Project managers also expect the data to be a useful tool for urban agriculture practitioners and st

While farming florence holiday accommodation has long been the domain of rural landscapes, increasing interest in the local-food movement, healthy eating and sustainable cities has sparked the growth of farming florence holiday accommodation in urban environments. The new report, "Cultivate L.A.: An Assessment of Urban Agriculture in L.A. County," is intended to aid city planners as they learn how to accommodate these new land uses in the nation's most populous county.
florence holiday accommodation Project managers also expect the data to be a useful tool for urban agriculture practitioners and start-up entrepreneurs seeking information about current and future business models and siting opportunities for urban agriculture enterprises. Advocates, such as the Los Angeles Food Policy Council, will use the research to inform efforts to create a more seamless infrastructure and support system florence holiday accommodation for urban agriculture in Los Angeles County's food ecosystem.
Drawing on public records, personal interviews and sophisticated surveying and validation methods, the researchers produced an interactive map hosted at cultivatelosangeles.org detailing the location of every formal urban agriculture site across the county, excluding residential backyard florence holiday accommodation gardens. The map is supplemented by a report, downloadable from the same website, with in-depth analysis, case studies and other resources.
The report includes an appendix that catalogs laws and regulations governing urban agriculture in each of L.A. County's 88 municipalities. florence holiday accommodation A handy chart that summarizes permitted and prohibited urban agriculture in each city is also available for download from the Cultivate Los Angeles website.
Urban agriculture, as defined in the report, is any undertaking florence holiday accommodation that produces, processes, distributes or sells fruits, vegetables, livestock, floral goods or other materials in urban settings or their immediate surroundings.
"Much of the existing florence holiday accommodation discussion and promotion of urban agriculture has focused on the qualitative benefits and ambitions of the movement," said Carol Goldstein, a lecturer in urban planning. "We're thrilled to be able to add some quantitative data to the discussion."
Goldstein and Stephanie Pincetl, florence holiday accommodation professor and director of the California Center for Sustainable Communities at UCLA's Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, were co-faculty advisors for the project.
School gardens florence holiday accommodation make up the majority of L.A. County's urban agriculture activity, with 761 sites. Commercial agricultural operations (nurseries and farms) total 382 sites, and the researchers documented 118 community gardens.
Among the county's 88 cities and unincorporated areas, 87 percent regulate animal farming but only 25 percent regulate fruits, vegetables and other flora. Unclear, complex and conflicting regulations were found to constrain agricultural entrepreneurs.
Definitions for agricultural activities in municipal codes vary widely across the county, making it difficult if not impossible for urban farmers to operate in compliance with local health and zoning regulations.
School gardens present unique opportunities for hands-on learning, combining practical experience in math, science florence holiday accommodation and nutrition with outdoor physical activity. Outdated school district policies should be updated florence holiday accommodation to encourage this type of educational experience.
"The work accomplished by the graduate students is intended as a baseline, one that can be compared with new data in the future," Pincetl said. "We hope to provide the region with a better florence holiday accommodation understanding of the urban agriculture activities taking place and show how the landscape changes over time."
For this project, the students worked with Rachel Surls, sustainable florence holiday accommodation food systems advisor for the University of California Cooperative Extension-Los Angeles County. UCCE, part of the University of California's Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, florence holiday accommodation works with home gardeners and commercial agriculture but has only recently begun a coordinated effort to address the needs of urban farmers. Results of the UCLA study will help guide UCCE's efforts to develop education programs for urban farmers in Los Angeles and around florence holiday accommodation the state.
The UCLA Luskin School of Public florence holiday accommodation Affairs , founded in 1994 and dedicated in 2011, is a leading institution for research and scholarship in the areas of public policy, social welfare and urban planning. Based in the global metropolis of Los Angeles, UCLA Luskin develops creative florence holiday accommodation solutions and innovative leaders that confront challenges in immigration, drug policy, prison reform, transportation, the environment, and other areas vital to the continued health and well-being of our global society.