Increasing in both size and number, cities worldwide are experiencing accelerated growth. With green land regularly lost to either urbanization or its effects ? such as rising sea levels or natural disasters ? and expanding populations meaning more mouths to feed, the farming and agricultural industries are in crisis. Viewed by many as the solution, vertical farming is the practice of stacking layers of crops atop each other, using humanity?s latest design and engineering tech to grow more with less space.

The Urban Farming Office in Ho Chih Minh City, Vietnam, seeks to return green space to the city using the building?s facade as a structure for vertical urban farming. Image © Hiroyuki Oki

Increasing in both size and number, cities worldwide are experiencing accelerated growth. With green land regularly lost to either urbanization or its effects ? such as rising sea levels or natural disasters ? and expanding populations meaning more mouths to feed, the farming and agricultural industries are in crisis. Viewed by many as the solution, vertical farming is the practice of stacking layers of crops atop each other, using humanity?s latest design and engineering tech to grow more with less space.More traditional horizontal farmland, however, does more for the environment than simply growing our food. The open-air green spaces often serve as natural habitats, air filtration, and temperature control for the surrounding area. By stepping up the concept of vertical...