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Food, notably its logistics, security, quality, sustainability and social inclusiveness, is increasingly considered as a crucial element in urban settings, deserving specific institutional and strategic instruments. This is testified by the proliferation of urban food strategies, that is municipal strategic documents that various European cities have adopted during the last decade.

This chapter examines the emergence and diffusion of the concept in Europe, contextualizing it in connection with broader thesis on ‘alternative’ food systems, ‘new localism’ and ‘strategic planning’, in order to unpack how the notion has been constructed. The first part of the chapter reviews the existing literature on urban food strategies, by presenting the debate over the definition of the concept and discussing the normative stance of scholars in regard to ‘alternative’ practices.

After providing a working definition of urban food strategies, the second part presents an overview of their diffusion in Europe and briefly maps the historical diffusion of the model since the first appearance in Toronto in 2000.

The fast adoption of urban food strategies in different urban contexts suggests the necessity of further investigations on the motivations behind the cities’ drive towards food governance. In this sense, the chapter argues in favour of a more cautious assessment of food strategies on behalf of scholars, beyond the positive enthusiasm that has been so far connected to them. In particular, the chapter calls for a critique on the political implications of food strategies, which urgently need to be assessed within strategies of city branding, and to be tested on their actual consequences on urban regeneration and development processes.

The purpose of this chapter is to explore the potential of urban agriculture (UA) as a tool for advancing urban sustainability.

The chapter is based on participatory action case research focused on the development of an urban food policy in Edmonton, Canada from 2008 to 2013. Three data gathering techniques were employed: participant observation, semi-structured interviewing, and document analysis, and the data was analyzed using a grounded theory approach that including coding for themes and triangulation. We also draw on the work of critical sustainability scholars to outline the propensity for innovative work on local food initiatives to follow the same development path as many urban sustainability initiatives that foreclose political debate and reinforce the status quo.

The research data reveals that despite initial progressive changes in municipal policy, promising innovative food system planning, in the end Edmonton’s city council were largely driven by a development agenda.

In discussing both the successes and remaining challenges for Edmonton, this case study offers instructive lessons for many municipalities about key factors required for moving urban sustainability forward, specifically with respect to capitalizing on the innovative integrative functions of food for organizing communities and building capacity but also in moving beyond technocratic systems of management and planning to advance a paradigm shift toward building urban food security.

This paper aims to analyze the conceptions that underlie the notion of “sustainable food” of different social actors based on a study focused on promoting sustainable food strategies on university campuses.

The research incorporates the views of various actors linked to a sustainable food project on the campuses of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México), which is one of the most important universities in Latin America. The study includes a literature review on food sustainability strategies on university campuses and implemented sustainable food programmes in 100 universities worldwide. It also incorporates semistructured interviews and discussion groups conducted with consumers of the university community, 60 smallholder farmers and managers of 23 alternative food networks in Mexico City.

This research evidence the diversity of meanings and perspectives associated with food sustainability and a generalized emphasis on its environmental dimensions, although environmental problems tend to be partially understood. It also highlights the priority students and producers give to the accessibility of healthy foods.

The results of this study revealed important elements, potentially useful for designing sustainable food strategies on the campuses, considering the principles of the rights-based approach to development and social participation.

The research evinces tensions in the definition of food sustainability and its translation into actions from a multistakeholder perspective.

This chapter introduces the theoretical and political-practical underpinnings of this volume. It also gives an outline of the editorial organisation of the book and the various chapters. The chapter examines the literature on rural-urban relations, city-near rural areas and current challenges and problems identified in these areas. We identify huge sustainability and resilience problems in current rural-urban relations and metropolitan ruralities. We also relate to writings about a transition from the current carbon-based economy and society to a post-carbon society with reduced ecological footprints. The contributions in this volume are based on the current situation and provide ideas to develop the debate on rural-urban relations, metropolitan ruralities and post-carbon transition.

This paper investigates urban potentials of historic covered market buildings. Generally, these structures witnessed the apex of construction during the turn of the 20th century in Europe and beyond. They thrived until the second half of the 20th century when they started to decline and their existence became threatened due to several factors. This research focuses on recent regeneration attempts that consider the qualities of these structures, not only as individual buildings but also as an important tool for the revitalization of their surrounding contexts.

This paper focuses mainly on the Egyptian network of historic indoor markets with special reference to Port Said markets which are currently in decay and in urgent need for intervention. Through the consultation of the Barcelona Model for Markets, Spain and the survey of Port Said historic markets; the present study suggests a framework through which the network of local markets can regain their positive role and contribute to the revitalization of their surrounding context.

Findings reveal that historic indoor markets are complex structures that cannot be regenerated in isolation from their usually fast changing contexts. Intervention in this prototype needs to balance between traditional imaginary of these buildings, including the protection of their historic features and the protection of vulnerable local trades; and at the same time, the adaptation of market buildings to contemporary needs to improve their competitiveness on the commercial level.

The present study suggests a two-level framework and approach through which the network of local markets in Egyptian cities can regain their positive role and hence contribute to the revitalization of their surroundings.

This chapter summarizes the theoretical perspectives and empirical studies in the volume and draws up some final conclusions. The methodology is meta-analysis of the chapters in the volume. The main conclusions are that ordinary citizens, professionals, and administrators alike generally are willing to reform urban and rural-urban policy into a more sustainable direction but that the affected political and governance systems have difficulties in responding to this. The editors’ advice is to further develop collaborative governance involving a broad range of stakeholders and perhaps also to start using the wide range of economic incentives available to decision-makers today to further a more sustainable development in rural-urban catchments. We hope that this concluding analysis will feed the debate on these critical issues.

The purpose of this study is to examine the trend toward purchasing locally grown food and evaluate if tourists visiting Hawai'i are willing to pay more for locally produced foods that are more ecologically sustainable.

A research questionnaire was developed in order to investigate the attitudes and behaviors of tourists from the continental United States visiting Hawai'i in purchasing locally grown food in Hawai'i. The final sample includes 454 valid survey responses collected via Momentive, a market research services company.

According to the findings of this study, there are economic prospects to expand the use of locally cultivated food into the tourists' experience, as well as a willingness for tourists to support these activities financially. The Contingent Valuation study revealed that tourists from the continental United States were ready to pay a higher price to purchase food that is locally grown, signifying that tourists to Hawai'i are willing to aid the local agriculture business by increasing their restaurant/hotel meal bill, which will help Hawai'i become a more sustainable tourist destination.

While tourists from the United States mainland, which is the “an islands” top tourist market, have agreed with paying extra or an additional fee for locally grown food products, this study might not accurately represent the attitudes and behaviors of international tourists visiting Hawai'i. Future research should focus on the international tourist markets which may have different social norms or cultural differences thus could provide a broader spectrum of the current study's findings.

The results of this study provided quantitative evidence that tourists from the United States are interested in purchasing locally grown food items in Hawaii in addition to their willingness to pay an additional fee for these locally grown food products at a restaurant or a hotel dining room, thus addressing a gap in the tourism research.