Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Geography & Environmental Studies

Faculty/School

Faculty of Science

First Advisor

Dr. Alison Blay-Palmer

Advisor Role

Supervisor

Abstract

This thesis outlines the results of a case study in Quito, Ecuador with the municipally led participatory urban agriculture project, AGRUPAR, an internationally recognized project that promotes women’s empowerment, traditional knowledge, agroecology, and livelihoods. It works to improve the lives of those experiencing high levels of poverty in Quito. This dissertation applies an intersectional analysis to urban agriculture research to enhance attention to power relations, social justice, and equity within its scholarly and practical realms. Intersectionality is an understanding that people have unique experiences of oppression based on their unique social location (what intersecting social categories they belong to) and their identity. An intersectional conceptual framework explores urban agriculture in Quito through a multi-level analysis including power relations, diversity of knowledges, intersecting categories, reflexivity, time, space, social justice, equity, resistance, and resilience. This dissertation highlights the voices of the research participants telling their stories through the lens of intersectionality. The interviews completed in Quito, Ecuador paint a picture of a city where urban agriculture thrives, one that uses grassroots approaches to embark on food policy, and one that tells a story of the importance of intersectional approaches to research. This thesis is an example of operationalizing intersectionality in urban agriculture research and shows how it can be used in food studies and feminist geography research more generally. It also provides greater understanding of how AGRUPAR influences the food system in Quito, the intersectional experiences of the participants, and how to use intersectional analysis to tell a holistic story in research.

Convocation Year

2025

Convocation Season

Spring

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