Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Nutrition and Food Sciences

Document Type

Dissertation

Abstract

Urban agriculture (UA) in the United States (U.S.) is increasingly positioned as a multi-domain strategy for addressing social determinants of health (SDOH), yet evidence is fragmented and often focused on participant outcomes rather than the organizational and environmental conditions that determine whether those benefits can be sustained, expanded, or maintained over time. This dissertation uses an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design to clarify (1) what SDOH outcomes are associated with UA in the peer-reviewed literature, (2) which internal and external factors leaders perceive as driving UA organizational success or failure, and (3) which factors predict comparative organizational functioning across a national sample.

Chapter 2 reports a PRISMA-ScR scoping review of U.S. peer-reviewed studies (1980 - 2024). Database searches yielded 1,014 records; 94 studies met inclusion criteria, with 67% published in 2015-2024. UA was most often linked to food security, nutrition/health behaviors, social connection, and education/skills, but the literature remained heterogeneous and dominated by cross-sectional and case-based designs with limited organizational reporting.

Chapter 3 presents four semi-structured interviews with leaders of operating and dissolved UA organizations. Using Helmig’s four dimensions of nonprofit success (input, transformation, output, environment) interpreted through paradox theory, leaders described success and failure as trajectories shaped by the viability of an “operating platform” (land tenure, usable infrastructure, compensated labor, governance/partnership fit) and recurring tensions, including permanence versus urban instability, earned-income flexibility versus dependency, community governance versus expertise, and system-change aims within shifting urban contexts.

Chapter 4 surveys 214 UA organizations and estimates staged regression models predicting perceived comparative performance. Organizational capacity explained substantial variance beyond structural controls, and decomposed capacity domains further improved model fit. Staff-management capacity and adaptability capacity were the strongest independent predictors. Environmental turbulence showed no main effect, but a significant Turbulence × Adaptability interaction indicated that adaptability uniquely buffers volatility.

Overall, durable UA impact appears to depend less on size or turbulence exposure and more on building workforce systems and adaptive processes capable of recalibrating as cities, markets, stakeholder expectations and climate conditions shift. Practice and policy recommendations emphasize treating UA as community infrastructure, strengthening tenure and water access, investing in staff systems, and supporting learning-oriented operations.

Date

3-22-2026

Committee Chair

Holston, Denise

LSU Acknowledgement

1

LSU Accessibility Acknowledgment

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