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A team of Kansas State University faculty is working to improve food access in urban areas across Kansas by studying how city planning and policy can support more equitable and resilient food systems—especially for low-income and vulnerable communities.
Led by associate professor Shakil Bin Kashem of the landscape architecture and regional & community planning department, the team is exploring how local governments can close gaps in healthy food access through improved zoning, transportation planning, and support for local food networks.
The project is backed by K-State’s Game-changing Research Initiation Program (GRIP) and directed by Eleni Pliakoni, who also leads the university’s Urban Food Systems Initiative. The team’s work focuses primarily on the Kansas City metro area but includes other cities across the state.
Graduate student Maria Binte Edrish is using Geographic Information System (GIS) data and spatial analysis to map and assess food access, applying the Modified Retail Food Environment Index to track changes from 2011 to 2024.
Kashem said city planners can play a key role by promoting community gardens, farmers markets, small grocery incentives, and better public transit. Other team members include Logan Britton, associate professor of agricultural economics, and Hyung Jin Kim, associate professor of landscape architecture and regional & community planning.
