This document discusses urban science and sustainability research at the USDA. It outlines several areas of focus for the USDA including forest inventory and management, ecosystem services, human health and well-being, urban sustainability, green infrastructure, water and watersheds, and urban long-term research. It provides examples of specific projects studying urban stewardship networks in Baltimore and tools created by the USDA Urban Agriculture Working Group to support urban agriculture through resources on business planning, land access, soil quality, water access, and more. In closing, it notes the USDA supports best practices through urban research on topics like nutrition interventions, crop production methods like vertical farming, and social science.

2. Urban Ecosystems and USDA
Dr. Ann M Bartuska
United States Department of Agriculture
Deputy Under Secretary for Research, Education, and Economics
Arbor Day Foundation’s Partners in Community Forestry Conference
November 16, 2015

4. Urban Opportunities at USDA

5. Urban Activities at USDA
FOREST
INVENTORY AND
MANAGEMENT
ECOSYSTEM
SERVICES
HUMAN HEALTH
AND WELL-BEING
URBAN
SUSTAINABILITY
GREEN
INFRASTRUCTURE
WATER AND
WATERSHEDS
URBAN LONG-
TERM RESEARCH

6. Green Space Social Space
STEW-MAP: How do we understand the social and spatial
interactions among actors working on urban stewardship?

7. Baltimore LTER

8. Stewardship Networks

10. Urban Science at USDA
FOREST
INVENTORY AND
MANAGEMENT
ECOSYSTEM
SERVICES
HUMAN HEALTH
AND WELL-BEING
URBAN
SUSTAINABILITY
GREEN
INFRASTRUCTURE
WATER AND
WATERSHEDS
URBAN LONG-
TERM RESEARCH
URBAN
AGRICULTURE

11. Urban Ag Toolkit
• Created through the USDA Urban
Agriculture Working Group (UAWG)
• Agencies and offices from across the
Department including the Forest
Service, Natural Resource
Conservation Service, Farm Service
Agency, and the National Institute of
Food and Agriculture
• Includes information on funding
opportunities, technical assistance,
and informational resources from
federal, state, and local partners

12. Summary of Key Resources
• Business Planning
• Land Access
• Soil Quality
• Water Access/Use
• Capital and Financing
• Infrastructure
• Market Development
USDA Urban Agriculture Toolkit

13. Best Practices through Urban Research
Nutrition Interventions Crop production
Social science research on
human interaction with
natural resources
Vertical farming technology
Census of Agriculture – What
is urban production?