Urban Agriculture in Kuching, Malaysia

While urban agriculture (UA) can potentially increase food security for city dwellers and beautify marginal urban spaces, it might also yield negative consequences for communities. For instance, in developing Asia, the contamination of urban-grown foods is concerning as pollution from some of the world’s largest emerging economies is difficult to regulate. Additionally, research has shown that policies aiming to promote UA may actually serve to exclude the most vulnerable groups. UA scholarship has been occurring in silos, with environmental and social aspects of UA being largely examined separately. Through a long-term, mixed-method, ethnographic approach entailing mapping, interviewing, photovoice and vegetable toxicitiy testing, the aim of my research is to examine the ways in which contemporary UA movements in Kuching, Malaysia are structured, motivated, and experienced across intersectional lines. The outcomes of this work will highlight the strategies that communities use to navigate UA in search of safe foods and sustainable, just urban futures.

Faculty Supervisor:

Sarah Turner

Student:

Partner:

University of Malaysia Sarawak

Discipline:

Sociology

Sector:

Agriculture and Food; Sustainability & the Environment; Health and Related Sciences & Technology

University:

McGill University

Program: