Future of Food: Journal on Food

Finding Spaces for Urban Food Production – Matching Spatial and Stakeholder Analysis with Urban Agriculture Approaches in the Urban Renewal Area of Dortmund-Hörde, Germany

Michael Roth
Nürtingen-Geislingen University, School of Landscape Architecture, Environmental and Urban Planning, Nürtingen,Germany
Miryam Frixen
plan-lokal Consultancy, Dortmund,Germany
Carlos Tobisch
Die Urbanisten e.V., Dortmund,Germany
Thomas Scholle
plan-lokal Consultancy, Dortmund,Germany

Using the case of an economically declined neighbourhood in the post-industrial German Ruhr
Area (sometimes characterized as Germany’s “Rust Belt”), we analyse, describe and conclude
how urban agriculture can be used as a catalyst to stimulate and support urban renewal and
regeneration, especially from a socio-cultural perspective. Using the methodological framework
of participatory action research, and linking bottom-up and top-down planning approaches, a
project path was developed to include the population affected and foster individual responsibility
for their district, as well as to strengthen inhabitants and stakeholder groups in a permanent
collective stewardship for the individual forms of urban agriculture developed and implemented.
On a more abstract level, the research carried out can be characterized as a form of action
research with an intended transgression of the boundaries between research, planning, design,
and implementation. We conclude that by synchronously combining those four domains with
intense feedback loops, synergies for the academic knowledge on the potential performance of
urban agriculture in terms of sustainable development, as well as the benefits for the case-study
area and the interests of individual urban gardeners can be achieved.

Keywords : urban renewal ,urban agriculture ,model project ,participatory planning ,network approach .

Myanmar High School Students’ Perceptions of College and International Readiness in Western Society

Mark Speckien
Louisiana Tech University
Mark Speckien
Louisiana Tech University
International students are more likely to experience mental health issues and increased stress. Mental health is often surrounded by negative societal stigmas that act as barriers to seeking support and tend to lead to greater mental health concerns. International students tend to seek socioemotional support from other international student peers rather than seeking out counseling services. However, this study shows that LGBTQIA+ international students were less likely to seek socioemotional support from other international student peers due to fear of their sexual orientation being discovered and their families finding out about their identity. This study examines how LGBTQIA+ international students talk about their experiences on and off campus in relations to their socioemotional well-being. Specifically, this study sought to better understand the complexities of LGBTQIA+ students’ identities, and the challenges they faced in terms of their socioemotional well-being. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.
Keywords : international students, socioemotional well-being, mental health, identity development, intersectionality, LGBTQIA