DEVELOPMENT PERSPECTIVES OF URBAN AGRICULTURE IN THE PROMOTION OF URBAN SUSTAINABILITY IN LATVIA

In 2015, the United Nations set 17 sustainable development goals to be achieved by 2030. Among them, the 11th goal is � sustainable cities and communities. Taking into account such factors as increasing urbanization, challenges of well-being in the urban environment, the imbalance of resources, the issue of sustainability of urban areas is becoming more and more relevant. It requires solutions that balances sustainable development in economic, environmental and social dimensions. Urban agriculture is a practice with a wide functionality, simultaneously impacting several challenges, such as the crisis of social cohesion, provision of resources, awareness of food systems, etc. In Latvia, agricultural practice is based on traditions and is widespread among the population, but in urban areas it is practiced mostly in the scale of micro-farming for self-consumption. However, taking into account the global experience of urban agriculture, it is relevant to assess the development perspectives of the practice�s potential in Latvia as well. Therefore, the aim of this study is the assessment of urban agriculture development scenarios in Latvia. The development scenarios are subordinated to the dimensions of sustainable development and the potential of urban agriculture in promoting the urban sustainability. The method of the analytic hierarchy process was used to evaluate the development scenarios. As a result of the research, the most suitable urban agriculture development scenario in Latvia is based on the social dimension, where urban agriculture is creating a socially active and involved society.