Urban community gardens: An evaluation of governance approaches and related enablers and barriers at different development stages

The governance structures of societies and organisations are significant determinants of their success; however, little is known about those associated with community gardens. Community gardens as models of urban green space governance can follow different approaches. They often are designed and managed by groups of like-minded or neighbourhood residents and may meet local needs, typified by low investment and bottom-up governance structures. Gardens governed by top-down governance structures may meet the needs of larger and more diverse populations. Through a content analysis of international scholarly literature from North America, Australia, UK, South Africa and Germany, in addition to key informant interviews from case studies in Germany and New Zealand, the paper critically examines garden governance structures and practices at different stages of garden development. Results expand the existing knowledge of international governance types by suggesting a continuum of top-down, bottom-up and mixed governance approaches. They identify enablers and barriers to garden development in relation to governance at different stages and provide insights into governance approaches during garden planning and design, implementation and management phases.