Curitiba's Development and Innovation Agency
The Pitch
Curitiba Smart City transformed vacant, underutilized flood-prone land into community gardens, urban farms and green spaces that expand access to healthy food, strengthen food security, create economic opportunities and build more resilient neighborhoods.
The Problem
Despite Curitiba's reputation for innovative urban planning, many residents in low-income communities faced food insecurity, limited access to nutritious food and underused urban land that contributed to environmental degradation. At the same time, vacant lots, flood-prone areas and land beneath power lines remained neglected, leaving opportunities to improve public health, food access and community resilience unrealized.
The Process
- Converted vacant and underutilized urban spaces into productive community gardens and urban farms
- Repurposed land beneath power lines, flood-prone areas and other underused public spaces into safe, productive landscapes for food production and community use
- Established more than 209 community, school and institutional gardens across the city, adapting each site to local needs
- Opened Brazil's first public urban farm as a center for training, demonstration, innovation and sustainable agriculture education
- Provided residents with free seeds, agricultural equipment, technical assistance and training to reduce barriers to participation and strengthen local food production
- Built partnerships with neighborhood associations, schools, public agencies and community organizations to support participatory planning and long-term stewardship Integrated composting, organic waste reuse, seedling production and honey gardens with native stingless bees to promote circular economics and urban biodiversity
- Expanded nutrition, environmental education and sustainable agriculture programs through schools, workshops and community outreach
- Changed municipal policy to allow public and private land to be used for community-led food production, embedding urban agriculture into city planning Incorporated digital mapping, monitoring and planning tools to improve garden management and support future expansion across the city
The Impact
- Transformed nearly 220,000 square meters of underutilized land into productive gardens, green spaces and community assets
- Established more than 209 urban gardens that collectively produce over 1,630 tons of fresh food each year
- Directly benefits more than 11,000 residents while strengthening food security for tens of thousands more through Curitiba's food bank and nutrition program
- Supplies fresh produce that supports thousands of subsidized and free daily meals for residents facing food insecurity
- Reduced household food costs while creating opportunities for families to earn supplemental income through surplus food production
- Reduced organic waste through composting while improving biodiversity, pollinator habitats, air quality and neighborhood environmental conditions
- Created educational opportunities through Brazil's first public urban farm, which welcomes approximately 5,000 visitors each month for training and environmental education
- Empowered women, retirees, schools and community organizations through hands-on participation in urban agriculture and local food production
- Inspired replication across Brazil by serving as a mentor to 48 cities while influencing statewide pollinator initiatives and international urban food policy networks
