food travels,” further reducing
GHG emissions and improving air quality. Given the locality,
supporting urban agriculture is more fuel efficient and less
polluting than conventional farming methods.
HEALTH BENEFITS
OF URBAN
AGRICULTURE
115
