Community gardens for inclusive urban planning in Padua (Italy): implementing a participatory spatial multicriteria decision-making analysis to explore the social meanings of urban agriculture

Urban agriculture is recognized as a worthy resource to support a growing population as well as to provide other positive effects on urban ecosystems and their citizens. In this context, community gardens are considered key topics in terms of food production and food security, in both developing and developed countries, as well as in terms of social inclusion and participation. The general aim of this study was to assess the main spatial criteria recognized and shared by stakeholders to identify suitable and inclusive areas for community gardens by testing and developing a participatory process. Because of its size, population, and urban fabric, Padua (northeast Italy) was selected as a representative and emblematic case study for mid-sized cities in Europe. The methodology was based on field surveys of key informants and spatial multicriteria decision-making analysis in the open-source geographic information system environment of QGIS. The results identified neighborhoods to be prioritized in the design of new community gardens according to three scenarios: the distance index, the social index, and the combination of the two (overall index). To conclude, this study highlighted the importance of adopting a decision-making methodology to support local policymakers and municipal agencies that are interested in implementing other community gardens in Padua. The case study and the methodology adopted could also serve as important guides for cities by providing step-by-step processes that can be directly applied.