Addressing Peripherality in Italy: A Critical Comparison between Inner Areas and Territorial Capital-Based Evaluations

Ivan Blečić, Arnaldo Cecchini, Emanuel Muroni, Valeria Saiu (), Serafino Scanu and Giuseppe Andrea Trunfio ()
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Ivan Blečić: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
Arnaldo Cecchini: Department of Architecture, Design and Urbanism, University of Sassari, 07041 Alghero, Italy
Emanuel Muroni: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
Valeria Saiu: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Architecture, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy
Serafino Scanu: Province of Sassari, Environment and Agriculture Sector, 07100 Sassari, Italy
Giuseppe Andrea Trunfio: Department of Architecture, Design and Urbanism, University of Sassari, 07041 Alghero, Italy

Land, 2023, vol. 12, issue 2, 1-14

Abstract: As highlighted by the UN 2030 Agenda, sustainable development is a complex and multidimensional issue that can be effectively implemented and reached at the local level. This implies the evaluation of differences and disparities between territories in order to define local priorities and support cohesion policy objectives. This need has been addressed by the Italian “National Strategy for Inner Areas”, which aims to support the growth of territories with a continuous economic and population decline. However, Inner Areas are identified by a set of indicators related to the low accessibility to Services of General Interest, neglecting other important factors that contribute to this condition. This paper proposes a critical analysis of this measurement and of the related “territorialization” of Inner Areas, by introducing a more comprehensive assessment model based on the concept of Territorial Capital (TC), which highlights a more nuanced understanding of complexities and diversities related to the potential development of a territory. In particular, the proposed model evaluates eight TC dimensions (human, social, cognitive, infrastructural, productive, relational, environmental and settlement capital), which cover a broad spectrum of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In order to accurately demonstrate the differences between the results of the two evaluation methods, this paper presents the results of a case study application concerning all 377 municipalities, which compose the Autonomous Region of Sardinia (Italy). The findings of this study confirm the potential of an approach based on the Territorial Capital for place-based policymaking. TC, in fact, can become relevant for defining local priorities and supporting complex decisions, allowing governments to better design and tailor interventions for the effective and efficient management of available resources. Furthermore, these results pose new questions for future research developments in the field of sustainable and equitable development.

Keywords: EU cohesion policy; territorial capital; multi-criteria spatial evaluation; inner peripheries; inner areas; Italian National Strategy for Inner Areas; Sardinia (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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