Cooling Cities Through Urban Farming: Reflections from Depok

In 2022, Rikolto launched the project "Lowering the heat, feeding citizens, scaling up a circular model for urban agriculture in Depok City, Indonesia", supported by funding from the Government of Flanders through their Flanders International Climate Action Programme (VIKAP).

From the outset, the project was not intended merely to encourage urban residents to grow vegetables. Its broader aim was to explore whether urban agriculture could help address rising urban temperatures-known as the Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect, which occurs when cities become warmer as green spaces are replaced by asphalt, concrete, and other heat-absorbing surfaces-while also strengthening sustainable access to healthy food for urban residents.

To implement the pilot phase of the project, Rikolto partnered with the Faculty of Agriculture at IPB University, and the NGO Perkumpulan Indonesia Berseru (PIB). This collaboration proved to be key, as sustainable urban agriculture requires two elements at once: a strong scientific foundation and grounded, community-level support.

From a "hobby" to a serious skill

Rikolto worked with six urban farming groups in the city of Depok, West Java. These groups were not professional farmers, like those commonly found in rural areas-many of whom have farmed for decades or come from farming families.

The members of these urban farming groups were city residents, including workers, homemakers, and community organisers. They began gardening for a range of reasons: personal interest, a desire to access healthy food, or simply to try something new. This experience shaped the project's implementation process, particularly during its early stages.

I still clearly recall a candid reflection shared by Prof. Dr. Ir. Suryo Wiyono, Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture at IPB University, widely known as Prof. Suryo, during the early stages of the project. At the time, most of the supported groups still viewed urban farming as a hobby-something done in their spare time, rather than an activity pursued with clear, productive goals.

This tendency was clearly reflected in their response when chilli plants were attacked by pests. The participants were reluctant to remove infected plants, often out of emotional attachment. Yet, pests can easily spread to other productive plants, and one of the most effective ways to stop the spread is to remove plants that have already been infected.

That was three years ago. Today, the change is very evident. When we visited the farming sites managed by the groups on 15 December 2025, what we saw were no longer just demonstration plots. Instead, nearly all of the sites were well maintained, productive, and continuing to develop. The farms now follow more structured planting patterns, and it is clear that decisions around cultivation practices are being made with greater confidence and maturity.

Out of sight, but making a real difference

One of the groups that made the strongest impression on me was the KWT Sosial 3 farmers group, named after the street on which they are located. They initially began with a single urban farming demonstration plot. Today, they manage land across four different locations in the city of Depok. One of these plots is almost 'hidden' from view. Although it is located not far from a main road, people passing by are rarely aware that an urban farming site exists there. To reach it, one must enter through a narrow alley flanked by rows of typical urban housing.

Yet, upon reaching the end of the alley, the scene changes immediately. Chilli plants grow in neat rows on one side, while aubergines fill the other. In the centre, there are plots containing a variety of vegetables. On the same site, KWT Sosial 3 also manages organic waste through maggot cultivation in one corner of the land. This site is beyond a garden, it's a small, interconnected ecosystem.

At the KWT Demangan site, another supported urban farming group, members grow vegetables and chillies, and also cultivate fruit trees such as avocados and starfruit, adding greater diversity to their harvests. This diversity is important, as urban food systems cannot realistically rely on a single commodity, and cities also need green spaces that perform important ecological functions.

A harvest meant to be shared

Our visit to the KWT Sejahtera site was a motivating and inspiring experience. Upon arrival, we were welcomed with dishes prepared from their own harvest-ranging from cooked fish, fresh vegetables with aubergine sambal, and sour vegetable soup, to fruit pickles, and fresh avocados.

The shared meal may have been simple, but it conveyed a powerful message to us: urban food security is achievable.

Urban agriculture can take root in the gaps of the city, even on land that appears far from 'ideal', such as former construction waste sites, riverbanks, unused plots of land, or narrow alleyways. It is precisely here that the most important value of urban agriculture lies.

Equally important, this urban agriculture initiative is carried out using a sustainable approach, without the use of chemicals or pesticides. This is because the ultimate goal is not merely to produce a harvest, but also to protect the health of residents and the environment.

Data that strengthen community confidence: urban agriculture and its cooling effect on cities

What, then, is the connection between urban agriculture and climate? Research support from IPB provided scientific evidence that urban farming, often perceived as merely a "green initiative", it delivers measurable climate benefits, even at small urban scale.

Dr. Idung Risdiyanto, a lecturer and researcher in the Department of Geophysics and Meteorology at IPB, conducted research across six demonstration plot sites over the project's three-year implementation period.

One particularly positive finding was the estimated carbon sequestration potential of 24.9 tonnes of CO₂e per hectare per year. This figure is comparable in scale to the carbon sequestration capacity of tropical forests, which is estimated at approximately 38 tonnes of CO₂ per hectare per year and is achieved through the process of plant photosynthesis.

These findings were later shared with the supported groups and became a source of motivation for their members. They came to realise that the urban farming practices they were implementing were not only beneficial for food production, but also contributed positively to the local climate, but also contributed to reducing health risks associated with heat exposure for nearby residents.