The thesis addresses the proximity of contemporary global human issues to local human issues and presents an architectural solution. By identifying, exploring and drawing closer the proximities between these global and local issues, new solutions can be developed for local application. There are new fields created for architecture when we understand and connect the proximity of objects of both cultural and biophysical creation, and when we understand and build on our ever-narrowing proximities between what has been and what is to come. The narrowing global conditions have direct implications on us as individual human beings and our individual local societies. These proximities have been explored, developed, and resolved for local application. The resulting research field for urban agriculture ultimately guided an appropriate architectural response within the city of Pretoria, South Africa. / Dissertation (MArch(Prof))--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Architecture / unrestricted