On the other end of the garden sits a high-end “Farm to Fork” restaurant in operation. This restaurant serves well-balanced complex meals with fresh ingredients. The guests are allowed to interact with the farm. At the farm, guests can pick their fresh harvest and purchase at a reasonable market rate. The restaurant also hosts workshops on how to cook to achieve household zero food waste.
The farm is operated with renewable energy. Waste segregation is the main component to produce compost. This also encourages households in the neighborhood to segregate their food waste. The household food waste is shared with the community farm in return for farm credits. The farm credits are then used at the farm-restaurant on a prior-booking.
This well-protected farm houses a tech department to monitor, evaluate, and secure the farm. The harvest of the best quality produce is controlled by IoT sensors. Internet of things (IoT) would be applied to collect data on soil content, temperature, and so on. A data-driven technique is adopted for precision and to minimize risks. Due to climate change, megacities witness diverse weather conditions and from this building we can control the required environment of the farm.
Simultaneously, the Smart Ration Cards help to manage the members to contribute to the farm work. The farm is dedicated to improving food security for low-income families.
Twice a month, the farm opens to non-members. These two days, women, children, pregnant women, and the homeless elderly population belonging to the informal community are encouraged to come to the farm. The intent of this exercise is to curb malnutrition and encourage registration to the smart ration card system. Several not for profit organizations are in charge of working with this segment. The NGO’s work with the public health authorities and the local government to improve the living conditions of surrounding informal communities.
The Urban Community Farms are just one example of several collaborative initiatives that will be sprouting all across the globe. Eventually, pushing mega-cities to adopt inclusive urban development. Lateral thinking leveraging advanced technology will shape and build resilience for future communities.
FUTURE AIN'T WHAT IT USED TO BE 