1,720,972 research outputs found
Spatial patterns in food waste at the local level. A preliminary analysis for Italian data
No full textWithin the scope of its broader environmental strategy, the European Commission aims to halve per capita food waste by 2030. This medium-run objective might be especially hard to achieve in the presence of strong autocorrelation in food waste levels. This work investigates spatio-temporal persistency and spatial diffusion patterns in food waste at the local level, resorting to a NUTS 3 dataset for Italian provinces. The first step of the empirical analysis consists in the computation of the Moran Index and of the Theil Index. Subsequently, a dynamic spatial panel regression is proposed, controlling for socio-economic factors and treating both time lags and spatial spillovers explicitly. The results support the idea that food waste levels in Italian provinces are persistent over time and spatially related, thus calling for the design of locally tailored policy instruments
Economic cycle, labour market and pro-environmental behaviours. The case of separate waste collection in Italy
No full textPro-environmental behaviours have been studied extensively in the economic literature, with particular regard to the effects induced by unemployment. A key element that was little investigated in previous contributions consists in intrahousehold dynamics. This work provides a novel microeconomic framework describing the interaction between economic cycle and intrahousehold time allocation that is ultimately responsible for the adoption of pro-environmental behaviours. Intrahousehold differences in productivity represent a key assumption in this framework. The theoretical model is then tested empirically on recent Italian observations using Data Envelopment Analysis. Our results indicate that the most efficient allocations are attained in periods when joint drops in unemployment and female labour market participation (added worker effect) lead to intrahousehold specialisation
Campania and cancer mortality: An inseparable pair? The role of environmental quality and socio-economic deprivation
Full text linkThe region of Campania in Southern Italy features high levels of socio-economic deprivation and low levels of environmental quality. A vast strand of the scientific literature has tried to verify whether poor environmental quality and widespread socio-economic deprivation might explain the high cancer mortality rates (CMRs) observed, especially in the municipalities – infamously labelled as the ‘Land of Fires’ – that were hit most severely by the crisis. While some studies managed to identify links between these two confounding factors and cancer mortality, the evidence is overall mixed. Interesting information may be drawn from the observation of municipal data: in spite of previous claims, some municipalities featuring high environmental quality and low socio-economic deprivation also display high CMRs, while other Campanian municipalities facing disastrous environmental and socio-economic conditions are characterised by low CMRs. These figures, in contrast to common sentiment and previous studies, need to be investigated thoroughly in order to assess the exact role of the confounding factors. In this work, we aim to identify the municipalities where confounding factors act as driving forces in the determination of high CMRs through an original multi-step analysis based on frequentist and Bayesian analysis. Pinpointing these municipalities could allow policymakers to design targeted and effective policy measures aimed at reducing cancer mortality
Religious participation and attitude towards LGBT+ communities. The case of Italy
No full textIn recent years, LGBT + communities have obtained significant victories in terms of recognition and civil rights in Western countries. Nonetheless, various forms of discrimination are still common, and a wide extent of variation is observed in societal attitudes towards LGBT + people. Several reasons may explain this heterogeneity, including religion. This work proposes a novel measure of tolerance towards LGBT + people, i.e. the Queer Friendliness Index, based on microdata drawn from a survey of citizen perception in Italy. Subsequently, we analyse the effect of active religious participation on the degree of tolerance towards LGBT + communities. To address self-selection among parish members, we resort to the Heckman procedure. We find that religious participation, reinforcing traditional values and creating strong relational ties among parish members, distorts the marginal effects of the socio-economic determinants of tolerance, producing an adverse effect. This problem may explain the large territorial differences observed across Italian macro-areas
The caring hand that cripples? The effects of the European regional policy on local labour market participation in Southern Italy
Full text linkThe European Regional Policy supports the most disadvantaged regions of the EU, aiming to foster a long-run convergence process. Between 2007 and 2013, the EU devoted substantial resources to low-income convergence regions, covering about one quarter of the EU population. Like other disadvantaged areas, Southern Italy received conspicuous funding. This work attempts to evaluate the effect of the intensive funding on local labour market participation across the convergence regions of Southern Italy, using a Diff-in-Diff identification strategy in a Dynamic Spatial Framework. An element of strength in this study is represented by the NUTS-3 dataset employed, drawn from official records. Controlling for socio-economic covariates, autoregressive components and spatial spillovers, the results obtained show a negative impact of the intensive EU funding on labour market participation. Many reasons may account for this phenomenon, ranging from poor targeting and monitoring, to the distortionary effects of the funds, to the strategic behaviour of the national government
Italian waste legislation and convergence in treatment methods
No full textThis study investigates whether and to what extent Legislative Decree 152/2006—Italy’s transposition of EU waste policy—acted as a driver of territorial convergence in waste treatment methods between 1995 and 2019. While the decree introduced national targets for separate waste collection, it overlooked deeply rooted regional disparities in infrastructure and socio-economic conditions. Using β-convergence analysis and GMM estimation across Italy’s macro-areas, we investigate growth dynamics in both circular economy methods (e.g. composting, anaerobic digestion) and linear economy methods (e.g. landfilling, incineration). Our findings indicate that convergence is underway, with lagging regions gradually improving their performance. However, convergence is
primarily fuelled by regional socio-economic and institutional capacities, rather than by the decree itself. Legislative Decree 152/2006 had a modest and uneven influence—encouraging the adoption of certain circular methods like anaerobic digestion and mechanical biological treatment but falling short in curbing dependence on
linear methods or fostering consistent territorial alignment. A key regulatory gap emerges: the absence of infrastructural benchmarks and region-specific targets perpetuates pre-existing territorial inequalities. To support an inclusive transition towards the circular economy, future regulations must integrate quantifiable infrastructure objectives, conditional funding mechanisms, and targeted investments—especially in structurally disadvantaged Southern Italy
Sustainable mobility in Italian regions. May private cars be replaced by mass transport means?
No full textThis paper investigates the extent of substitutability between private cars and mass transport means within the framework of sustainable mobility, introducing a novel theoretical perspective that models substitutability as a conditional and regionally heterogeneous behavioural response. Grounded in consumer choice theory and enriched with insights from behavioural economics, the study develops a microeconomic model where relative perceived quality is the key driver of modal shift. Using Italian NUTS-2 regional data, we construct original indicators of quality and apply a cascade Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to detect whether car usage responds as a substitute or complement to improvements in the quality of mass transport means. A Dynamic ARDL simulation further explores the effect of policy-driven quality enhancements through transport and R&D expenditure. Findings highlight substantial spatial variability: while some regions exhibit strong substitutability, others remain stuck in complementarity traps, despite policy interventions. The study contributes to the literature by operationalising conditional substitutability and linking empirical evidence with both infrastructural and behavioural policy implications
Environmental legislation and achieving circular economy in Italy's waste sector: A shift-and-share macro-area analysis
No full textIn the European Union, the transition to a circular economy has been guided by supranational regulations, subsequently transposed by Member States. In Italy, transposition occurred through Legislative Decrees 22/1997 and 152/2006, which set ambitious waste targets. To test their effectiveness in promoting the transition, we implement a Shift-and-Share analysis on data over 1997–2006 and 2007–2019. The three Italian macro-areas (North, Centre and South) shared a virtuous planning phase (specialisation) and a penalising socioeconomic context (competitiveness) in the first period. In the second period, the situation reverted in Northern and Central Italy. Southern Italy remained anchored to the linear economy model
Environmental legislation and waste management efficiency in Italian regions in view of circular economy goals
No full textSeparate waste collection and landfilling represent two key outcomes of waste management. Italy recently observed major shifts in waste targets. Regional policymakers, in charge of devising waste management plans, have been required to review their strategies, in view of the transition towards circular economy. This work proposes a theoretical framework that outlines the policymaker's problem and estimates regional efficiency in waste management using Data Envelopment Analysis on time series data. We find that the target shifts reduced efficiency in the short run, but encouraged the circular economy transition over time. Current waste management regulations need to consider regional heterogeneity when setting targets and constraints
Spatial analysis of wildfre incidence in the USA: the role of climatic spillovers
Full text linkWildfires constitute a serious threat for both the environment and human well-being. The US fire policy aims to tackle this problem, devoting a sizeable amount of resources and resorting extensively to fire suppression strategies. The theoretical literature has established a link between climate conditions and wildfire incidence. Using state-level data from 2002 to 2013 for the USA, this work proposes a wildfire incidence indicator and runs a generalized spatial ordered probit model in order to test the findings of the previous literature empirically. Moreover, this article investigates the extent of spatial spillovers in the climatic covariates. The results highlight a significant impact of precipitation and temperature on fire incidence and provide some evidence of the role of spatial spillovers. In particular, transitions from lower to higher wildfire incidence levels are significantly encouraged by increases in local temperature and significantly discouraged by increases in both local precipitation and lagged precipitation. The present analysis complements the recent literature, confirming the previous findings with a solid empirical investigation and offering a policy-oriented picture of wildfire risks all over the USA
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