Dept. of Architecture and Geomatics course

Traditionally food insecurity has been seen as a rural challenge, yet thinking of food systems at an urban scale is essential to nourished, healthy Southern cities of the future. The course works from the premise that high levels of urban food insecurity observed across cities of the South are the result of poorly framed and mandated policies, that food insecurity is driven by changes in the food system, and that spatial and structural issues drive urban food insecurity. These challenges are all reinforced in cities where people experiencing food insecurity rely on the market as a means to ensure food availability. The course interrogates the urban food system challenges in cities of the global South, why these challenges exist and persist and the importance of such a focus in rapidly urbanising countries, regions and cities. We explore how the food system intersects with the urban system, why food systems governance is important and engage the multiple governance approaches applied.