Abstract:
Urban horticulture has not been an integral part of the urban system on its own, which demands
more attention to be given by design professionals. This research aims to show how urban
horticulture design and public communal spaces could be integrated into urban design programs
to contribute to a resilient city. The research identifies food items that are causing the most
environmental damage by using the concept of food-miles and also figures out which food items
are in demand by Arba Minch town’s population. Using these data the research then identifies
the best suitable urban farming technology to grow these food items. Horticultural land-uses
from the town’s master plan are identified and measured to assess their suitability for urban
farming and also to see if they are sufficient to accommodate the required number of farming
units and spacious public space. The result has shown that aquaponics urban farming technology
was selected as the best alternative for the town after a thorough comparison with hydroponic,
aeroponic and soil based farming technologies. An eight level stacked aquaponics farming unit
was selected best appropriate option for the town. The number of aquaponics unit needed to
grow these food items is calculated to be 397. Finally, sample farm field design that also
encompasses public space was made on three sample sites.
