The Exploration of Social Assets Condition among Urban Farmers of the Community Garden in Klang Valley, Malaysia

Abstract

Social assets Urban farmers Urban agriculture Community garden. Social assets have been focus of interest in considerable social science academic circles in recent years. Development of community garden is needed in order to provide a wellbeing among urban communities through utilizing their social assets in terms of togetherness and relationship concerns. It's seen as the motivational and adhesive forces for communitarian work that benefit in agriculture development in urban areas. However, previous studies that looked at social assets issues are still lacking in Malaysia especially among urban farmers. Therefore, this study explores the condition of social assets that built and utilized positively among urban farmers in Klang Valley, Malaysia. The data collected through in-depth interviews with eight urban farmers and analyzed using thematic analysis. The interviews revealed that urban farmers in Klang Valley, Malaysia has been a good social asset include family members support, extension agents relationship, participation of group members and broad of networking. The social assets provide them a motivating and gluing force for agricultural activities in terms of knowledge sharing, input and materials access, support community garden development, enhance motivations, technology transfer and adoptions, build cooperation and encourage good agricultural practice. This study recommends that empowering of social asset should be an important consideration among community members in development of urban community garden in Malaysia. Contribution/ Originality: The contribution of this study is finding that the urban community garden project should be sustainable through reinforcement of social assets. Urban farmers need to develop various networks to generate knowledge that can improve comprehension of society members and idea exchange in regards to urban agriculture empowerment.

Children's perspectives on vegetable consumption and gardening: Outcomes from a qualitative study in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

“…Along with the results of the FGDs, urban poor children perceived some barriers for them to do the gardening. Similar to previous findings by Zainal and Rosmiza (2021), children's busy schooling schedule is one of the main barriers for them to be involved in gardening activity. Therefore, this factor should be taken into consideration in planning of intervention schedule.…”

“…Home-based gardening programmes are likely to improve home food availability (Galhena et al, 2013), particularly fresh produces such as vegetables and fruits, strengthening family relationships, promote healthy eating and active lifestyles (Eigenbrod & Gruda, 2014;Ornelas et al, 2017). However, previous study had reported a lack of involvement or participation of gardening in home garden among the Malaysian urban poor children (Zainal & Rosmiza, 2021).…”

Review and Analysis of the Motivations Associated with Urban Gardening in the Pandemic Period

“…Some studies test the contribution of urban gardening to the preservation of natural ecosystems ( [116,117]) and the sustainability of agricultural systems (see, e.g., [118]), and to food self-sufficiency and security ( [3]). Others focus on the diffusion of social assets among urban farmers and community gardens [119], the possible relations between cultivation and better consumption choices and stress reduction ( [120,121]), and social relationship improvement [122].…”

“…In contrast, Dorn et al (2021) [125], Hencelova et al (2021) [122] and Feinberg et al (2021) [112] claim that there is no confirmation of such motivations. Turner (2020) [105] and Zainal (2021) [119] include motivations that Cattivelli ignores, such as those related to the rationalisation of the agri-food system (sharing of knowledge, transfer of technology, and the adoption of sustainable agricultural practises).…”