The thesis takes into notice a rare case of integration of rooftop urban agriculture into sustainable development of urban areas. The current situation shows that the development of rooftop urban agriculture has not been adequately studied. This master thesis aims to enhance the understanding regarding planning opportunities and challenges for integration of rooftop urban farming in urban design and sustainable urban development with a focus on environmental benefits of its implementation. Furthermore, the thesis brings up a conceptual design programme «Malmö FIVE» that shows one of the ways how architects and urban planners could inspire city developers and municipalities to explore the ways of the redevelopment of the existing unused urban spaces into the new resilient environments.  The thesis based on a combination of literature review, analysis of planning materials, site visits, conducting interviews, discussions and attending seminars and lectures to answer the research questions. The research identified multiple challenges that can be encountered in the process of implementation of rooftop urban agriculture. The findings determined the importance of rooftop urban agriculture being approached from the strategic sustainability perspective to value its potential fully. Rooftop urban agriculture can provide significant environmental values thus have an essential role in the sustainable development of urban areas.

Cities present many opportunities to improve socio-ecological sustainability through efficiencies of scale and access to resources and services. These benefits are often compromised by rapidly increasing urban populations demanding energy, water, resources and food that are sourced, produced and transported from rural areas in unsustainable ways. A systems level approach to understanding the complex challenges cities face is required to strategically plan for the future. Rooftop agriculture is one measure that can help address many sustainability problems cities are currently faced with. Our research aims to identify the role rooftop agriculture can play in moving society towards sustainability, the challenges it currently faces that may prevent it from being widely implemented, and how to overcome these challenges. To structure our research, we used the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development (FSSD), a scientifically rigorous and peer reviewed model designed to manage the complexity of planning and decision-making towards sustainability. The culmination of this paper was the creation of a Sustainable Rooftop Agriculture Guide, a practical resource that can help city stakeholders determine how to best use rooftop agriculture in their movement towards sustainability.