Urban foraging: Land management policy, perspectives, and potential

Area of Science:

• Urban ecology
• Environmental management
• Social-ecological systems

Background:

• Urban foraging, the collection of uncultivated food from urban green spaces, is a global phenomenon.
• Existing research on urban foraging predominantly originates from the Global North, leaving significant knowledge gaps in other regions.
• Understanding urban land management's perspective is crucial for integrating foraging into urban planning and conservation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the urban land management structure and its approach to urban foraging in South Africa's eastern coastal region.
• To identify stakeholders, their roles, interactions, and influence within urban green space management.
• To determine organizational and perceptual barriers and enablers for urban foraging.

Main Methods:

• Conducted interviews with municipal officials across nine cities in the eastern coastal region of South Africa.
• Employed network analysis to map stakeholder interactions and influence.
• Utilized environmental worldviews to analyze barriers and enablers related to urban foraging.

Main Results:

• Urban green space management policies and land managers show amenability towards urban foraging in public areas.
• Key barriers include a lack of knowledge regarding wild indigenous species and sustainable harvesting practices.
• Ambiguous or absent policies, and a perception of pristine nature, also present significant hindrances.

Conclusions:

• Sustainable urban foraging can be integrated into biodiversity conservation and land stewardship strategies.
• Recommendations focus on developing policy pathways and fostering stakeholder partnerships to support urban foraging.
• Addressing knowledge gaps and refining policies are essential for enabling sustainable foraging practices in South African cities.