ABOUT
It has been said that by 2050 the world population will nearly double, with a majority living concentrated in urban environments. With only a third of the world’s land mass available for additional agriculture we will be confounded by a shortage of space for food production. Furthermore, with the growing demand to reduce carbon emissions that effect global climate change, we will increasingly be confronted with the need to reduce our CO2 emissions as these pertain to farming, food miles and agricultural production. Inevitably, we will need to rethink how and where we grow our food.
The Agricultural Revolution
Historically, there have been two major revolutions in Agriculture. The first revolution, the neolithic revolution, marks the transition from nomadic hunting and gathering communities to agricultural settlements. Most notably, it marks the development of social organization and technology. With it came the concept of land ownership, modification of the natural environment, the domestication of the animal, the ability to sustain higher population densities, increased reliance on vegetable and cereal foods, a less egalitarian society, and nascent “trading economies”.
The second revolution marks the transition from animal power to mechanical power and the application of chemistry to production, in short, the application of industrial methods of production to agriculture. It was responsible for a more systematic and efficient form of agriculture which resulted in the production of larger quantities of food to meet growing populations.
The Third Agricultural Revolution : Urban Farming
The third agricultural revolution, which is at it's dawning, marks the use of architecture and technology to facilitate the production of controlled agriculture in urban environments, reducing food miles, or the distance between food production and consumption, on the one hand and on the other hand, overcoming shortages in available land.
UFFUNY
Introducing the Universal Urban Farm Facility in Upstate New York. The intention is to generate a new lifestyle which merges sophisticated urban living with rural farming through urban architecture. The program includes housing for the new urban-farmer, a community center and market place for the consumption of vegetables and other produce, a rooftop park, a restaurant, and vegetable production facilities.
Agrotopia
Where Agriculture meets Architecture