About this Project

Erin spent the summer of 2015 in Madrid, Spain on a research fellowship through the Urban Democracy Lab’s Global Fellowship in Urban Practice. There, she worked with Paisaje Transversal and conducted on-the-ground research exploring the relationships between the recent and widespread emergence of huertos urbanos (urban agriculture) and other groups involved in the urban social movement stemming from social unrest and irresponsible development leading up to the bursting of the housing bubble and beginning of the economic crisis in 2008.

Through this project, she aims to shed light on this recent phenomenon, identify trends, analyze various organizational models and motivations, and make comparisons with urban agriculture in the US.

About the Author

Erin Johnson earned her Master’s degree in January 2016 from NYU’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study. At Gallatin, Erin studied urban agriculture and community development. Her coursework covered urban economic development, community organizing, sustainable food systems, environmental justice, community advocacy and public health. Erin’s thesis research centered on the strategies and programming of urban farms in low-income neighborhoods in New York and their community development efficacy.

Hailing from the suburbs of Chicago, Erin first moved east for her undergraduate degree at Cornell University where she studied design, with a focus on sustainability. She spent a year after college working with asylum-seekers in Israel before moving to New York. Erin has almost a decade of non-profit experience focused on the environment, health, and community development. She has been at Green City Force since 2017 and has previously worked at Urban Green Council (the NYC chapter of the US Green Building Council), Hunger Free NYC, and the Battery Urban Farm. Erin also serves as a volunteer coordinator with the Gowanus Canal Conservancy and belongs to Gil Hodges Community Garden.