Cultivating More Sustainable Communities: A Look at How Urban Agriculture Nonprofit Organizations are Addressing Gentrification in the Nation's Capital

For years, the benefits of urban agriculture have been discussed in countless scholarly works and has been embraced by nonprofits as a way to strengthen communities and improve food access for disadvantaged groups. However,... [ view full abstract ]

For years, the benefits of urban agriculture have been discussed in countless scholarly works and has been embraced by nonprofits as a way to strengthen communities and improve food access for disadvantaged groups. However, despite how well-documented these benefits are, we must be mindful of the potential negative impacts these spaces can have on disadvantaged communities. With the pressures of gentrification becoming ever more present for people of color and low-income individuals, urban gardens and farms are becoming less accessible for these individuals, as the demographics of the participants in these spaces are rapidly changing. To evaluate the potential positive and negative impacts of urban agriculture nonprofit organizations (NPOs) in DC, I spent the summer of 2017 conducting an ethnographic study at six different NPOs—City Blossoms, Common Good City Farm, Dreaming Out Loud, Capital Area Food Bank, Hustlerz to Harvesters, and Rooftop Roots—with the goal to develop a list of best practices to help ensure these NPOs continue to serve the individuals most in need of the services they provide. Each of the six nonprofits featured in this case study serve a variety of different neighborhoods in DC and are having varying degrees of success making their gardens more inclusive. After identifying and analyzing the common themes and trends I found in the interviews I conducted and the observations I made, I came up with the following best practices: (1) design the space to fit the needs of the community, (2) if you are not from the community you wish to work with, wait to be invited into said community before trying to start working there, (3) connect and collaborate with community partners often, (4) make sure the NPO staff resembles the racial/ethnic make-up of the community, (5) encourage retention of staff and longevity of relationships, and (6) build trust.