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Remote areas usually do not have access to electricity from the national grid. The energy demand is often covered by diesel generators, resulting in high operating costs and significant environmental impacts. With reference to the case study of Ginostra (a village on a small island in the south of Italy), this paper analyses the environmental sustainability of an innovative solution based on Renewable Energy Sources (RES) integrated with a hybrid hydrogen-battery energy storage system. A comparative Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) has been carried out to evaluate if and to what extent the RES-based system could bring environmental improvements compared to the current diesel-based configuration. The results show that the impact of the RES-based system is less than 10% of that of the current diesel-based solution for almost all impact categories (climate change, ozone depletion, photochemical ozone formation, acidification, marine and terrestrial eutrophication and fossil resource use). The renewable solution has slightly higher values only for the following indicators: use of mineral and metal resources, water use and freshwater eutrophication. The climate change category accounts for 0.197 kg CO 2 eq./kWh in the renewable scenario and 1.73 kg CO 2 eq./kWh in the diesel-based scenario, which corresponds to a reduction in GHG emissions of 89%. By shifting to the RES-based solution, about 6570 t of CO 2 equivalent can be saved in 25 years (lifetime of the plant). In conclusion, the hydrogen-battery system could provide a sustainable and reliable alternative for power supply in remote areas. • An LCA of an off-grid hybrid battery-hydrogen system is performed. • A comparison with the current scenario based on a diesel generator is performed. • Low impact on climate change for the Renewable scenario (0.197 kg CO 2 eq./MWh). • The Renewable scenario can save more than 260 t of CO 2 eq. per year. • The impact due to transport by helicopter to the remote site is negligible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper moves from the relevance that greenwashing has assumed in recent years and aims to investigate whether the environmental claims made by companies truly reflect their actions. Specifically, it analyzes the relationship between environmental claims and strategic intentionality toward environmental sustainability, proxied by the use and weight of incentives linked to environmental targets in executive compensation plans. By adopting this approach, the study offers a more nuanced perspective on greenwashing, addressing the limitations of the prevalent performance-based view. Based on the analysis of the companies listed on the FTSE Italia All-share index 2021, the paper highlights that companies that draft sustainability plans and declare carbon neutrality goals tend to include environmental targets in their executive compensation plans more frequently and with greater weights compared to other companies. Conversely, merely reporting environmental performance in sustainability (or integrated) reports is not associated with the use of environmental targets in executive compensation plans, suggesting the potential existence of greenwashing practices. The study emphasizes the relevance of considering the executive compensation structure when examining potential signs of greenwashing. It also provides evidence of the need for standardized and transparent corporate compensation disclosure as a significant implication. [Display omitted] • Greenwashing is measured comparing corporate intentionality and environmental claims. • Intentionality is proxied by executive compensation linked to environmental targets. • The diffusion of environmental targets in executive compensation is still limited. • Sustainability plans and carbon neutrality goals signal corporate intentionality. • Nonfinancial reporting alone is not associated with corporate intentionality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates whether the gender of elected politicians affects the performance of Italian local governments in providing equitable and sustainable well-being to citizens. In fact, Italy was the first country in the European Union to include citizens' well-being objectives in economic planning. We use data on more than 6000 Italian municipalities for two years to investigate the relationship between gender representation at three bodies of local government with measures of socio-economic and environmental sustainability and find that larger representation of women in municipal leadership, executive and council bodies is significantly associated with improved municipal well-being. These results are also confirmed by accounting for endogenous issues, by adopting an extended definition of well-being and other robustness checks. Differences among northern and southern regions emerge with regard to the effects of incumbent female politicians. Other heterogeneous impacts are unclear or less marked. • A Wroclaw composite index of well-being is constructed at municipal level. • Gender quotas is used as instrumental variable in 2SLS regressions. • A larger share of women in municipal political bodies improves citizen's well-being. • Heterogeneity effects are detected among North vs. Center-South macro-regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper illustrates the Italian pilot action of the EASEE project (Envelope Approach to improve Sustainability and Energy Efficiency in existing multi-storey multi owner residential buildings), focusing on the analysis of energy refurbishment trends of the Lombardy region residential building stock. More than 60% of the existing building stock in Lombardy region has been built before the 70 s and it is among the main responsible causes of final energy absorption and corresponding CO 2 emissions with a mean primary energy index for heating of about 202.0 kWh/m 2 y. The promotion of renovation measures for such buildings, also through innovative solutions, is becoming increasingly important for both containing the greenhouse gas emissions and supporting the growth of the construction sector. To this topic, the work presents the energy renovation of a residential building in the Province of Milan through the application of innovative prefabricated composite panels that integrate both thermal insulation and exterior finishing with textile reinforced mortar. In detail, the paper describes, on one hand, the main design strategies following the preliminary analysis and, on the other hand, the whole installation process; besides, the performance of the retrofitted envelope is documented by the results of the monitoring campaign. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The circular economy is a social, technological and economic paradigm that aims to build a production and consumption model focused on waste reduction and maximization of discarded matter recovery. Discussion of the circular economy often treats it as a technocratic and profit-driven phenomenon that can be developed by capital investment in a particular industrial sector without necessarily taking into account the needs of the surrounding geographic area. The promotion of the circular economy often emphasises recycling and other practices that may not fully use the recovered material but are highly automatable, thus creating only a limited number of jobs. At the same time, there is another model of the circular economy, in which small and medium-sized organizations engage in transformative and low-technology activities such as reuse and repair, benefiting local development and creating job opportunities. This model is often explicitly driven by a social development mandate. Still, it risks falling short of its goals because of a lack of expertise and a less systematic approach. This paper aims to introduce the Design-led Repair & Reuse (DLRR) framework for mitigating the shortcomings of this second model, using an approach that is both sustainable and accessible to organizations with limited resources. Inspired by the principles of "Design-driven innovation", "social & solidarity economy", and "appropriate technology", DLRR aims to generate a higher quality of processes and products from circular, low entropy and low capital-intensity production activities, resulting in a more solid, identifiable and conscious positioning in the reuse market. It complements the socially inclusive ethos of these third sector small and medium-sized organizations while contributing to the debate on integrating alternative perspectives into the mainstream circular economy discourse. The first part of this paper discusses the theoretical principles that have inspired the DLRR framework. The second part presents research that tests the consistency of these founding principles based on a case study of a sample of organizations in Italy that are active in circular waste transformation processes. • The circular economy is an emerging paradigm in the race to achieve environmental sustainability. • Mainstream discourse on circular economy often does not focus on the social dimension of sustainability. • This discourse often interprets circular economy in a technocratic way, emphasizing high-tech, capital intensive approaches. • Reuse and repair practices are more technologically accessible, and can foster the creation of job opportunities. • A Design-led reuse and repair approach can contribute to strenghten the social dimension of circular economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The implementation of scientific studies can help to improve sustainable solutions in the agri-food sector according to current European policy. The present paper aims to evaluate the carbon footprint, according to ISO/TS 14067:2013, of 0.5 kg of sweet cherries packaged in clamshell made in polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The research assesses the supply chain, from agricultural (from nursery to dismantling) to the processing phase in firms located in the Apulia region. Results show a global warming potential over a fixed period corresponding to 100 years equal to 0.584 kg CO 2eq , primarily deriving from agricultural management (0.442 kg CO 2eq) and secondly from fruit processing (0.068 kg CO 2eq). In the orchard phase, the main impacts derived from electricity consumed to pump groundwater used for irrigation and fertigation activities (15.84% of the total), transportation of manure (6.42% of the total), ploughing activity (4.83% of the total) and production of nitrogen fertilisers (4.28% of the total). Cherries processing in the collecting centre showed impacts from electricity consumption (5.57% of the total) and from waste deriving from damaged or non-conforming cherries (4.74% of the total). The PET clamshell production phase had an impact deriving principally from the use of PET granulate (0.0743 kg CO 2eq). The study highlighted that manure administration and pruning activities contribute to decreasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Moreover, the sensitivity analysis showed that substitution of electricity-mix deriving from the Italian national grid with a photovoltaic plant lowered GHG emissions by 19%. The present study could contribute in providing suggestions to stakeholders and scholars in reducing GHG emissions and promoting more environmentally sustainable sweet cherry production practices. Image 1 • Increasing knowledge on the CF assessment of the sweet cherries supply chain. • A case study of sweet cherry production located in Southern Italy was examined. • Carbon Footprint assessment was applied to 0.5 kg of sweet cherry in PET clamshell. • Results show that GWP 100 is equal to 0.584 kg CO 2eq. • Main impacts deriving from agricultural activities (75%) and fruit processing (12%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is based on a discussion developed by one of the thematic working groups at the Biennial International Workshop Advances in Energy Studies (BIWAES) 2017 hold in Naples, Italy. The topic was the role of technology in energy transition and global problems. Owing to the heterogeneity of the participants in the working group, different viewpoints were put together, leading to some shared conclusions. In particular, the role played by the different narratives used in discussing the role of technology in facing global problems was pointed out as the origin of cognitive dissonance. The presented reflections address some conceptual weaknesses in the current debate on technology and global issues, framed in global policies that appear incapable to obtain tangible results. The technology optimism seems, in fact, to be based on the elusive use of both the concepts of technology and sustainability, that are put together for narrative purposes without an explicit conceptual assessment. On one hand, the factual role of technology and its beneficiary are almost never clearly addressed in the debate. On the other hand, the fact that any new technology will serve the cause of sustainability is not questioned whatsoever, without taking into account the social, political and ethical framework in which technology is supposed to be operated. • Thematic working groups at the BIWAES 2017 Conference. • Conceptual weaknesses in the current debate on technology are addressed. • The questions "Technology for what?" and "Technology for whom?" are mandatory. • There is a strong need for a correct contextualization of technology debate. • A shared and openly-described narrative is mandatory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Applying the theoretical framework of productive analysis, the paper proposes an evaluation of regional sustainable well-being (SWB) in terms of efficiency. By means of an Activity Analysis Model (AA) (Färe et al., 1996), desirable and undesirable outcomes of development have been simultaneously used to evaluate the sustainable well-being of Italian regions. Data on equal and sustainable well-being provided by the Italian Statistical Office for the year 2010 has been used. The analysis reveals that only four regions achieve sustainable well-being, balancing socio-economic and environmental outcomes and resources. Finally, the study points out the advantages of AA for policy purposes by comparing it to a composite indicator of SWB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the current scenario of transition to a Europe-wide circular economy (CE), the Waste-to-Energy (WtE) treatments represent a smart solution to generate renewable energy, reduce landfills and ensure sustainable waste management. The costs and environmental impacts of existing WtE treatments are very different for each available technology. In many cases, their identification is affected by a set of variable boundary conditions strongly dependent on local municipal requirements. In light of these considerations, the paper aims to compare the investment in three different WtE treatments (i.e., incineration, gasification, and flameless oxy-combustion) to identify the best solution to support the current transitional phase towards a CE condition. An overall yearly cost analysis was developed by varying local municipal requirements, including investment, operating, and carbon emissions costs. The overall yearly cost and the revenues, due to energy sales and tipping fees, allowed to evaluate the profitability of the investment in the plant lifetime to identify the best WtE treatment. The investment profitability was evaluated by adopting the Net Present Value (NPV) method by estimating the cash flow statement over the entire plant lifetime. The performance of the three WtE treatments, classified as "conventional" (i.e., gasification and incineration) and "innovative" (i.e., flameless oxy-combustion), were compared in a case study concerning Southern Italy's Metropolitan City of Bari. The applied methodology showed, in this case, that gasification, at the moment, has to be deemed as the most sustainable treatment for MSW management. Moreover, the study proved a high dependence between the carbon price and the profitability of the investment and, thus, in the next future the innovative oxy-combustion technology will gain an advantage over all the other technologies, when carbon price will be higher than 44 €/tonnes CO2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The agricultural sector is critical for the achievement of sustainable development worldwide. Its present and future sustainability relies on the difficult balance of food production and environmental impact. The need for resource use optimization and increasing reliance on renewable energy, calls for increased development and integration of its supporting, provisioning, regulating and social services (multifunctionality) worldwide, in agreement with the global framework of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, the European Union Objectives and other international assessment studies (e.g. the United Nations International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development). The performance of the Italian agricultural system is monitored and evaluated in this paper by means of the emergy accounting method coupled to decomposition analysis techniques, applied to a 25 year time series (1985–2010). The aim of this study is to assess the sustainability of these systems over time as well as to identify the major drivers of performance change, to serve as the basis for future policy scenarios. Two Italian regional agricultural systems (Emilia Romagna, in Northern Italy, and Campania, in Southern Italy) are selected as case studies representative of the Italian agriculture. Results show a steady decrease of cropped land, an increase of the fraction of renewable resource use, an overall increase of sustainability (expressed by emergy indicators) in both regions. The fraction of renewable emergy use increased from 14% to 21% in the Emilia Romagna region and from 23% to 27% in the Campania region, compared to the year 1985, with oscillating behavior over time. The overall Emergy Sustainability Index increased from 14% to 16% in the Emilia Romagna region and from 15% to 19% in the Campania region, recently. The results of decomposition analysis highlight the important role of land use change and labor productivity as major drivers of total emergy use in both agricultural systems. The approach applied in this paper is applicable to the study of other national and regional agricultural sectors wordwide, provided suitable time series of input and output flows are available. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Despite many studies in literature demonstrate the environmental sustainability of organic food, a debate is still open in the scientific community on the effect of organic farming on global warming and climate change mitigation. This paper aims to contribute to a more informed debate on the actual contribution to climate change in terms of GHG emissions of organic and conventional agriculture. For this purpose, the production process of an organic vs conventional wholemeal bread locally produced in central Italy by a small-medium bakery enterprise was compared and the carbon footprint (CF) was assessed by means of the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. We found that the CF of 1 kg of the conventional wholemeal bread was 24% less respect to the same organic bread, with 1,18 and 1,55 kg CO 2 eq respectively. On the contrary, if the CF is assessed per unit of cultivated area (hectare), wheat organic cultivation showed a better performance in terms of GHG emissions than conventional by 60%, with 1,15 and 2,87 Mg CO 2 eq ha −1 respectively. The higher CF per unit of organic product is due to the lower yield per unit of area cultivated with organic farming and to the consequent attribution to a smaller amount of products of the GHG emissions generated in the field phase of the life cycle. Whereas, the CF per hectare is higher when conventional practices are applied due to the higher use of raw materials (higher seed density, agrochemicals for fertilization and plant protection) respect to the same organic system. Results of the study demonstrate that organic farming for wheat cultivation in Italy is a low-carbon agriculture with a lower contribution to climate change in terms of GHG emissions per hectare respect to the conventional wheat cultivation, although implications of the reduced productivity and the consequent need of more cultivated land should be considered. However, more research is needed to better explore the potential of organic farming and to improve organic food production, optimizing the balance between the use of resources and yields, to ensure sufficient organic food supply at global level. A more comprehensive assessment of the actual GHG emitted in the atmosphere from both organic and conventional agricultural systems can be provided when the CF is assessed per unit of area, in addition to the CF per product unit, especially if also the carbon sink of the agrosystem is included. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to propose a class of composite indicators for measuring well-being at the local level, which takes into account the variability between and within the local units. Although we believe that well-being is a multidimensional concept and cannot be reduced to a single measure, we also stress the importance of aggregating the information of several well-being indicators into a reduced number of composite indicators, one for each well-being domain, which play a crucial role in policymaking and benchmarking. As an application, we focus on the Equitable and Sustainable Well-being of the Italian Provinces. In particular, based on a dataset containing 41 elementary indicators, we aggregate them by domain, comparing different aggregative approaches and illustrating the difference in the rankings of the Italian Provinces they produce. Finally, as an illustrative example, we focus on a member of the class of composite indicators that accounts both for vertical variability (between the Provinces) and horizontal variability (within the Provinces). The construction of a composite index for each domain allows us to evaluate and compare multidimensional well-being among the Italian Provinces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This VSI focuses on what cross-cutting insights might be gained from research to increase the energy/materials circularity and the contribution of eco-innovation, cleaner consumption, and waste management to produce a logical body of knowledge that may lead to increased resilience and a sustainable Planet. The articles' collection shows development trends of sustainable, cleaner production under the Special Issue: A Resilient and Sustainable World. Some selected d papers have been presented and emerged from the 10th and 11th International Workshop on Advances in Cleaner Production (IWACP), held in hybrid mode in Italy (Ferrata and Florence). The contribution of the articles in this Special Issue could be divided into efforts toward sustainable and cleaner production, aiming (i) Eco-innovation for cleaner production and circular economy, (ii) Proper monitoring and identification of cleaner production, circular economy, and eco-innovation, (iii) cleaner production, circular economy and eco-innovation targeting social wellbeing and cleaner environment, (iv) cleaner production, circular economy and eco-innovation targeting emission reduction, and (v) cleaner production, circular economy and eco-innovation targeting improved and optimized production processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) sets an overall framework for intergovernmental efforts to tackle the challenge posed by climate change. Besides the “flexibility mechanisms” defined by the Kyoto Protocol to lower the overall costs of achieving their emissions targets, The Voluntary Green House Gases (GHG) reduction projects can have a lead role in GHG reduction in “non Emissions Trading System ETS sectors”. Nowadays, the voluntary market is characterised by critical aspects, such as fragmentation, lack of accounting, monitoring and validation rules that have led to the low spread of voluntary emission reduction projects developed by local authorities in the European Union despite their high potentiality. The aim of this paper is to test the applicability of voluntary emission reduction projects in the public sector following a homogeneous and consistent pattern. A research has been performed at local level on 143 voluntary emission reduction projects implemented by Public Administrations in Northern and Central Italy in renewable energy, energy efficiency and transport sectors. The applicable standards and methodologies have been checked and the case studies have been analysed though a three-step process: Preliminary additionality assessment; Projects selection; Validation of the selected project. The assessment shows that energy efficiency projects, once overcoming additionality issues, are the most promising for public entities while renewable energy and transport projects resulted to be mainly affected by double counting problems and lack of reliable methodologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) is nowadays a commonly implemented approach for evaluating resource consumptions and for benchmarking purposes. It suffers some limitations, mainly related to its assumptions on linear resource -consumption behaviour as well as on the non-context specific data. On the other hand, it is an extremely powerful tool for decision-making support in the sustainability assessment of manufacturing processes, providing its well-structured approach and widely accepted procedure. Deepening the assessment capabilities of such a tool is thus an important opportunity. This paper is intended to build upon this concept by proposing an improved approach consisting in supplying in-process information concerning energy consumption and other process state conditions through thermography. The case of an Italian industrial company producing HDPE (High Density Polyethylene) nets for agriculture is taken as test bed case to show pros and cons of this idea. Actually, this approach resulted into a better assessment of the sustainability profile of the whole production process in terms of energy consumptions and environmental impacts. This in turn became an updated management tool for real-time decision making closer to the real conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biogas production and use can represent a win-win strategy providing multiple opportunities to mitigate the emission of greenhouse gases responsible for climate change, while offering a range of important social, environmental and economic benefits. Nevertheless, as for other bioenergy pathways, biogas sustainability needs to be carefully assessed and continuously monitored in light of the specific geographic and temporal context in which it performs. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive review on the sustainability assessment of domestic production and use of biogas in Italy, with a focus on the environmental dimension of the sustainability. Furthermore, it elaborates the results of the review to perform an ex-novo sustainability assessment of biogas pathway at national level, through the methodology developed by the Global Bioenergy Partnership. The biogas value chain in Italy can play a positive role to foster the transition towards an ecological and circular economy. This paper highlights both weaknesses and strengths of the biogas value chain in Italy and points out existing differences, in relation to the sustainability of the value chain, between various geographical areas of the country. The outcomes of this study could inform, both at national and international scale, the drawing of tailor-made policies and measures to reduce biogas-related potential risks of environmental impacts, as well as to support the replication and scaling up of successful management practices. Furthermore, they could serve as a baseline for the future monitoring of the sector. Ultimately, the paper reports the key difficulties encountered in the implementation of the GBEP methodology and the solutions adopted to overcome them. [Display omitted] • Three-quarters (75.4%) of the Italian biogas production takes place in the Po river valley, one-third comes from Lombardy. • Maize silage and livestock manure are the most common feedstocks in Italian biogas plants. • Roughly 80 k tons of nitrogen contained in livestock manure were treated by biogas plant in Italy in 2016. • The main source of GHG emissions along the biogas pathway in Italy lies in the cultivation of dedicated bioenergy crops. • Water shortage hampers the development of the biogas sector in southern Italy, restricting the cultivation of energy crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainability has become a central issue in the agricultural sector, both for researchers, producers and policy-makers. The two main objectives of this paper are: (1) to present an holistically designed ecological-economic model to evaluate farm and field-level environmental-economic tradeoffs with special reference to multi-objective policy-making and (2) to evaluate the impact of the Agenda 2000 reform on sustainability of organic farming. The model was implemented for the case of organic dairy farming in northern Tuscany (Italy). Minor differences were found between the environmental and technical results of the model under the MacSharry and Agenda 2000 reforms. However, gross margins under the Agenda 2000 regulations were considerably higher. The spatial detail of the model proved particularly useful in the evaluation of the impact of environmental sustainability thresholds. Sensitivity analysis indicated the weak environmental points of the farming system (in this case mainly soil erosion) and the feasible levels of the various environmental aspects and their associated socio-economic costs. The application of the model for alternative policy scenarios provided insights into ways in which the cost economic efficiency of the Agenda 2000 agri-environment support scheme could be improved. The paper concludes with suggestions for further model research to contribute to the design of cost-efficient agri-environment payment schemes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Municipal waste management, especially in developed countries, has a significant impact on the environment and humans that need to be quantified and mitigated. This study aims to investigate and compare the environmental impact and occupational risks of the following three municipal waste collection methods in Italy: street bins, door-to-door collection, and a smart bins system. Six waste categories (paper, plastics, glass, metal, organic materials, and residual waste) are analysed. Environmental performances are calculated by the life cycle assessment (LCA) and material and flow analysis (MFA) methodologies. The ergonomic analysis is based on direct observation of municipal waste collectors and the application of standard assessment methods as RULA, NIOSH, and Snook Ciriello. show that the smart bins collection method is environmentally more effective in all the impact categories considered, thanks to the better quality of collected waste. The residual waste flow directed to landfills has a lower value in the case of smart bins (36.63%) in comparison with door-to-door (52.90%) and street bins (89.56%). The use of smart bins allows higher environmental benefits, passing for the Climate Change impact category from −2.80E+01 kg of CO2eq. of the door-to-door system and −2.74E+01 kg of CO2eq. of street bins to −7.13E+01 kg of CO2eq. of smart bins. Regarding the transport phase, the smart bins system determines a reduction of the impact of about 60% if compared with the door-to-door system for all the impact categories considered. On the other hand, acceptable occupational risks result in street and smart waste collection methods, while poor ergonomics conditions are observed during the door-to-door collection. Containers lifting and emptying are the most critical tasks. [Display omitted] • Smart technologies in urban waste management determines benefits in environmental terms. • Smart technologies in urban waste management preserves the operators' health condition. • Analysis of environmental impact and occupational risk of municipal waste systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Solar energy is a form of renewable energy that can be used to combat climate change through an environmentally accepted energy supply policy with support from both private and public consumers. There are numerous factors contributing to the definition of the economic and environmental performance of solar energy investments, such as average annual irradiation, consumers' consumption, Feed in Tariff incentive system, energy portfolio, emissions produced by the photovoltaic system, rated power of the individual modules, disposable income of the investor, availability of surface for the installation of the photovoltaic panels and mission , that characterise the project (environmental maximisation, economic maximisation or self-sufficiency of the system during the first year). Given the particular geographical position of Italy, the economic profitability and environmental impact of such system were estimated, first on the provincial scale and then on the regional scale, to delineate the general characteristics that are not caused by a single scenario. The indicators used include the following: net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), discounted payback period (DP b P), discounted aggregate cost-benefit ratio (BC r ) and reduction of emissions of carbon dioxide (ER cd ). The ultimate objective of the paper is to define the number of photovoltaic (PV) systems necessary to reach the target of renewable energy production in the above settings. A general scenario appropriate to achieve this goal, as well as implementing the total wealth generated by this framework and the reduction of CO 2 emissions resulting from the implementation of that plan, will be examined. The indicators used are total net present value per capita and reduction of carbon dioxide emissions per capita. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most definitions of organic farming emphasise a holistic approach that combines quality production with sustainable practices and positive impact on resource conservation, biodiversity and animal welfare. Its founding values were also connected to small-scale production, minimisation of external inputs use, diversification and short market circuits. In the last two decades, organic farming has grown very rapidly, resulting in the subordination of its values to market forces. There has been a greater specialisation, an increase of scale, the involvement of large multinational corporations and the inclusion in global trade. This conventionalisation process and the connected certification standards, primarily focussed on banning the use of pesticides and chemical fertilisers, may weaken the vision of organic farming as a more sustainable alternative to conventional farming. This paper aims to identify the factors that influence the choice of organic farmers for more sustainable practices that go beyond the strict limits imposed by certification. A probabilistic model was estimated using survey data collected from 352 Italian and Portuguese certified organic farmers. The results show that women and farmers longest engaged in organic farming are more likely to adopt sustainable practices. They also indicate that farm size, land ownership, the existence of some types of complementary activities and the sources of information used by farmers affect the adoption of such practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The high cost of energy, along with an urgent need to reduce global worming causing emissions, has contributed to the rethinking of contemporary design and building techniques. It also brought to the forefront the need to increase the energy performance of heritage buildings. Italy's Abruzzo region has many small towns with old structures. The earthquake that struck the area in 2009 caused significant destruction to many communities and buildings. The need to rebuild led to a series of interventions aiming not only at reconstructing, but also at increasing the structure's energy performance. This paper describes a study of Abruzzo's historic buildings and proposes interventions to improve their energy-efficiency. The authors developed a methodology based on an on-site investigation and the study of compatible possible solutions. The first phase includes a series of thermal measurements, using both indirect and qualitative methods such as thermography and direct and quantitative methods. With the information gathered, it was possible to verify the energy performance of each solution based on the level of invasiveness of the proposed intervention. The proposed methodology serves as a guide to recovery design, using a “case by case” approach to identify the method of intervention in each value context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of Sustainable Development Goal 7 is to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all. Increased energy efficiency is particularly important in the construction industry because urban agglomerations currently consume up to 80% of global energy, 40% of which is attributable to buildings. In countries like Italy however, where historical buildings constitute a significant part of the building patrimony, improving energy efficiency is not always straightforward as interventions must take into account the historical materials used as well as the context of the construction. Therefore, the aim of this research was to establish a methodology that would identify the most effective means of achieving energy efficiency taking into account the historical aspects of a building and its cultural context. The methodology proposed and described in this paper involves: preliminary analyses to identify the elements of value and the level of transformability of facades; the selection of different insulating materials; dynamic simulations of building behaviour; analyses of intervention costs in relation to each type of insulation and finally the preparation of a multi-criteria matrix to identify the most effective method of improving energy efficiency of a historical wall with differing degrees of transformability. Each insulating material was analysed in relation to heating and cooling requirements and material cost impact. The methodology was applied to a case study in the Province of L'Aquila, Italy. In the paper a multicriteria framework, for the improvements in the thermal efficiency of a building, it is presented. Specifically the attention is focused on heating requirements, cooling requirements and cost impact. The results indicate that, with respect to historical building, it is possible to adopt strategies finalyzed to improve the energy efficiency of these buidings, contributing in this way, also toward the SDG7. Specifically, the best performance for a wall with a high level of transformability can be obtained using calcium silicate, extruded polystyrene, kenaf and hemp, whilst, in the case of a wall with a low level of transformability, the best materials are calcium silicate, polyurethane and linen fiber. Finally, in the case in which external constraints prevent the application of a thick coat and internally there is limited space, the use of calcium silicate was found to be the best energy efficient measure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses consumer preferences and willingness to pay for three different environmental sustainability labels (EU Organic Farming, Rainforest Alliance, 'Per il Clima-Legambiente') and information cues about the origin displayed on a processed food product, namely tomato purée. Using a choice experiment and conditional logit models, the results show that: i) preferences for the environmental sustainability labelled product increase when consumers have proper knowledge about the meaning of the labels; ii) the information cue about the product's domestic origin is important for all consumers, regardless of their education, unlike environmental sustainability labels that are more appreciated by well-educated consumers; iii) consumers' willingness to pay is higher for labels with greater market penetration, regardless of certification by private or public organisations. Findings suggest that the adoption of environmental sustainability labels by food producers should be combined with effective information policies aimed at increasing consumer awareness. [Display omitted] • We explore consumer preferences for environmental sustainability labels on a processed food. • We conduct a choice experiment on a sample of consumers in southern Italy. • We perform conditional logit model to investigate hypothetical consumer behaviour. • Consumers still pay little attention to environmental sustainability food labels. • Information campaigns may raise consumer awareness of sustainability labels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The literature on Sustainable Business Models (SBMs) has burgeoned, identifying different archetypes to capture the variety of business models applied. Little is known, however, regarding to what extent such SBMs are effectively driving sustainable performance. This paper addresses this gap by exploring how SBMs relate to sustainability performance, considering both overall sustainable performance and the balance across the three dimensions – environmental, social, and economic (integrated performance). Based on original survey data on B Corps located in Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom, our findings suggest that the implementation of most SBMs results in the prioritization of one sustainability dimension over the others, especially when it comes to economically-oriented SBMs. Furthermore, our study suggests that none of the SBM archetypes considered is associated with a balanced sustainable performance, that is, none of them are inherently better able to overcome tensions across the Triple Bottom Line. • We study how SBMs archetypes relate to sustainability performance (SP). • Most SBMs prioritise a triple bottom line (TBL) axes over the others. • Economically-oriented SBMs are not connected with superior SP. • No SBM archetype drives a balanced performance across TBL axes. • A means-end divide emerges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This work is focused on the planning of rational heating systems for urban areas. District heating is an important option to supply heat to the users in urban areas. The energy sustainability of such option depends on the annual energy request, the population density and the efficiency in heat production. Among the alternative technologies, geothermal heat pumps play a crucial role. Nevertheless, in densely populated areas, an additional consideration is necessary: the subsurface thermal degradation caused by heat pump installations may affect the performances of surrounding installations. This paper aims to propose a procedure to select which users in an urban area should be connected with a district heating network and which ones should be heated through an alternative technology, in order to reach a globally optimal system from the energy viewpoint. The analysis of potential interferences between heat pumps is here conducted using a thermo-fluid dynamic model of the subsurface. The application to an Italian town is considered as a test case for the procedure. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Hydrogen technologies driven by renewable energy sources (RES) represent an attractive energy solution to ensure environmental sustainability. In this paper, a decision support system for the hydrogen exploitation is presented, focusing on some specific planning aspects. In particular, the planning aspects regard the selection of locations with high hydrogen production mainly based on the use of solar and wind energy sources. Four modules were considered namely, the evaluation of the wind and solar potentials, the analysis of the hydrogen potential, the development of a regional decision support module and a last module that regards the modelling of a hybrid onsite hydrogen production system. The overall approach was applied to a specific case study in Liguria region, in the north of Italy. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Despite the lack of specific incentives, ground coupled heat pump (GCHP) installations are booming in Italy both in the private and public sectors. Such rapid growth is coupled with increasing concern for environmental and technical performances since no comprehensive regulation and reliable standards currently exist. This paper discusses potential schemes aimed at balancing mandatory and voluntary requirements by using SWOT [1] Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats. 1 -based techniques and examining the opinions of sectoral leaders. The analysis suggests that standardization and voluntary schemes are perceived as efficient and effective tools to encourage the greening of Italian GCHP-SME [2] Small and medium enterprise. 2 s in the short-term while laying the foundations for sustainable policies in the longer run. A potential scheme is discussed that was simulated by reflecting the supply-side of the market, and which involves process and product standards. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This paper presents a piece of research aimed at evaluating the relative sustainability of the Italian Regions. After selecting a core set of indicators, for which we referred to the EU Sustainable Development Strategy, we built a composite index and checked for its robustness. As a result we got ‘many numbers’, that is, a range of possible rankings for Italian Regions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The membrane-based processes are among the most used techniques for leachate treatment in modern landfills but its environmental, technical and economical sustainability strongly depends on the disposal of concentrated leachate that is produced there. This paper presents the monitoring study of the landfill of the municipality of Monsummano Terme (Pistoia province, Tuscany, Italy) named “Il Fossetto” where concentrated leachate obtained during membrane treatment is recirculated. The findings resulting from the first 30 months of monitoring of concentrated leachate recirculation show that leachate production did not increase significantly and that only a few quality parameters (i.e. COD, Nickel and Zinc) presented a moderate increase. Moreover, the latest data on biogas composition seem to indicate a reduction in methane content that, if confirmed, could be related to the partial inhibition of methanogens due to the competition of sulphate reducing bacteria. The non-accumulation of other conservative pollutants such as Ammonia Nitrogen and Chloride in the leachate is still under investigation and needs to be better clarified. The overall sustainability of the reinjection as a means of disposing of the concentrated leachate produced by membrane treatment should be further analysed and evaluated in the long term. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The diffusion of community supported agriculture (CSA) in Italy is a very recent phenomenon. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the current status and the evolution of this reality, understanding the social, environmental, and economic benefits for CSA members and the local context. Based on access to CSA data and participant observation during a CSA meeting, a thematic network analysis was adopted to analyse a large piece of information spanning from social, economic, and environmental topics as well as existing relationships between different CSA. Later, we interviewed CSA representatives about CSA production structure and several issues concerning their sustainability, including the role played by CSA members; the economic self-sufficiency; the environmental impact associated with food production. Findings highlighted that in general, the CSA phenomenon in Italy meets sustainability goals, even with different levels of members' involvement, working conditions, economic viability, and environmental impact from a community to one another, with desirable further improvements along all dimensions for most of them. Social transformations in which consumers take the role of producers and consumers at the same time with increased responsibility have been observed. In this context, the members' degree of responsibility contributes to distinguishing CSA in its full sense from CSA initiatives somehow started as ethical purchasing groups, with lower levels of commitment by members, then trying to trigger a higher involvement. The lack of policy support is containing further CSA diffusion and consolidation: new mechanisms are necessary at least to figure out, recognise, and reward the mitigation of environmental impacts characterising local food production and distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After several decades, the political and academic debate on water governance is still dominated by arguments about whether private sector involvement increases both efficiency and the level of investment within the industry. These arguments could appear reductive, especially in a context like Italy, which is dominated by public and mixed-ownership water utilities. The aim of this paper is to analyze how the socio-economic context and stakeholders' interests can influence the relationship between ownership structure and water utilities' sustainability performances. Analyzing six case studies, this research shows that the institutional context may influence both the water governance and utilities' performance. The theoretical and managerial implications are discussed. • This study analyses the role socio-economic context and stakeholders' interests play on the relationship between ownership structure and water utilities' sustainability performances. • This study is based on six Italian case studies. • Stakeholder expectations, their socio-economic conditions, and the institutional context play a crucial role in influencing both utility performances and the water governance model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper examines how a transport pricing policy aimed to reduce car use may affect individuals’ Quality of Life (QoL), to what extent this policy is acceptable to the public and if people intend to change car use when the policy is implemented. Also, comparisons were made amongst five countries (Austria, Czech Republic, Italy, The Netherlands and Sweden). An internet survey among 490 respondents showed that a stringent measure, i.e., doubling costs of car use, hardly affects people’s general QoL. Respondents are unsure whether they would accept the policy and whether they intend to change their car use if the policy is implemented. Respondents from The Netherlands and Sweden are more pessimistic about the QoL consequences of the policy, think the policy is less acceptable and are less inclined to reduce car use than respondents from the Czech Republic, Italy and, to a lesser degree, Austria. Implications and recommendations for developing, adjusting or supplementing QoL measurement instruments and policies are discussed to ensure effective and efficient policy making. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare (ISEW) has been calculated for many countries, but rarely at the local level. This paper shows how the index has been calculated for the Province of Siena, Central Italy. The whole procedure is illustrated step by step, including the search for the most suitable and precise methods to obtain reliable values for each item composing the index. Application of ISEW at a very local level was found to be feasible. The most general difficulty encountered was the lack of an adequate institutionalised source of statistical information to support the construction of indicators other than purely economic or demographic ones. This is mainly due to the still low interest for a sustainable management of natural resources and land on the part of local authorities, and the related willingness to invest money and human resources on environmental research. The ISEW gives a more realistic representation of the well-being of the population than GDP, since it includes environmental and social items not considered in conventional national accounting. Furthermore, in Italy, the principle of administrative decentralization has been implemented in recent years to such an extent that the central government devolved part of its power to Regions, Provinces and Municipalities. Consequently, local authorities are called to allocate more resources to pursue their policies towards sustainability, an issue which modern electoral campaigns are often based on. The results for the Province of Siena show that there is a large gap between local GDP and ISEW (about 37% of GDP). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Agricultural researchers widely recognise the importance of sustainable agricultural production systems and the need to develop appropriate methods to measure sustainability. The principal purpose of this paper is to evaluate the financial and environmental aspects of sustainability of organic, integrated and conventional farming systems (OFS, IFS and CFS, respectively) at farm level and on more detailed spatial scales. This was achieved by applying an integrated economic-environmental accounting framework to three case study farms in Tuscany (Italy) covering different farming systems (FSs) and different spatial scales. The environmental performances of the FSs were measured through the application of an environmental accounting information system (EAIS) at field, site and farm level. The EAIS indicators were then integrated with: (1) a set of financial indicators to evaluate the economic and environmental trade-offs between different FSs and (2) with information on the regional and site-specific soil and climate conditions to study the impact of different pedo-climates on the environmental performances of the FSs. The gross margins of steady-state OFSs were found to be higher than the corresponding CFS gross margins. The OFSs perform better than IFSs and CFSs with respect to nitrogen losses, pesticide risk, herbaceous plant biodiversity and most of the other environmental indicators. However, on hilly soils, erosion was found to be higher in OFSs than in CFSs. The pesticide and the nitrogen indicators in this study showed a similar environmental impact caused by integrated and conventional farming practices. Regional pedo-climatic factors were found to have a considerable impact on nutrient losses, soil erosion, pesticide risk and herbaceous plant biodiversity, site-specific factors on nutrient losses and soil erosion. Results at field level suggest that herbaceous plant biodiversity and crop production are not always conflicting variables. Results of the case study farms are discussed and compared with environmental sustainability thresholds reported from EU Directives on nitrate and pesticides in groundwater and the literature. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Italian and Israeli wastewater quality standard were compared. • Sustainbility assessment was done considering Environmental, social and economic indicators. • Higher sustainability for Italian regulation was determined for wastewater reuse. • Higher sustainability for Israeli regulation was determined for discharge in rivers. The availability of deterministic models to achieve information regarding the main aspects affected by the implementation of regulations is of high importance for supporting decision-makers and policymaking. This is particularly true and of crucial importance when pursuing more sustainable development. The present study proposes a triple bottom integrated model for the evaluation of the main aspects of sustainability —environmental, social, and economic— based on an integrated sustainability index. The model was applied for comparing the wastewater regulatory systems implemented in Italy and Israel. The main results show that greenhouse gas emissions were about 0.60 kgCO 2eq /m3 for Israel and about 0.07 kgCO 2eq /m3 for Italy. Concerning freshwater eutrophication, the emissions related to the Italian scenarios ranged from about 2x10-3 kgP eq /m3 to 1.2x10-2 kgP eq /m3 for use on soil and discharge to river, respectively. For Israel, the same figures resulted 6x10-3 kgP eq /m3 and 1x10-3 kgP eq /m3, respectively. The impact on human health ranged from 0.5x10-5 DALY to 1.56x10-4 DALY depending on the emission limits and final destination. A comprehensive figure of sustainability was calculated by the proposed integrated sustainability index. The higher was this index the lower was the sustainability. Results for "discharge to river" were 8.91 for Israel and 9.15 for Italy whereas for "reuse on soil" the index was 24.7 for Israel and 19.9 for Italy. The methodological approach presented in this paper can be implemented to measure and enhance sustainability performance in water sectors, as well as in other environmental fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research explores the role of sustainability in the business models (BMs) of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that are operating in the wine sector in Italy, thus addressing recent calls in the literature on BMs. Consequently, this empirical paper offers a contextualized two-step analysis of the BMs of those firms, with a focus on their economic, environmental, and societal indicators. First, a study of a large set of firms all over the country points out the better profitability of some companies, in particular, family-owned companies. Second, a questionnaire survey identifies the key elements that contribute to that higher performance. The companies in this set are small and medium in size, as the Italian wine sector is mostly composed of these kinds of firms. Our data cast new light on the role of sustainability in BMs and its relationship to economic performance. Furthermore, our results point to the difference in performance between family and non-family firms. This latter focus leads us to propose two different BMs for SMEs in the wine sector in Italy, based on their type of governance, i.e., family or non-family. Our findings also suggest that sustainability can create value by achieving innovation in BMs in the long run. However, we found that the studied firms have not yet fully integrated sustainability into their own BMs. • We study the role of sustainability in Business Model innovation. • There is a difference in performance between family and non-family firms. • We propose two different Business Models for SMEs in the wine sector in Italy. • Sustainability can create value by achieving innovation in Business Models. • Studied firms have yet to fully integrate sustainability in their Business Models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natural materials, such as straw bale and earth, have substantially less embodied energy than processed materials, so that their use in building construction can give a valuable contribution to sustainability. This paper presents a natural multi-sheet wall package (named straw wall, SW) consisting of straw bale layer and innovative natural plasters, giving a rational evaluation of its potential of use in the sustainable building construction. The new building component was investigated by analyzing its environmental impact through the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) from "Cradle to Gate" and its energy performance using dynamic simulation of a building case study; the energy saving potential of SW was assessed in different climate conditions in Italy. The innovative package highlighted excellent energy performance with respect to the NZEB reference, as prescribed by the Italian regulation, for all climates. Considering only the production and construction phases, the Embodied Energy associated to the innovative wall system is about the half of the value related to a traditional wall package and the CO 2 equivalent emissions differ by more than 40%(Pescara site). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• In our approach, the olive growing plays a key role within an integrated framework; • S-DSS might be the way ahead to address olive growing on the landscape scale; • GeOlive is capable of producing real time, site-specific data for planning and management; • Our approach is based on the use of free, open-source geospatial libraries and programs; Olive cultivation is a very important activity which performs several important ecological functions in many inland areas. Recent progress in modelling and Decision Support Systems (DSS) applied to agriculture promises to deliver important positive changes. However, most of this progress regards agriculture systems other than olive growing, so failing to challenge the environmental dimension of the olive grove and the landscape, which is a key issue in the planning and management of olive cultivation. This paper aims to demonstrate that a new type of DSS developed upon the open-source Geospatial Cyberinfrastructure (GCI) platform (named GeOlive) can provide a very important web-based operational tool for olive growing as it better connects productivity and environmental sustainability. This GCI platform supports the acquisition, management, and processing of both static and dynamic data (e.g. pedology, daily climate), data visualization, and computer on-the-fly applications in order to perform simulation modelling (e.g. evaluation of bioclimatic indices), all potentially accessible via the Web. The DSS tool, applied to an area of 20,000 ha in southern Italy, is designed to assist olive grove planning and management and provide operational support for farmers, farmer associations and decision makers involved in olive grove landscape. DSS outputs include olive grove planning and management scenario analysis and maps, together with evaluation of potential and current plant water stress. A short selection of practical case studies is presented to show the different use cases of the proposed DSS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]