Zero-Acreage Farming in the City of Berlin: An Aggregated Stakeholder Perspective on Potential Benefits and Challenges

Sustainability

Kathrin Specht⁴  Rosemarie Siebert⁴  Susanne Thomaier³  Ulf B. Freisinger¹  Magdalena Sawicka²  Axel Dierich⁵  Dietrich Henckel³  Maria Busse⁴ 

[1] Executive Board, Freie Universität Berlin, Kaiserswerther Str. 16-18, 14195 Berlin, Germany; E-Mail:;Social Sciences Department, University of Stuttgart, Seiden Str. 36, 70174 Stuttgart, Germany; E-Mail:;Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Technische Universität Berlin, Hardenbergstraße 40a, 10623 Berlin, Germany; E-Mails:;Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research, Institute of Socio-Economics, Eberswalder Straße 84, 15374 Müncheberg, Germany; E-Mails:;Institute for Resource Management, inter3, Otto-Suhr-Allee 59, 10585 Berlin, Germany; E-Mail:

关键词: urban agriculture;    innovation;    participatory approach;    rooftop greenhouse;    key informant interviews;   

DOI  :  10.3390/su7044511

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

How can buildings be combined with agricultural production and what are the major potential benefits and challenges for the introduction of zero-acreage farming (ZFarming) in Berlin from the relevant stakeholders’ perspectives? These questions were explored through a series of interviews and stakeholder workshops held between 2011 and 2013. The aim was to identify the most suitable building-integrated farming model for the Berlin metropolitan area and to develop guidelines for the model’s successful and sustainable implementation through a stakeholder-driven approach. This paper provides an aggregated synthesis of the outcomes derived from the qualitative interviews and stakeholder workshops. As the results reveal, the stakeholders perceive potential benefits and challenges related to the issue of ZFarming in all dimensions (economic, social, environmental and political). They largely agreed on the importance of focusing on local resources, using energy-efficient production—including social and educational aspects—and developing new market structures when introducing ZFarming to the city of Berlin. The stakeholders identified urban rooftop greenhouses (RTG) as the most promising farming model for Berlin. In a joint collaboration of all stakeholders, a manual for RTG was developed within the participatory innovation process that addresses the identified problems and challenges associated with future implementation and governance of RTG in Berlin and beyond.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.