Cultivating connections in the urban agriculture movement: An exploratory analysis of diversity and engagement in Philadelphia

This paper presents the results of case study research on urban agriculture (UA) in Philadelphia. From a city region’s perspective, the gamut of initiatives—including community engagement, policy advocacy, formal UA governance, enterprises and supporting organizations or institutions—are studied as an UA movement. By problematizing and scrutinizing this movement, the paper explores underlying dynamics, the multitude of objectives, commonalities as well as tensions in the UA movement and exclusionary mechanisms. In this way, we can start to reflect on the impact of UA in a city and how a limited set of resources should be allocated, taking the diversity and complexity of the UA movement into account. Finally, questions are formulated to further and substantiate the discussion on governance of UA in Philadelphia.