Growing in the city: Analyzing public urban agriculture in Ottawa

This thesis sought to explore the spatial and social distribution of publicly accessible urban agriculture in Ottawa, drawing on a conceptual framework linking concepts of food justice, the right to the city, and social capital. This study mapped existing food production practices in relation to local demographic conditions, revealing associations between the locations of community gardens and lower socio-economic indicators, and between the locations of school gardens and food-bearing trees with higher socio-economic indicators. A secondary area of focus considered the potential for increasing urban agriculture in Ottawa, through the creation of a GIS-based land inventory identifying vacant or underutilized land that could be available for food production. The inventory, a preliminary assessment of suitable land, revealed 1,380 hectares potentially available. Whether a dedicated or interim land use, or an integrated part of multifunctional spaces, there may be significant potential to increase the amount of urban agriculture in Ottawa.