Building resilient public spaces: lessons from a cooperative farmers’ market

Abstract

This presentation examines the role of farmers’ market in sustaining urban public space during the COVID-19 pandemic. While outdoor and indoor markets are often viewed as important social, cultural, and economic venues (Everts, Jackson, and Juraschek, 2021), during the pandemic such public spaces became sites of complex negotiations that were at once essential economic and food provisioning locales, important sites for sociability and connection, and yet potentially sites of pathogen transmission (Van Eck, Van Melik, and Schapendonk, 2020). Building on Latham and Layton’s (2019) work on social infrastructure, the presentation will draw on qualitative research completed with vendors, staff, and visitors to the St John’s Farmers’ Market in Newfoundland, Canada, between 2020 and 2022. During a series of lockdowns and shifts in public health restrictions, vendors and market staff used a range of approaches to sustain a sense of community and create opportunities for a diverse range of users (in terms of age, ability, health, and economic capacity) to engage with the market. The presentation will conclude with some lessons-learned about the role of farmers’ markets in building community resilience, and the importance of collaborations between municipalities and organizations such as the St John’s Farmers’ Market in moments of crisis.