How do urban agriculture initiatives communicate on farming across society? An exploration of awareness, responsibility, and pride messages on social media

Unay-Gailhard, İlkay; Chaskin, Robert J.; Brennan, Mark A. Article — Published Version How do urban agriculture initiatives communicate on farming across society? An exploration of awareness, responsibility, and pride messages on social media Agriculture and Human Values Provided in Cooperation with: Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO), Halle (Saale) Suggested Citation: Unay-Gailhard, İlkay; Chaskin, Robert J.; Brennan, Mark A. (2025) : How do urban agriculture initiatives communicate on farming across society? An exploration of awareness, responsibility, and pride messages on social media, Agriculture and Human Values, ISSN 1572-8366, Springer, Berlin, Vol. 42, Iss. 3, pp. 1671-1687, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10460-025-10710-7 , https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10460-025-10710-7 This Version is available at: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/324491 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen. Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. 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Brennan [email protected] 1 Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO), Theodor-Lieser-Str. 2, 06120 Halle (Saale), Germany 2 UNESCO Chair on Global Citizenship Education for Sustainable Peace through Youth and Community Engagement, Department of Agricultural Economics, Sociology, and Education, The Pennsylvania State University (PSU), 307 Armsby Building, University Park, PA 16802, USA 3 Kiphart Center for Global Health and Social Development, The University of Chicago, 969 E. 60th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA 4 UNESCO Chair for Inclusive Urbanism, Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice, The University of Chicago, 969 E. 60th Street, Chicago, IL 60637, USA Abstract Generational renewal problems in the farming sector highlight the urgent need to attract new farmers and address misconceptions about agricultural careers. This can be achieved by strengthening the connection between the farming community and society. Emphasizing the alternative food movement’s role in attracting new-generation farmers, we focus on the urban agriculture movement and its communication efforts to better understand the changing relationship between agriculture and society. This study examines how urban agriculture communicates about farming by analyzing the use of social media messages related to awareness, responsibility, and pride. Analyses are based on the professionals’ perspectives (28 in-depth key informant interviews) and social media data (four selected Instagram accounts) in Pennsylvania and Illinois. We utilized qualitative thematic coding, guided by Polymedia theory and the Norm Activation Model. The results indicate that dialogues around urban agriculture encourage individuals to engage in discussions about healthy eating and to critically assess their understanding of industrial agriculture. Our study reveals that Instagram messages often emphasize responsibility and pride, which play a significant role in storytelling. These pride messages, linked to personal, relational, or professional achievements, are prevalent in the communication. However, very few messages address the economic aspects of farming, suggesting that financial issues and access to resources are not prioritized in these discussions. The study confirms that the online representation of urban farmers enhances their personal recognition by showcasing the diversity of farmers in terms of race, gender, ethnicity, and farm size, which differ from how traditional farmers are depicted in conventional media. Keywords Generational renewal problems in farms · Urban agriculture · Social media analyses · Instagram · Farming career · Emotion of pride · Online communication · Youth in agriculture Accepted: 16 January 2025 / Published online: 25 February 2025 © The Author(s) 2025 How do urban agriculture initiatives communicate on farming across society? An exploration of awareness, responsibility, and pride messages on social media İlkayUnay-Gailhard1,2 · Robert J.Chaskin3,4· Mark A.Brennan2 1 3 İ. Unay-Gailhard et al. Introduction The generational renewal problem in farming is a critical issue that involves the difficulties of attracting individuals who are capable and willing to pursue careers in agriculture. This phenomenon is particularly exacerbated by an ongoing trend of an aging farming population, especially in the U.S., where an increasing proportion of farmers are approaching or have reached retirement age (USDA 2022). Addressing the generational renewal in agriculture requires supporting the continuation of farming with young and new farmers. While farming is an essential sector, it still needs to be more adequately understood by the broader societal context, which is often plagued by societal misconceptions (Pinkerton et al. 2021; Szymkowiak and RhodesReese 2022). Enhancing individuals’ career aspirations in agriculture is one of the key steps in addressing the challenges related to generational renewal problems in farming. Recent studies examining the agricultural communication efforts of alternative food movements reveal the impact of these movements’ communication strategies on the emergence of new-generation farmers. Alternative food movements related to agriculture and food systems, such as the urban agriculture movement, local food, organic food movement, and fair-trade movement, challenge the industrial food system by advocating for socially just, environmentally sustainable, and economically viable food practices (Allen 2003; Stevens et al. 2016; Unay-Gailhard and Breannan 2022). Besides the importance of alternative food movements on the transition of the agricultural sector, these movements are also prominent in research on farm entry studies in the U.S. Researchers interested in farm entry behavior documented that alternative food movements bring the trend of increasing numbers of new farmers from families who are at least two generations removed from agriculture, and beginning farmers who enter agriculture as a second career (Bruce 2019; Seymour and Utter 2021). As documented by Bruce 2019; alternative food movements play a role in farming-career construction by providing career aspirations, training opportunities (e.g., internships and apprenticeship programs), and career progression with new marketing strategies. This study seeks to position alternative food movements’ communication efforts as central to understanding the evolving relationship between agriculture and society. The literature on alternative food movements and their influence on farming-career construction has been heavily focused on face-to-face interactions. Even though some scholarship on farm entry has given insights into the contribution of digital media to farming-career construction by providing a space in which career ideas can grow and viewers can acquire the self-confidence for a career intention (Iles et al. 2023; DeLong et al. 2023; Unay-Gailhard and Brannan, 2022; Unay-Gaihard and Simoes, 2022), a clear understanding of the potential of digital communication on the farming-career construction is still lacking. In this study, we aim to fill this research gap and explore the online communication efforts of alternative food movements on farming across society. The rise of internet use made the alternative food movements one of the most prevalent forms. Through the demassification of communications, the internet’s development promotes alternative food movements by enabling more personal interactions (Press and Arnaud 2011). The online presence of alternative food movements brought a new era in the public perception of farming as a profession by reshaping the public image of farmers (Bruce 2019). Digital media platforms, including but not limited to web pages, blogs, Instagram, Reddit, Facebook, X, TikTok, and YouTube, offer a unique environment that enables individuals to participate in and influence alternative food movements (Unay-Gailhard et al. 2023). These digital spaces facilitate curating and disseminating content related to agriculture and food issues, allowing users to consume and contribute to the dialog surrounding alternative food practices. This research contributes to understanding of farmers’ online representations in alternative food movements by examining two key aspects from an agricultural communication perspective: how they are framed and by which tones. As highlighted by Bruce (2019), the traditional perceptions of farming and farmers in the media are significantly transforming. Organizations such as The Greenhorns and the National Young Farmers Coalition, proficient in utilizing media, have contributed to a reimagined portrayal of beginning farmers. Contrary to the traditional farmer images, new farmers are increasingly depicted as “young, urban and suburban beginning farmers with no farming experience.” According to the study by Press and Arnaud (2011), Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has gained legitimacy as a market form in which their online presence plays a role in transmitting cultural imaginary. The authors argue that the online presence of CSA has an underlying “tone of moral superiority” that they demonstrate by opposing the industrial food system. These portrayals of “young, urban and suburban beginning farmers with no farming experience” and use of “tone of moral superiority” call for a further exploration of the communication efforts of alternative food movements. To deepen our exploration of relationships and improve clarity, we focused our study on one of the essential alternative food movements: the urban agriculture movement. Urban agriculture defined as the “cultivation, processing, and distribution of agricultural products (food or non-food) in urban and suburban areas” by the USDA (2024). In 1 3 1672 How do urban agriculture initiatives communicate on farming across society? An exploration of awareness,… recent years, urban agriculture has experienced significant growth as a possible alternative to industrial agriculture that can meet the needs of an increasing urban population. Overall, urban agriculture initiatives support economic, social, and environmental development in cities by improving access to fresh food, developing ecological values, providing educational programs, and developing communities. This paper investigates urban agriculture initiatives in Pennsylvania and Illinois. As part of the larger project, this study addresses the following broader question: “How do social media accounts managed by urban agriculture initiatives communicate on farming across society?” The study approached the question with a two-stage qualitative research design. It aimed to explore online agricultural communication by urban agriculture initiatives by assessing the professionals’ perspectives (qualitative analyses-I), followed by prospecting via social media analyses (qualitative analyses-II). In the qualitative analyses-I, we approached the question Q1: How are relationships and interactions shaped and managed within social media accounts of urban agriculture initiatives? We aim to explore the professionals’ experiences and attitudes (data includes in-depth interviews (N = 29) with leaders, directors, policy administrators, and digital communicators from urban agriculture initiatives) representing their perspectives on urban agriculture communication in social media and its influence on the images of the farming profession. The thematic coding approach is guided by the Polymedia theory (Madianou and Miller 2018), which investigated the integrated structure of social media in managing as well as engaging online relationships effectively. In the qualitative analyses-II, the study approached question Q2: How are urban farming issues, actors, and actions communicated in social media accounts of urban agriculture initiatives? The study is interested in social media analyses (the data includes messages posted by urban agriculture initiatives on the selected four Instagram accounts) between 2022 and 2024. Within the list of 1100 posts, we explored the communicating urban agriculture patterns and the position of the farming profession. The Norm Activation Model (Schwartz 1977) guides the thematic coding approach, which explains the altruistic behaviors to understand pro-social and pro-environmental intentions. This paper is structured into six sections. The second section provides the background information with a literature review. The third section gives a study framework with guided theories. In the fourth section, the used data, research design, and methodology are detailed. The results section presents the findings of qualitative analyses-I and II, respectively. The final section summarizes the study results and provides inputs for future research. Background The literature review first provides the key theoretical arguments explaining engagement in urban agriculture initiatives. We then review the empirical evidences that give insights into the relationship between online urban agriculture engagement and career intention in farming. Urban agriculture: a moral economy perspective Urban agriculture is a form of food and non-food production that occurs in urban and suburban areas and, in some cases, is accompanied by food processing and distribution (Russ and Gaus 2021; USDA 2024). Three main aspects characterize urban agriculture initiatives. First, it includes various sites such as community gardens, rooftop gardens, individual gardens, institutional gardens, fair-trade food-producer cooperatives, horticulture, aquaculture, and hydroponics. Second, it integrates into the broader food system through efforts such as urban farmers’ markets and CSA initiatives, farm-to-restaurant, and food-to-school linkages Lastly, it is multifunctional, offering social, environmental, political, and economic benefits (International Resource Panel, 2021; Diekmann et al. 2020; Pradhan et al. 2023; Prové et al. 2019; Russ and Gaus 2021). Urban agriculture in the U.S. is a growing industry, with roots in the late 19th and early 20th centuries (Fifolt et al. 2018; Rangarajan and Riordan 2019), and plays a significant role in fostering moral values (e.g., self-reliance, sustainability, and ethical consumption) within communities with initiatives that intersect with morality and economic activities and challenge the conventional view that morality and the market are opposing forces (Weissman 2015). Urban agriculture initiatives are surrounded by pro-social, pro-environmental, and pro-political intentions and behaviors and refer to the production, distribution, and dissemination of moral values, emotions, and norms within a social, cultural, and political space. Pro-social behaviors within urban agriculture encompass intentional actions to benefit oneself, others, and the environment. The urban agriculture initiatives promote the welfare of individuals, groups, or organizations by providing food security, encouraging healthy eating habits, offering education on food and farming, and fostering community building and school connectedness among students. It also includes community-building efforts by hosting publicly open events and programs and being involved in participatory actions that foster communal support and social-emotional growth through which participants receive recognition for engaging in urban agriculture (Das and Ramaswami 2022; DeMarsh 2022; Dimitri et al. 2016; Filfolt 2018). 1 3 1673 İ. Unay-Gailhard et al. authors highlight the role of the internet in building that legitimacy by promoting more personal communications by the demassification of communications. The authors conclude that CSA programs are an essential example of a cultural imaginary that induces a change in agri-food production and marketing in the U.S. Reed and Keech (2018) studied urban agriculture activism on Twitter by examining users’ and viewers’ comments and exploring how people participate in society via social media. Findings show that while materials posted by users are mainly concerned with creating a shared, normative picture of urban food which sustains the networks, an examination of viewers’ comments found that these online networks are a primary tool of social interaction and promote pro-social online behavior. In the second line of research, McGinnis et al. (2020) investigated the online outreach methodologies for reaching millennials. This generation is an important source of customers for the horticulture industry, accounting for onequarter of all horticulture purchases in 2018. The authors share examples of initiatives (e.g., Seed Your Future) that promote horticulture as a vibrant career opportunity and highlight the role of social media, particularly Instagram, as a cornerstone of millennial outreach. Posts focusing on building a two-way partnership by emphasizing shared values of sustainability, local foods, and wellness would be appealing terminology and subject matter. A study by Solis-Toapanta et al. (2020) is an example of the career-experimentation role of social media in urban farming, particularly indoor gardening with hydroponics. The study investigated the social media platforms of Reddit (user-generated information and resource exchange among niche online communities), analyzing users’ posts and viewers’ comments on topics such as production systems, plant lighting, and the root-one environment. The authors’ findings show how online platforms generate an opportunity to address knowledge gaps and online outreach efforts help foster positive experiences among interested individuals in farming. Studies by Broad (2020) and Manning (2019) report the impact of social media communication strategies on a Brooklyn-based commercial indoor vertical farm that specializes in hydroponically grown herbs. The authors documented the impact of the company’s public engagement campaign “Next-Gen Farmers” in promoting career training initiatives as a path for creating career aspirations as founders of indoor urban farming companies. Study framework This study takes an integrative approach to explore online communication of urban agriculture initiatives on farming across society. The analyses are guided by the Polymedia Pro-environmental intentions and behaviors within urban agriculture initiatives involve deliberate actions shaping moral values. These are accomplished by fostering a sense of connection to nature, offering hands-on farming, food, and environmental education with an emphasis on ecojustice knowledge, promoting ecological citizenship, composting at urban agriculture sites, distributing finished compost to urban agriculture sites, and participating in green projects and climate advocacy initiatives (Ceaser 2012; Fifolt et al. 2018; Halvey et al. 2021; Murrah-Hanson et al. 2022; Schneller et al. 2022; Travaline and Hunold 2010). Pro-political intentions and behaviors within the urban agriculture initiatives bounded with civic engagement (as one form of political participation) and awareness of political issues on social justice, food desert, food justice, racially discriminatory urban policies, and political organizing (Russ and Gaus 2021; Sonti et al. 2016; Weissman 2015). Pro-political behaviors also include governmental support and the integration of agriculture into urban planning and policies (Prové et al. 2019). As documented by Halvey et al. (2021), in the scope of urban agriculture policies, there is an increasing frequency of governments engaging in public-private partnerships, and these partnerships illustrate the growing role of civil society groups as collaborators in the municipal government processes rather than just stakeholders. The online presence of urban agriculture Urban farmers and other urban agricultural stakeholders manage and engage with various types of digital media, such as websites, blogs, social media, and mobile applications for information exchange through personalized communication. Even though the importance of online outreach methodologies for agriculture communication (Lubelle and McRobert 2018) is well-established, we need to gain more knowledge on the impact of the online presence of urban agriculture initiatives on the changing perceptions toward farming careers (Unay-Gailhard and Brennan 2022). The reviewed studies in the area of the online dimension of urban agriculture engagement cluster along two lines of research: (i) studies providing insights into the personal, relational, and organizational values and cultural imaginaries promoted by online urban agriculture initiatives (Press and Arnould 2011; Reed and Keech 2018, 2019) and (ii) studies reporting findings on the relationship between social media usage and career intention in farming via career exposure and career experimentation (Broad 2020; Manning 2019; McGinnis et al. 2020; Solis-Toapanta et al. 2020). In the first area of research, a study by Press and Arnould (2011) provides a socio-historical perspective on how CSA programs have gained legitimacy as a market form. The 1 3 1674 How do urban agriculture initiatives communicate on farming across society? An exploration of awareness,… different engagements and share their social media management practices. Step II: exploration via Instagram messages In the second step of the qualitative analyses, the study approached Q2 with the guidance of the Norm Activation Model. The Norm Activation Model explains altruistic behaviors and is used by scholars to understand pro-social and pro-environmental initiations and behaviors (De Groot and Steg 2009a; Groot and Steg 2009b; Hunecke et al. 2001; Onwezen et al. 2013). In our study, the Norm Activation Model developed by Schwartz (1977) was used as a framework for understanding individuals’ pro-social and proenvironmental intentions to engage in urban agricultural initiatives. Personal norms are the core of the Norm Activation Model and are used to predict intentions and behaviors determined by awareness (awareness of consequences), responsibility (ascribing responsibility), and personal norms (e.g., emotion of pride as an item in the measurement). Awareness messages A key element of the Norm Activation Model is that when individuals become aware of the possible negative outcomes of their actions, it can activate their personal norms. These activated norms then encourage them to adopt more sustainable practices. This activation process is essential for promoting pro-social and pro-environmental behaviors as responsible actions. The awareness of consequences is defined as the negative consequences of not performing the specific behavior (e.g., agreeing with the statement “global theory (Madianou and Miller 2018) and the Norm Activation Model (Schwartz 1977), and the intersection among them. Figure 1 illustrates the study framework, including two-step qualitative analyses that address two study questions. Step I: Exploration via professional perspectives In the first step of the qualitative analyses, the study approached Q1, and the Polymedia theory, which is dedicated to understanding the complexities of digital communication, informed the analytical steps. The term “polymedia” refers to the integrated relationships and interactions created by digital media rather than viewing media as an isolated tool (such as traditional ‘one-to-many’ media). Social media engagement & management The Polymedia theory suggests an integrated structure where individuals engage with and manage digital platforms. Digital media engagement includes connecting with, interacting with, and building relationships through digital channels. Digital media management refers to the process of organizing, creating content, and measuring all media assets. This integrated structure contributes to a broader communicative ecology that shapes social relationships and realities. Research examining young farmers’ career paths through a sociological lens shows that digital media not only transforms technology but also impacts behaviors and relationships, resulting in emotional, social, and moral effects (Unay-Gailhard and Brennan 2023). This study investigates the experiences and perspectives of professionals involved in urban agriculture initiatives as they reflect on their Fig. 1 The study framework: exploring agricultural communication on social media by urban agriculture initiatives. (1) The graphical representation of the Norm Activation Model was adapted from De Groot and Steg 2009; Onwezen et al. (2013); (2) The intersection of the Polymedia theory and the Norm Activation Model (accepted as a mediator model in which awareness of consequences influences personal norms via ascribed responsibility) have built the study framework; (3) Q1: How are relationships and interactions shaped and managed within social media accounts of urban agriculture initiatives? and Q2: How are urban farming issues, actors, and actions communicated in social media accounts of urban agriculture initiatives?; (4) The bolded and italicized themes are detailed in the following 1 3 1675 İ. Unay-Gailhard et al. warming is a problem for society”; Choi et al. 2015; De Groot and Steg 2009). Responsibility messages Another key element of the Norm Activation Model is the ascription of responsibility, which significantly influences personal norms, affecting intentions and behaviors. The Norm Activation Model suggests that people are more inclined to engage in pro-social or pro-environmental actions when they recognize the negative impacts of their behaviors and feel a personal obligation to address them. Ascription of responsibility is described as the feelings of responsibility for the negative consequences of not performing a specific behavior (e.g., agreeing with the statement, “I feel jointly responsible for the energy problems”; Choi et al. 2015; De Groot and Steg 2009). Pride messages The emotion of pride plays an important role in the Norm Activation Model, especially when it comes to fostering pro-social and pro-environmental intentions and behaviors. Pride, as a self-conscious emotion, can serve as a motivator, particularly when individuals anticipate positive outcomes associated with their actions. The emotion of pride is a key component in measuring personal norms, as highlighted in previous studies (Harland et al. 1999; Hopper and Nielsen 1991; Thøgersen 2009; Vining and Ebreo 1992). Guided by these studies, we considered pride as an emotion associated with personal norms. This study used the authentic pride scale proposed by Tracy and Robins (2007), which includes words of accomplishment, achievement, confidence, fulfillment, productivity, self-worth, and success, and connotes the full range of academic, social, moral, and interpersonal accomplishments. This research asses the pride messages shared by urban agriculture initiatives and explore the question of how urban agriculture issues, actors, and actions are communicated by expressing the emotions from the specific achievements: personal, relational, and professional achievements. (detailed definitions provided in Table 1). By integrating the Norm Activation Model with the Polymedia theory, the study aims to enhance the explanatory power regarding individuals’ pro-social and pro-environmental intentions to engage in urban agricultural initiatives that may shape social relationships and realities (e.g., alter misconceptions about agriculture, and create career aspirations in farming via messages in digital media). Table 1 Overview of data structure-qualitative social media analyses LOS Themes and Sub-Themes I-Awareness of consequences: Messages aim to increase the awareness of the negative consequences for oneself, others, or other things when not acting pro-socially and pro-environmentally by using sources of scientific information, facts, and thoughts. M i) Awareness of consequences for oneself: Messages that aim to increase awareness of the performing or not performing of a particular behavior have certain consequences (negative/positive) for oneself. S ii) Awareness of consequences for others: Messages that increase the awareness of performing or not performing a particular behavior have certain consequences (negative/positive) for others and society. S iii) Awareness of consequences for the environment: Messages that increase the awareness of the performing or not performing of a particular behavior have certain consequences (negative/positive) for the environment. II-Responsibility: Messages communicate an improvement of responsibility for the negative consequences of not acting pro-socially and pro-environmentally. M iv) Self-responsibility: Messages that suggest involvement in responsible, answerable, or accountable actions within one’s self-control. S v) Civic responsibility: Messages that suggest active participation in public life to improve the life of one’s community or address broader public issues beyond one’s self-responsibility. S vi) Professional responsibility: Messages that communicate the good qualities of a profession while applying skills and reaching decisions for, or on behalf, of others, as professionals. IIIEmotion of Pride: Messages expressed the emotions from the specific achievements by using authentic pride scale words of accomplishment, achievement, confidence, fulfillment, productivity, self-worth, and success. S vii) Personal achievements: Messages that specify or label the positive contributions to the individuals’ life, such as contribution to the skills, goals, and morals of individuals for their life and current and future career developments. S viii) Relational achievements: Messages that explicitly express the achievements of supportive and solid relationships, including community, national, and international level relations, as well as internal and external relations of the institution. S ix) Professional achievements: Messages that communicate the professional success as a result of the successfully implemented work tasks and their contributions to the economic, social, and environmental accomplishments. The legend “Level of Support (LOS)” is defined as S = Strong support; a majority of the analyzed Instagram text messages were included in this category; M = Moderate support, some of the analyzed Instagram text messages contained statements in this category; T = Tentative support, a very small number of the analyzed Instagram text messages included statements in this category 1 3 1676 How do urban agriculture initiatives communicate on farming across society? An exploration of awareness,… from urban agriculture initiatives in and around the cities of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, State College, Pittsburgh) and Illinois (Chicago, Champaign) between April and October 2022. The semi-structured, in-depth interviews, lasting between 40 and 90 min, were conducted by combined online and in-person meetings and were audio-recorded. The objective of the key informant interviews was twofold. First, the study aimed to understand professionals’ attitudes and values that shaped their interactions and behaviors on social media platforms and obtain their perspectives on social media engagements. Second, the study aimed to identify the relevant social media channel as a qualitative source. Interviews were designed as open-ended questions to give a space for general discussion on the most consumed social media channels (at the time of the study) among individuals interested in urban agriculture. All interviewed professionals expressed their involvement in social media with different roles, such as a user for the content provider, content creator to promote urban farming for their affiliated institutions, or follower with or without professional identity. Qualitative source-II, selected social media accounts The results of key informant interviews guided the design of social media analyses. Social media analyses included the exploration of online text messages posted by formally organized actors from urban agriculture initiatives in Pennsylvania and Illinois. The study followed the purposive sampling strategy that included the selection of specific Instagram accounts for analysis. This strategy allowed an understanding of how different content setters communicate urban agriculture. The study is particularly interested in presenting urban farmers as a profession tied to pro-social and pro-environmental intensions and behaviors. Data sampling for the qualitative source-II followed three main steps. Data and research design This research aims to understand the use of social media by urban agriculture initiatives in Pennsylvania and Illinois. Studied two states have vibrant urban and peri-urban agriculture sites with commercial and non-commercial initiatives and provide an appropriate structure for understanding the perspectives of professionals involved in promoting agriculture via online communication tools. This study integrated data from two qualitative sources: qualitative source-I (key informant interviews with professionals from urban agriculture initiatives), and qualitative source-II (selected social media accounts) to investigate the messages led by urban agriculture initiatives. Figure 2 illustrates the use of two qualitative sources by division of the communication interactions by initiated actors. As shown in Fig. 2, online communication interactions within urban agriculture initiatives are primarily initiated by two types of actors: formal and informal. Formal actors include school-based and community-based urban agriculture initiatives, while informal actors consist of personal social media accounts. This focus on formal actors aims to address the growing pressure on institutions to respond to the demand for efficient agricultural and farming career knowledge-transfer to youth in the digital age. The studied formal actors are categorized into two groups: (i) schoolbased communication initiatives, which encompass urban agriculture sites operated by universities and high schools, and (ii) community-based communication initiatives, which include urban agriculture sites supported and operated by government agencies, agricultural extension networks, NGOs, and community gardens. Qualitative source-I, key informant interviews Key informant interviews (N = 28; 15 from Pennsylvania, and 13 from Illinois) were conducted with professionals Fig. 2 Data and research design: illustration of used qualitative sources 1 3 1677 İ. Unay-Gailhard et al. It promotes local farmers by enabling them to sell directly to consumers in the city, fosters relationships between producers and consumers, and encourages community engagement. Two of these accounts are working with social media strategists—either as interns or staff—to create and manage online content. The other two are developing and evaluating posts with existing employees who do not have professional backgrounds in media communication. In total, a list of 1100 posts was analyzed. Instagram accounts posted regularly on their environmental, social, and political, economic concerns surrounding urban agriculture were studied. In all accounts, the number of posts was higher during the spring and summer seasons. Posts tied to urban agriculture had a vast spectrum of contents such as farming practices (e.g., production and marketing activities), sustainable social dinners, food pantry organizations, CSA announcements, culinary art events, meetings for book clubs, talks with urban farmers, chefs, writers, journalists, musicians, visual artists, summer school camps, onsite and offsite workshops, trips to urban farms, and entrepreneurship workshops. Data analyses This study used qualitative thematic analyses to identify, assess, and report themes using key informant interviews and selected four Instagram accounts. For the qualitative source-I (key informant interviews), we investigated the lived experiences, focusing on professionals’ online urban agriculture dialogue involvement. The descriptive coding approach was used to identify the main themes. Defined themes enable us to capture the engagement and management dimensions of online urban agriculture dialogue. The investigation mainly focused on how users led communication and made urban agriculture movement messages accessible to viewers. Regarding qualitative source-II (selected four Instagram accounts), we start our analysis by re-examining corresponding informant interview(s) conducted with professionals from the selected four urban agriculture initiatives. This reexamination allows us to have account-specific insight from the user’s perspective, such as users’ opinions, engagement, management behaviors, and communication strategies. The re-examination of the corresponding interview provided insider knowledge and was used as an analytical basis. This basis helps to explore online text messages by considering the formal identity of the authority, the content (e.g., actuality in the photos and images) in which the messages were produced, and the way urban agriculture activities and urban farmers were presented to the viewers. First, we developed an inventory of social media channels managed by formal actors from urban agriculture initiatives. The list of online channels was drawn from a review of websites and social media accounts. Following key informant interviews and our inventory, we identified Instagram as a significant channel for our analysis. Besides web pages, urban agriculture initiatives were initially active on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok. The popularity of Instagram among young generations and the visually rich nature of agriculture and farming-related subjects (McGinnis et al. 2020) are assumed to foster the accessibility of online text messages. Second, the list of urban agriculture initiatives included in the key informant interviews has been approached for selecting the target Instagram accounts for analysis. This approach provides a detailed commentary on the users’ expressed attitudes and behaviors and enriches the analyses by knowing the insider view on the communication strategies of the studied accounts. The study chooses two Instagram accounts from each state by the characteristics of communication specialization (account managed by professional communication strategists as one of the main work tasks vs. accounts managed by the staff or leader as a beside job task) and by the initiated formal actor (account manages by a community-based actor vs. school-based actor). Following that, the target accounts were finalized with two eligibility criteria: i) active accounts that post a minimum of one per month and iii) accounts with more than 400 followers. Third, we identified the study period by examining Instagram posts from January 2022 to January 2024. Rather than concentrating on major events, the analysis examines the dynamics of social media use over a three-year period. Because of the large volume of posts each year, the study avoids identifying a sample from a more extended time frame. The analyses considered the written messages as text messages in the posted images and short videos. Accounts that reside within a public domain are accessible freely. Profiles of selected urban agriculture initiatives Qualitative source-II consists of four Instagram accounts (Fig. 2) with varied numbers of followers (max ~ 49000 to min ~ 600). Account I (university farm, PA) and Account II (high school farm, IL) serve as agricultural production and marketing sites, as well as spaces for social interaction, educational development, and community involvement. Account III (community garden, PA) operates as an agricultural production and educational site, offering programs that promote community cohesion, entrepreneurship, nutrition, and well-being. Account IV (farmers market, IL), initiated by chefs, is driven by social and environmental objectives. 1 3 1678 How do urban agriculture initiatives communicate on farming across society? An exploration of awareness,… Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. 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To effectively address the need for information, we assert that messages showcasing the benefits of urban agriculture for economic development, alongside its contributions to social and environmental well-being, will enhance the fragmented narrative surrounding self-sufficient economic initiatives on social media. These messages could better represent available resources such as University Extension resources regarding personnel and programs, awareness on expended urban agriculture operations, updated regulatory information in urban planning, funds to implement ecological practices, and the latest information on urban farming policies. As a concluding remark, we emphasize the limitations of our study. This research relies on predefined analytical frameworks, where established theories inform the coding of qualitative analyses. Our approach allows data connection that enhances understanding with the explanatory power of used theories. Although we deliberately implemented several steps in the coding process, we recognize that different coding methods could provide new opportunities for analytic syntheses. This study explores the dialogues generated by urban agriculture initiatives through qualitative research, utilizing data from Instagram and interviews with professionals in the field. It presents opportunities for future exploration, particularly regarding online dialogue engagement. By examining the conversations that foster engagement among followers, we can investigate the information needs of individuals interested in farming and the impact of social media on career aspirations. This can be captured by listening to the career stories of beginning urban farmers in urban and peri-urban areas and by analyzing online dialogue engagement qualitatively and quantitatively. Acknowledgements We express sincere gratitude to all the interviewees for their time and for sharing their knowledge through our interviews. 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