A Switch to Commons: The Evolution of the Regulation of Urban Agriculture in Rome, Italy

Abstract

This article investigates how framing urban agriculture as a "common good" shapes governance structures and fosters participatory processes for sustainable urban development. In October 2024, the City of Rome approved a new regulation on urban agriculture within the broader Regulation for the Shared Administration of Common Goods. This marked a significant evolution in framing urban agriculture as a "commons" compared to the City's earlier legislation. Drawing on field research, including semi‐structured interviews with key stakeholders and analysis of archival data, the study examines how urban agriculture practices in Rome exemplify collaborative governance in action. We argue that the resulting state‐society co‐creation processes enable cooperation between citizens and the local government, challenging traditional urban planning practices and promoting responsibility‐sharing. We also emphasize the importance of co‐creation and structured roundtables in fostering mutual awareness of roles and responsibilities. By situating urban agriculture within the broader context of urban commons governance scholarship and connecting it to collaborative governance frameworks, the article contributes to understanding how these theoretical concepts manifest as real‐world policy changes. It also calls for further research into the long‐term effectiveness of co‐creative urban governance and the broader applicability of commons‐based legal frameworks to other collective initiatives.