Is Urban Farming Growing Up?
On vertical farming, a contribution from volunteer Patrick Braun:
The urban environment has long been disconnected from the food systems that feed its people. Farms are seen as an important, but separate component of the economy. Rising prices of energy and food, amplified by economic downturn, however, could change how we view urban farming.
It may not surprise you that urban agriculture has had success for years in poorer countries such as Cuba, Brazil, Argentina or the social and environmentally minded Scandenavian countries. It’s tougher to accept that successful programs are sprouting up in marginalized US communities in Madison, Chicago, Rochester and the Massachusetts Avenue Project on the west side of Buffalo. These projects are small. Nonethess these are examples of the creative solutions the world needs to create jobs and provide food in an environmentally sustainable manner. Considering current levels of population growth and greenhouse gas emissions, contemporary agricultural technology may not be enough to meet future demands or the best strategy to minimize our environmental impact. 
Regardless of society’s concern for the environment or the availability of food for third world countries, the current trends of increasing food and energy prices will help make the case for the development of urban farms that produce food closer to the source by a more efficient use of the sun, water and waste.
Vertical Farming
At first glance, the vertical farm is an utopian solution for urban problems. Self- sustaining buildings like arcologies have been in our imagination and science fiction novels with few examples in the real world. An essential component of these buildings- extremely efficient indoor farms is an instrumental piece in making urban agriculture more widespread. Advancing the idea of the vertical farm has become the life work of Columbia University professor of Environmental Health Services, Dickinson Despommier.
For good reason, Despommier calls the vertical farm “a third agricultural revolution”. His vision is a system that can reuse waste to produce essential agricultural inputs such as fertilizers while minimizing the use of toxic fungicides and insecticides. Some elements of his prescription run counter to the established agricultural production which since the 1960’s has posted higher crop yields in part due to chemical fertilizers, machinery and insecticides. According to Despommier, current high yields are simply not going to be sustainable for global food demand in the future. After seeing projections for urban population growth (80% of world population by 2050) Despommier committed his professional work to developing a more efficient food system. The main advantage of his solution is to build up and produce agriculture where it is being consumed. By doing so, urban farming could address a few limitations of our current agricultural system.
