Project Director

Tucker, John

Department Examiner

Reynolds, Bradley; Gibson, Christina

Department

Dept. of Biological and Environmental Sciences

Publisher

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

Place of Publication

Chattanooga (Tenn.)

Abstract

Imagine a public space where food, leisure, outdoor activity, and community engagement occur in one place, all in an urban forest ecosystem. For many, this is a hopeful vision of the future, and that is exactly what the idea of an urban food forest provides. In agroecology, a food forest or forest garden consists of planting diverse edible plants and mimicking the patterns of natural ecosystems. The intricate planning and design ensure the forest is self-sustaining, much like a natural forest, making it very resilient once established. However, they face many challenges and take time to grow and develop to reach that stage, which requires heavy maintenance, often done by volunteers and community contributions. This case study and research project focuses on the St. Elmo Community Food Forest located in Chattanooga, Tennessee. I explored and researched the various aspects of land management and ecological design, its current and potential effects on the surrounding community, and how the food forest impacts the communities’ relationship to the land and the food that residents consume, while also drawing comparisons to other food forest case studies around the world. I accomplished this through meeting with the food forest designer and project co-founder and doing a preliminary survey of various community members. I concluded that food forests can potentially provide partial solutions to environmental and social issues in urban areas when supported by strong community outreach and engagement. Still, small-scale food forests like the St Elmo project face significant challenges that can hinder their impact. My research highlights those challenges and the lessons they offer to other communities trying to become more sustainable.

IRB Number

25-171

Degree

B. A.; An honors thesis submitted to the faculty of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Bachelor of Arts.

Date

5-2026

Subject

Food forests--Tennessee--Chattanooga; Urban agriculture--Social aspects; Community development--Tennessee--Chattanooga; Sustainable urban development

Keyword

Food forest; community resilience; local food systems; sustainability; green spaces

Discipline

Sustainability

Document Type

Theses

Extent

ii, 42 leaves

DCMI Type

Text

Language

English

Rights

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

Download

Share

COinS