The prolonged COVID 19 lockdown has propelled many city dwellers to practice urban agriculture despite scarce land. Approximate 6.2 million urban residents in Nepal (Statista, 2020) are solely dependent on the market for food.
Likewise, the pandemic has developed a fear for food security among the people in urban areas. This pandemic also has prompted many of us to practice farming overnight. This could ultimately transform the cities into green and sponge cities.
Urban agriculture not only will fulfil the food demands of urban families in Nepal but also bring various advantages along with it. Some of the benefits that we can have if we practice urban agriculture are:
- Apart from the efficient supply of food, urban agriculture or green cities promotes greater biodiversity with varieties of plant species resulting in ecological benefits.
- Green cities can soak up rainwater which could play a crucial role in surface water management and mitigate the risks of catastrophic flooding events.
- Green cities reduce carbon emission and other greenhouse gases lessening the possibility of global warming, which leads to the foundation of a sustainable society.
- Green cities contribute to mental and physical wellbeing, reduction of noise pollution and stress, and increment in social integration.
- Green areas and sponge cities increase the thermal insulation of buildings, rises real estate values and substantially uplifts the living standard of people.
