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How do we make agricultural practice more sustainable? One way to examine the drivers and barriers to transitions within agriculture is through the sustainability transitions framework. However, this approach has been criticised for not adequately engaging with the lessons of food justice. To correct this deficiency, we suggest the concept, “just transitions.” Our argument is informed by honing in on the lived experiences of organic and conventional wheat farmers, especially their challenges and opportunities in transitioning to organic wheat production. Our findings reflect tensions, contradictions, and opportunities in environmental ethics, policies, infrastructure, and socio-economic perspectives and positions. The approach taken reflects a structural-constructivist perspective. Examining structural level proposals, such as the Green New Deal and the Good Food Purchasing Program, our findings suggest more work needs to be done to adequately include rural farmer perspectives, particularly when it comes to the construction of frames around what “good” farming looks like. Specifically, by not including the lived experiences of farmers into these transitions, policymakers and other advocates may struggle to adequately integrate plans that adequately reflect 1) varying regional biophysical characteristics, farmer practices, and sustainability goals; 2) interactions that contribute to tradeoffs within and between both policies and advocacy; 3) the infrastructural path-dependency of farm operations; 4) and the economic and social beliefs, norms, and values which shape what “good” farming looks and feels like. Until this accomplished, it will be hard to envision a transition considered “just” by all stakeholders.
James Hale; Meagan Schipanski; Michael Carolan. Just wheat transitions?: working toward constructive structural changes in wheat production. Local Environment 2020, 26, 43 -59.
AMA StyleJames Hale, Meagan Schipanski, Michael Carolan. Just wheat transitions?: working toward constructive structural changes in wheat production. Local Environment. 2020; 26 (1):43-59.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJames Hale; Meagan Schipanski; Michael Carolan. 2020. "Just wheat transitions?: working toward constructive structural changes in wheat production." Local Environment 26, no. 1: 43-59.
Water quality has become a significant concern for the New Zealand public. The source of its decline in recent years has been largely attributed to the expansion of the dairying industry, and its improvement, a focal point of environmental management. A collaborative model has been developed in the Canterbury region, where committees have been created including government representatives, water management experts, farmers, and non-farming community members. These committees develop water management plans in a water catchment and can be seen to embody a form of socialising accountability where different groups hold each other accountable and share responsibility. One feature of the plans is the establishment of nitrogen loss thresholds for farms in a catchment, implemented through a highly technical form of nutrient modelling. Drawing from interviews and observations in Canterbury water governance networks, we argue that there is a tension between collaborative forms of environmental governance that seeks to socialise accountability, and nutrient modelling that de-socialise accountability in practice. We discuss how these tensions may challenge participatory forms of governance.
James Hale; Katharine Legun; Hugh Campbell. Accounting for account-abilities: Examining the relationships between farm nutrient measurement and collaborative water governance dynamics in Canterbury, New Zealand. Journal of Rural Studies 2020, 1 .
AMA StyleJames Hale, Katharine Legun, Hugh Campbell. Accounting for account-abilities: Examining the relationships between farm nutrient measurement and collaborative water governance dynamics in Canterbury, New Zealand. Journal of Rural Studies. 2020; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJames Hale; Katharine Legun; Hugh Campbell. 2020. "Accounting for account-abilities: Examining the relationships between farm nutrient measurement and collaborative water governance dynamics in Canterbury, New Zealand." Journal of Rural Studies , no. : 1.
How do food movements prioritize and work to accomplish their varied and often conflicting social change goals at the city scale? Our study investigates the Denver food movement with a mixed methods social network analysis to understand how organizations navigate differences in power and influence vis-à-vis resource exchange. We refer to this uneven process with the analytical concept of “collaborative concession”. The strategic resource mobilization of money, land, and labor operates through certain collaborative niches, which constitute the priorities of the movement. Among these are poverty alleviation and local food production, which are facilitated by powerful development, education, and health organizations. Therefore, food movement networks do not offer organizations equal opportunity to carry out their priorities. Concession suggests that organizations need to lose something to gain something. Paradoxically, collaboration can produce a resource gain. Our findings provide new insights into the uneven process by which food movement organizations—and city-wide food movements overall—mobilize.
Joshua Sbicca; India Luxton; James Hale; Kassandra Roeser. Collaborative Concession in Food Movement Networks: The Uneven Relations of Resource Mobilization. Sustainability 2019, 11, 2881 .
AMA StyleJoshua Sbicca, India Luxton, James Hale, Kassandra Roeser. Collaborative Concession in Food Movement Networks: The Uneven Relations of Resource Mobilization. Sustainability. 2019; 11 (10):2881.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJoshua Sbicca; India Luxton; James Hale; Kassandra Roeser. 2019. "Collaborative Concession in Food Movement Networks: The Uneven Relations of Resource Mobilization." Sustainability 11, no. 10: 2881.
Cities are increasingly turning to food policy plans to support goals related to food access, food security, the environment, and economic development. This paper investigates ways that rural farmers, communities, and economies can both support and be supported by metropolitan food-focused initiatives. Specifically, our research question asked what opportunities and barriers exist to developing food policies that support urban food goals, particularly related to local procurement, as well as rural economic development. To address this question, we described and analyzed a meeting of urban stakeholders and larger-scale rural producers related to Colorado’s Denver Food Vision and Plan. We documented and explored “findings” gleaned from a supply chain diagraming and data compilation process that were then used to inform an event that brought together diverse supply chain partners. Three findings stand out. First, facilitating dialog between urban food policymakers and rural producers to understand potential tensions, mitigate such tensions, and capitalize on opportunities is essential. Second, perceptions and expectations surrounding “good food” are nuanced—a timely finding given the number of preferred procurement programs emerging across the county. Third, critical evaluation is needed across a diverse set of value chain strategies (e.g., conventional and alternative distribution) if food policy intends to support heterogeneous producers, their communities, and urban food policy goals.
Becca Jablonski; Michael Carolan; James Hale; Dawn Thilmany McFadden; Erin Love; Libby Christensen; Tabitha Covey; Laura Bellows; Rebecca Cleary; Olaf David; Kevin Jablonski; Andrew Jones; Paul Meiman; Jason Quinn; Elizabeth Ryan; Meagan Schipanski; Hailey Summers; Mark Uchanski. Connecting Urban Food Plans to the Countryside: Leveraging Denver’s Food Vision to Explore Meaningful Rural–Urban Linkages. Sustainability 2019, 11, 2022 .
AMA StyleBecca Jablonski, Michael Carolan, James Hale, Dawn Thilmany McFadden, Erin Love, Libby Christensen, Tabitha Covey, Laura Bellows, Rebecca Cleary, Olaf David, Kevin Jablonski, Andrew Jones, Paul Meiman, Jason Quinn, Elizabeth Ryan, Meagan Schipanski, Hailey Summers, Mark Uchanski. Connecting Urban Food Plans to the Countryside: Leveraging Denver’s Food Vision to Explore Meaningful Rural–Urban Linkages. Sustainability. 2019; 11 (7):2022.
Chicago/Turabian StyleBecca Jablonski; Michael Carolan; James Hale; Dawn Thilmany McFadden; Erin Love; Libby Christensen; Tabitha Covey; Laura Bellows; Rebecca Cleary; Olaf David; Kevin Jablonski; Andrew Jones; Paul Meiman; Jason Quinn; Elizabeth Ryan; Meagan Schipanski; Hailey Summers; Mark Uchanski. 2019. "Connecting Urban Food Plans to the Countryside: Leveraging Denver’s Food Vision to Explore Meaningful Rural–Urban Linkages." Sustainability 11, no. 7: 2022.
We are living in an era of the audit. Sustainability indicators are used to ensure that industries are behaving responsibly. The audits are well elaborated in their environmental requirements, but they are often less directly engaged with issues of social sustainability. Should they be? After describing a number of challenges with measuring social sustainability, this paper defends representing social sustainability through indicators by taking a performative orientation toward them. Here, we suggest holding a relationally real analytical stance about what contributes to more equitable and diverse assembling processes. In iteratively doing so, we can work to determine indicators that are less focused upon the practices they are meant to represent, and more on their potential impact on intended audiences. In other words, this takes up the suggestion that indicators are themselves agents and then takes this a couple of steps further by arguing for the potential work social scientists can do using indicators to move toward better futures. We ground this theorizing in two short vignettes taken from the authors’ work in food and agriculture cooperatives and also in a fruit industry.
James Hale; Katharine Legun; Hugh Campbell; Michael Carolan. Social sustainability indicators as performance. Geoforum 2019, 103, 47 -55.
AMA StyleJames Hale, Katharine Legun, Hugh Campbell, Michael Carolan. Social sustainability indicators as performance. Geoforum. 2019; 103 ():47-55.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJames Hale; Katharine Legun; Hugh Campbell; Michael Carolan. 2019. "Social sustainability indicators as performance." Geoforum 103, no. : 47-55.
James Hale; Michael Carolan. Framing cooperative development: The bridging role of cultural and symbolic value between human and material resources. Community Development 2018, 49, 360 -379.
AMA StyleJames Hale, Michael Carolan. Framing cooperative development: The bridging role of cultural and symbolic value between human and material resources. Community Development. 2018; 49 (4):360-379.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJames Hale; Michael Carolan. 2018. "Framing cooperative development: The bridging role of cultural and symbolic value between human and material resources." Community Development 49, no. 4: 360-379.
Cooperative organizing around food and agriculture is nothing new (Knupfer, 2013). However, there has been a recent resurgence of interest in the cooperative legal form. This research has followed this rebirth in a region in the western United States where rural producers and urban consumers, gentrifying communities of color, and environmentally minded communities strive to improve other communities and food futures. As part of these efforts, it can be easy to assume cooperation within a legal status. Yet, as this research examines, cooperatives can be quite uncooperative in practice. Through extensive field work, we found that food and agriculture cooperatives struggle to make decision-making inclusive, may reproduce inequities through leadership performance, and may unevenly distribute the emotional work necessary to cooperation. These patterns also relate to how cooperatives access resources and point to tensions in expanding networks. While homogeneity can make interactions smoother—thereby making trust and day-to-day activities easier—it also limits a cooperative’s (co-op) resource access. Resource access can be improved through partnerships, such as with nonprofits. However, these connections can lead to certain leadership performances that delegitimize cooperative efforts from the perspective of structurally disadvantaged community members. Further, the anonymity that consumers have become accustomed to creates challenges for recruiting shoppers because co-ops take more emotional work. A disproportionate amount of emotional work falls on staff members, contributing to resentment and insincere performance. We make a number of suggestions about how cooperatives can work to improve both organizational and interactional forms of cooperation.
James Hale; Michael Carolan. Cooperative or Uncooperative Cooperatives? Digging into the Process of Cooperation in Food and Agriculture Cooperatives. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development 2018, 8, 1 -20.
AMA StyleJames Hale, Michael Carolan. Cooperative or Uncooperative Cooperatives? Digging into the Process of Cooperation in Food and Agriculture Cooperatives. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development. 2018; 8 (1):1-20.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJames Hale; Michael Carolan. 2018. "Cooperative or Uncooperative Cooperatives? Digging into the Process of Cooperation in Food and Agriculture Cooperatives." Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development 8, no. 1: 1-20.
James Hale. Book Review: Fast-food Kids: French Fries, Lunch Lines, and Social Ties. Humanity & Society 2017, 41, 510 -512.
AMA StyleJames Hale. Book Review: Fast-food Kids: French Fries, Lunch Lines, and Social Ties. Humanity & Society. 2017; 41 (4):510-512.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJames Hale. 2017. "Book Review: Fast-food Kids: French Fries, Lunch Lines, and Social Ties." Humanity & Society 41, no. 4: 510-512.
The interest in and enthusiasm for urban agriculture (UA) in urban communities, the non-profit sector, and governmental institutions has grown exponentially over the past decade, and a key part of the appeal of UA is its potential to improve the civic health of a community. In this chapter we provide a theoretical framework—deep democracy—that helps to contextualize nascent attempts at civic agriculture within a broader struggle for democratic practices and relationships. We argue that urban agriculture efforts are well positioned to help citizens cultivate lasting relationships across lines of difference and amidst significant power differentials—relationships that could form the basis of a community's collective capacity to shape its future.
David W. McIvor; James Hale. Common Roots: Urban Agriculture’s Potential for Cultivating Deep Democracy. Sowing Seeds in the City 2016, 179 -188.
AMA StyleDavid W. McIvor, James Hale. Common Roots: Urban Agriculture’s Potential for Cultivating Deep Democracy. Sowing Seeds in the City. 2016; ():179-188.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDavid W. McIvor; James Hale. 2016. "Common Roots: Urban Agriculture’s Potential for Cultivating Deep Democracy." Sowing Seeds in the City , no. : 179-188.
Michael Carolan; James Hale. “Growing” communities with urban agriculture: Generating value above and below ground. Community Development 2016, 47, 530 -545.
AMA StyleMichael Carolan, James Hale. “Growing” communities with urban agriculture: Generating value above and below ground. Community Development. 2016; 47 (4):530-545.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMichael Carolan; James Hale. 2016. "“Growing” communities with urban agriculture: Generating value above and below ground." Community Development 47, no. 4: 530-545.
The social, emotional, and mental health benefits associated with gardening have been well documented. However, the processes underlying the relationship between garden participation and improvements in health status have not been sufficiently studied. Using population-based survey data (n = 469 urban residents), objective street environment data, and area-level measures, this research used a path analytic framework to examine several theoretically based constructs as mediators between gardening history and self-reported health. The results showed that garden participation influenced health status indirectly through social involvement with one's community, perceived aesthetic appeal of the neighborhood, and perceived collective efficacy. Gardeners, compared to non-gardeners, reported higher ratings of neighborhood aesthetics and more involvement in social activities, whereas aesthetics and involvement were associated with higher ratings of collective efficacy and neighborhood attachment. Collective efficacy, but not neighborhood attachment, predicted self-rated health. Gardening also directly influenced improved fruit and vegetable intake. The physical and social qualities of garden participation may therefore stimulate a range of interpersonal and social responses that are supportive of positive ratings of health. This research suggests that community planners and health professionals should aim to strengthen the social and aesthetic relationships while designing environments and policies as a way to ignite intermediate processes that may lead to improved health status.
Jill Litt; S.J. Schmiege; James Hale; M. Buchenau; F. Sancar. Exploring ecological, emotional and social levers of self-rated health for urban gardeners and non-gardeners: A path analysis. Social Science & Medicine 2015, 144, 1 -8.
AMA StyleJill Litt, S.J. Schmiege, James Hale, M. Buchenau, F. Sancar. Exploring ecological, emotional and social levers of self-rated health for urban gardeners and non-gardeners: A path analysis. Social Science & Medicine. 2015; 144 ():1-8.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJill Litt; S.J. Schmiege; James Hale; M. Buchenau; F. Sancar. 2015. "Exploring ecological, emotional and social levers of self-rated health for urban gardeners and non-gardeners: A path analysis." Social Science & Medicine 144, no. : 1-8.
The interest in and enthusiasm for urban agriculture (UA) in urban communities, the non-profit sector, and governmental institutions has grown exponentially over the past decade. Part of the appeal of UA is its potential to improve the civic health of a community, advancing what some call food democracy. Yet despite the increasing presence of the language of civic agriculture or food democracy, UA organizations and practitioners often still focus on practical, shorter-term projects in an effort both to increase local involvement and to attract funding from groups focused on quantifiable deliverables. As such, it seems difficult to move beyond the rhetoric of food democracy towards significant forms of popular participation and deliberation within particular communities. In this paper we provide a theoretical framework—deep democracy—that helps to contextualize nascent attempts at civic agriculture or food democracy within a broader struggle for democratic practices and relationships. We argue that urban agriculture efforts are well positioned to help citizens cultivate lasting relationships across lines of difference and amidst significant power differentials—relationships that could form the basis of a community’s collective capacity to shape its future. We analyze the theory of deep democracy through recent experiences with UA in Denver, Colorado, and we identify ways in which UA can extend its reach and impact by focusing more consciously on its political or civic potential.
David W. McIvor; James Hale. Urban agriculture and the prospects for deep democracy. Agriculture and Human Values 2015, 32, 727 -741.
AMA StyleDavid W. McIvor, James Hale. Urban agriculture and the prospects for deep democracy. Agriculture and Human Values. 2015; 32 (4):727-741.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDavid W. McIvor; James Hale. 2015. "Urban agriculture and the prospects for deep democracy." Agriculture and Human Values 32, no. 4: 727-741.
Diane K. King; Jill Litt; James Hale; Katherine M. Burniece; Colleen Ross. ‘The park a tree built’: Evaluating how a park development project impacted where people play. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 2015, 14, 293 -299.
AMA StyleDiane K. King, Jill Litt, James Hale, Katherine M. Burniece, Colleen Ross. ‘The park a tree built’: Evaluating how a park development project impacted where people play. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening. 2015; 14 (2):293-299.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDiane K. King; Jill Litt; James Hale; Katherine M. Burniece; Colleen Ross. 2015. "‘The park a tree built’: Evaluating how a park development project impacted where people play." Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 14, no. 2: 293-299.
Objectives. We considered the relationship between an urban adult population's fruit and vegetable consumption and several selected social and psychological processes, beneficial aesthetic experiences, and garden participation. Methods. We conducted a population-based survey representing 436 residents across 58 block groups in Denver, Colorado, from 2006 to 2007. We used multilevel statistical models to evaluate the survey data. Results. Neighborhood aesthetics, social involvement, and community garden participation were significantly associated with fruit and vegetable intake. Community gardeners consumed fruits and vegetables 5.7 times per day, compared with home gardeners (4.6 times per day) and nongardeners (3.9 times per day). Moreover, 56% of community gardeners met national recommendations to consume fruits and vegetables at least 5 times per day, compared with 37% of home gardeners and 25% of nongardeners. Conclusions. Our study results shed light on neighborhood processes that affect food-related behaviors and provides insights about the potential of community gardens to affect these behaviors. The qualities intrinsic to community gardens make them a unique intervention that can narrow the divide between people and the places where food is grown and increase local opportunities to eat better. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print June 16, 2011: e1-e8. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2010.300111)
Jill S. Litt; Mah-J. Soobader; Mark S. Turbin; James Hale; Michael Buchenau; Julie A. Marshall. The Influence of Social Involvement, Neighborhood Aesthetics, and Community Garden Participation on Fruit and Vegetable Consumption. American Journal of Public Health 2011, 101, 1466 -1473.
AMA StyleJill S. Litt, Mah-J. Soobader, Mark S. Turbin, James Hale, Michael Buchenau, Julie A. Marshall. The Influence of Social Involvement, Neighborhood Aesthetics, and Community Garden Participation on Fruit and Vegetable Consumption. American Journal of Public Health. 2011; 101 (8):1466-1473.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJill S. Litt; Mah-J. Soobader; Mark S. Turbin; James Hale; Michael Buchenau; Julie A. Marshall. 2011. "The Influence of Social Involvement, Neighborhood Aesthetics, and Community Garden Participation on Fruit and Vegetable Consumption." American Journal of Public Health 101, no. 8: 1466-1473.
Current environmental and health challenges require us to identify ways to better align aesthetics, ecology, and health. At the local level, community gardens are increasingly praised for their therapeutic qualities. They also provide a lens through which we can explore relational processes that connect people, ecology and health. Using key-informant interview data, this research explores gardeners’ tactile, emotional, and value-driven responses to the gardening experience and how these responses influence health at various ecological levels (n = 67 participants, 28 urban gardens). Our findings demonstrate that gardeners’ aesthetic experiences generate meaning that encourages further engagement with activities that may lead to positive health outcomes. Gardeners directly experience nearby nature by ‘getting their hands dirty’ and growing food. They enjoy the way vegetables taste and form emotional connections with the garden. The physical and social qualities of garden participation awaken the senses and stimulate a range of responses that influence interpersonal processes (learning, affirming, expressive experiences) and social relationships that are supportive of positive health-related behaviors and overall health. This research suggests that the relational nature of aesthetics, defined as the most fundamental connection between people and place, can help guide community designers and health planners when designing environment and policy approaches to improve health behaviors.
James Hale; Corrine Knapp; Lisa Bardwell; Michael Buchenau; Julie Marshall; Fahriye Sancar; Jill S. Litt. Connecting food environments and health through the relational nature of aesthetics: Gaining insight through the community gardening experience. Social Science & Medicine 2011, 72, 1853 -1863.
AMA StyleJames Hale, Corrine Knapp, Lisa Bardwell, Michael Buchenau, Julie Marshall, Fahriye Sancar, Jill S. Litt. Connecting food environments and health through the relational nature of aesthetics: Gaining insight through the community gardening experience. Social Science & Medicine. 2011; 72 (11):1853-1863.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJames Hale; Corrine Knapp; Lisa Bardwell; Michael Buchenau; Julie Marshall; Fahriye Sancar; Jill S. Litt. 2011. "Connecting food environments and health through the relational nature of aesthetics: Gaining insight through the community gardening experience." Social Science & Medicine 72, no. 11: 1853-1863.