IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v10y2018i6p1844-d150269.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Who Cares? The Importance of Emotional Connections with Nature to Ensure Food Security and Wellbeing in Cities

Author

Listed:
  • Kora Uhlmann

    (School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia)

  • Brenda B. Lin

    (Land and Water Flagship, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Aspendale, VIC 3195, Australia)

  • Helen Ross

    (School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia)

Abstract

To be “connected” is “to care”, because how and what we care about is influenced, and influences, what we are connected with. Emotional connection predicts environmental concern and children exposed to green environments take this appreciation of nature with them into adulthood. However, the majority of the human population is now living within urban areas, where opportunities for people to interact and bond with nature are greatly diminished, thereby potentially threatening the liveability of cities into the future. Connection with nature has been shown repeatedly to benefit human wellbeing and predict pro-environmental behaviours. By definition “nature” includes urban agriculture, which is also an integral component of a city’s foodscape, thereby providing opportunities to improve the wellbeing of city inhabitants as well as help ensure food security. This will only be attainable if the next generation has an emotional connection to nature, and the necessary life skills to help them enter adult life as informed food citizens who make healthy and sustainable decisions for themselves as well as others. This paper reviews existing literature on foodscape (or one’s food environment) and biophilia (the love of life or living systems) to highlight the need for inter-disciplinary research that combines urban agriculture and food literacy to ensure future food security and wellbeing of urban inhabitants.

Suggested Citation

  • Kora Uhlmann & Brenda B. Lin & Helen Ross, 2018. "Who Cares? The Importance of Emotional Connections with Nature to Ensure Food Security and Wellbeing in Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-16, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:6:p:1844-:d:150269
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/6/1844/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/6/1844/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Anthony Winson, 2004. "Bringing political economy into the debate on the obesity epidemic," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 21(4), pages 299-312, January.
    2. Travis A. Smith, 2017. "Do School Food Programs Improve Child Dietary Quality?," American Journal of Agricultural Economics, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 99(2), pages 339-356.
    3. Twiss, J. & Dickinson, J. & Duma, S. & Kleinman, T. & Paulsen, H. & Rilveria, L., 2003. "Community Gardens: Lessons Learned from California Healthy Cities and Communities," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 93(9), pages 1435-1438.
    4. Kevin Morgan, 2010. "Local and Green, Global and Fair: The Ethical Foodscape and the Politics of Care," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 42(8), pages 1852-1867, August.
    5. Elizabeth Nisbet & John Zelenski & Steven Murphy, 2011. "Happiness is in our Nature: Exploring Nature Relatedness as a Contributor to Subjective Well-Being," Journal of Happiness Studies, Springer, vol. 12(2), pages 303-322, April.
    6. Kevin Morgan & Roberta Sonnino, 2010. "The urban foodscape: world cities and the new food equation," Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 3(2), pages 209-224.
    7. Shanahan, D.F. & Lin, B.B. & Bush, R. & Gaston, K.J. & Dean, J.H. & Barber, E. & Fuller, R.A., 2015. "Toward improved public health outcomes from urban nature," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 105(3), pages 470-477.
    8. Jessica Clendenning & Wolfram Dressler & Carol Richards, 2016. "Food justice or food sovereignty? Understanding the rise of urban food movements in the USA," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 33(1), pages 165-177, March.
    9. Lauren Lautenschlager & Chery Smith, 2007. "Beliefs, knowledge, and values held by inner-city youth about gardening, nutrition, and cooking," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 24(2), pages 245-258, June.
    10. Freeman, B. & Kelly, B. & Baur, L. & Chapman, K. & Chapman, S. & Gill, T. & King, L., 2014. "Digital junk: Food and beverage marketing on facebook," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 104(12), pages 56-64.
    11. Rachel Slater, 2001. "Urban agriculture, gender and empowerment: An alternative view," Development Southern Africa, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(5), pages 635-650.
    12. Grebitus, Carola & Printezis, Iryna & Printezis, Antonios, 2017. "Relationship between Consumer Behavior and Success of Urban Agriculture," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 189-200.
    13. Poulsen, Melissa N. & McNab, Philip R. & Clayton, Megan L. & Neff, Roni A., 2015. "A systematic review of urban agriculture and food security impacts in low-income countries," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 131-146.
    14. Ellis, Richard J. & Thompson, Fred, 1997. "Culture and the Environment in the Pacific Northwest," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 91(4), pages 885-897, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Alexia Barrable & David Booth, 2020. "Nature Connection in Early Childhood: A Quantitative Cross-Sectional Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-15, January.
    2. Mina Samangooei & Ralph Saull & Netta Weinstein, 2023. "Access to Nature Fosters Well-Being in Solitude," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-15, March.
    3. Claude-Hélène Mayer, 2021. "Understanding Wildlife Crime from Eco-Existential and African Perspectives: A Psycho-Philosophical Investigation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-19, November.
    4. Ilona Liliána Birtalan & Attila Bartha & Ágnes Neulinger & György Bárdos & Attila Oláh & József Rácz & Adrien Rigó, 2020. "Community Supported Agriculture as a Driver of Food-Related Well-Being," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(11), pages 1-17, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Alison Blay-Palmer & Roberta Sonnino & Julien Custot, 2016. "A food politics of the possible? Growing sustainable food systems through networks of knowledge," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 33(1), pages 27-43, March.
    2. Qureshi, Salman & Tarashkar, Mahsa & Matloobi, Mansour & Wang, Zhifang & Rahimi, Akbar, 2022. "Understanding the dynamics of urban horticulture by socially-oriented practices and populace perception: Seeking future outlook through a comprehensive review," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 122(C).
    3. Moragues-Faus, Ana & Battersby, Jane, 2021. "Urban food policies for a sustainable and just future: Concepts and tools for a renewed agenda," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    4. Vaz, Eric & Khaper, Monica, 2016. "New Resources For Smart Food Retail Mapping. A Gis And The Open Source Perspective," Journal of Tourism, Sustainability and Well-being, Cinturs - Research Centre for Tourism, Sustainability and Well-being, University of Algarve, vol. 4(4), pages 305-313.
    5. Navjot Sangwan & Luca Tasciotti, 2023. "Losing the Plot: The Impact of Urban Agriculture on Household Food Expenditure and Dietary Diversity in Sub-Saharan African Countries," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-20, January.
    6. Lara S. Franco & Danielle F. Shanahan & Richard A. Fuller, 2017. "A Review of the Benefits of Nature Experiences: More Than Meets the Eye," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 14(8), pages 1-29, August.
    7. Akuto Akpedze Konou & Kossiwa Zinsou-Klassou & Victoria M. Mwakalinga & Baraka Jean-Claude Munyaka & Armel Firmin Kemajou Mbianda & Jérôme Chenal, 2024. "Exploring the Association of Urban Agricultural Practices with Farmers’ Psychosocial Well-Being in Dar es Salaam and Greater Lomé: A Perceptual Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(16), pages 1-26, August.
    8. Christopher Yap, 2019. "Self-Organisation in Urban Community Gardens: Autogestion, Motivations, and the Role of Communication," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-21, May.
    9. Yasuo Ohe & Shinichi Kurihara & Shinpei Shimoura, 2014. "Evaluating willingness to become a food education volunteer among urban residents in Japan: toward a participatory food policy," Agricultural and Food Economics, Springer;Italian Society of Agricultural Economics (SIDEA), vol. 2(1), pages 1-19, December.
    10. Sky Roberts & Charlie Shackleton, 2018. "Temporal Dynamics and Motivations for Urban Community Food Gardens in Medium-Sized Towns of the Eastern Cape, South Africa," Land, MDPI, vol. 7(4), pages 1-12, November.
    11. Gabriele Schwarzmüller-Erber & Harald Stummer & Manfred Maier & Michael Kundi, 2020. "Nature Relatedness of Recreational Horseback Riders and Its Association with Mood and Wellbeing," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-16, June.
    12. Sofya Aptekar & Justin S. Myers, 2020. "The tale of two community gardens: green aesthetics versus food justice in the big apple," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(3), pages 779-792, September.
    13. Ciska Ulug & Elen-Maarja Trell & Lummina Horlings, 2021. "Ecovillage foodscapes: zooming in and out of sustainable food practices," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 38(4), pages 1041-1059, December.
    14. Han-Shen Chen, 2020. "The Construction and Validation of a Sustainable Tourism Development Evaluation Model," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-20, October.
    15. David W. Olivier, 2018. "A Cropping System for Resource-Constrained Urban Agriculture: Lessons from Cape Town," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(12), pages 1-12, December.
    16. Charlie M. Shackleton & Patrick T. Hurley & Annika C. Dahlberg & Marla R. Emery & Harini Nagendra, 2017. "Urban Foraging: A Ubiquitous Human Practice Overlooked by Urban Planners, Policy, and Research," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-18, October.
    17. Koen Gaast & Jan Eelco Jansma & Sigrid Wertheim-Heck, 2023. "Between ambitions and actions: how citizens navigate the entrepreneurial process of co-producing sustainable urban food futures," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 40(3), pages 1287-1302, September.
    18. S. Brent Jackson & Kathryn T. Stevenson & Lincoln R. Larson & M. Nils Peterson & Erin Seekamp, 2021. "Outdoor Activity Participation Improves Adolescents’ Mental Health and Well-Being during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(5), pages 1-18, March.
    19. Sara A. L. Smaal & Joost Dessein & Barend J. Wind & Elke Rogge, 2021. "Social justice-oriented narratives in European urban food strategies: Bringing forward redistribution, recognition and representation," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 38(3), pages 709-727, September.
    20. Gore, Christopher D., 2018. "How African cities lead: Urban policy innovation and agriculture in Kampala and Nairobi," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 108(C), pages 169-180.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:6:p:1844-:d:150269. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.