RISULTATI RICERCA

European policies play a crucial role in helping farms and stakeholders in the agri-food sectors to proactively engage in digital and environmental transitions. Among them, the European Partnership for Innovation in Agriculture (EIP-AGRI), which was established in 2014, has proven significant in promoting sustainable production models and value chains in Europe. Operational Groups (OGs) within the Partnership provide “interactive innovation” platforms in which research institutions work with farmers, advisors, businesses, NGOs and other interest groups to co-create innovative solutions for agriculture and forestry as well as rural communities; the rationale is that when farmers and foresters are engaged in the process, the solutions are more likely to be based on their concrete reality and thus relevant.  While the benefits of the participatory, multi-actor and bottom-up approach of OGs have been widely acknowledged, little is known about the drivers and barriers influencing the process. This contribution explores their role in the wine sector, applying a mixed methods approach to analyse the perceptions of OG stakeholders from different Italian regions. Interviewees have been asked to what extent they believe the EIP-AGRI OGs serve as drivers of innovation and provide a network able to foster knowledge exchange, and what they perceive to be their barriers to innovation. By addressing this knowledge gap, this study will provide some insights and good practices to improve EIP-AGRI policies at regional, national and European levels.

The twin transition has great potential for the development of the wine sector, although its benefits for the valorisation of the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) economy and at the quality districts level are not explored in depth either in the theoretical or empirical literature. The study aims to contribute to this knowledge gap from a strictly conceptual perspective, by investigating benefits and obstacles that Blockchain and digital technologies can have to favour the creation and implementation of a quality wine district towards a sustainable path. Based on the literature background and a case study approach, the Vermentino di Gallura PDO Quality District, this study discusses the prospects and hypotheses of introducing Blockchain technologies and other digital tools at district level and the challenges and opportunities for fostering its sustainable transition. Preliminary results suggest that this transition could benefit the local supply chain and its territory over different pillars of sustainability, although obstacles can be expected along the implementation path. Obstacles can be in various areas – among which are the breadth and variety of processes included within the boundaries of the digital transition and the inter-organizational nature of the twin transition.

Promoting a sustainable economy through the digital and ecological transition of companies is one of the challenges of our century. By improving processes along the agri-food supply chains and enhancing the data generated in every single area of the value chain, digital promises to reduce the ecological footprint of the agricultural sector. Thus, the aim of the research was to estimate the environmental impacts and the social cost of pollution of different agricultural systems to identify the weak point in the cultivation phase and propose more sustainable lines of intervention and alternatives in a green transition perspective. The study was carried out in Southern Italy and 46 cropping systems were analyzed and compared using the Life Cycle Methodology (LCA). Results showed that to date no farmers interviewed has adopted digital technologies. The comparison between cultivation systems highlighted the greater sustainability of those organic. Among the different systems, some by their nature cOULD be considered more sustainable than others (as olive and hazelnut systems) because linked to a cultivation characterized by a low use of resources and inputs. On the contrary, others presented greater impacts due to the use of considerable quantities of materials, above all support and covering structures (as in table grapes systems) or plastic containers (as in strawberry systems). In the systems that didn’t use many materials, the disaggregation of the impacts by agricultural operations showed that the greatest impacts were linked to the emissions of the fuels, especially during the harvesting phase, and to fertilization and disease control. Hence the need to spread the use of the LCA methodology to estimate impacts in agriculture, increase organic cultivation and intervene with modern digital and precision agriculture technologies to consume fewer resources, reduce waste, and improve the quality of life.

The importance of research and innovation is crucial for addressing the challenges posed by evolving climatic and environmental conditions, along with the urgent need to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and to deal with unstable markets.To establish Sustainable Agri-Food Systems, in environmental, social, and economic terms, it is essential to ensure access to technologies that can reduce biological and market risks.The objective of this paper is to understand how different factors influence the innovativeness of organic farmers in the Marche region, in Italy, with a particular focus on the adoption of a digital tool, Decision Support System (DSS).The analysis, developed through the application of the SEM model to a sample of organic farmers, highlights the significant role of support services in facilitating the implementation of innovations. Therefore, it is important for policymakers, especially at the regional level, to define specific and coherent measures that incentivize the adoption of innovations.

This paper investigates how some factors affect the willingness to buy organic food on e-commerce platforms. Data have been collected using a web-based survey with 490 respondents. A factor analysis was used to analyze data and later to consider them in a Poisson Count Regression Model. The findings show that well-educated and high-income women are more willing to purchase organic food on e-commerce platforms than others.Moreover, other drivers, such as food quality attributes and people’s attitudes towards green consumption and digital channels, affect people’s willingness to buy organic food online. These results should be useful for experts dealing with organic food. Marketing campaigns should consider all the drivers affecting people’s willingness to purchase organic food online to target the market by designing communication content susceptible to generating the greatest appeal.

This paper presents the first results of marketing studies for the positioning of a new sustainable biobased plastic packaging for fresh food, as part of the research project “CItrus waste ReciCLing for added valuE products – CIRCLE” for improving the sustainability of the citrus processing production chain through the valorization of processing waste. The present study, conducted on Italian consumers, contributes to the flow of literature on consumer demand of sustainable food packaging, highlighting the preferences, concerns, and skepticism, the factors that explain behaviors, and the role of information on their choices. Findings may be of interest for firms and Public Institutions to promote circularity behaviors among citizens and to consolidate their ethical motivations through correct information and experience.

The paper explores the complex relationship between digital and ecological transitions, particularly focusing on their interdependence and potential to drive sustainability. It acknowledges that digitalization, while offering numerous benefits such as efficiency and scalability, does not inherently lead to sustainability. The text highlights three critical aspects influencing digitalization’s impact: the design of digital solutions, access to these solutions, and the complexity of systems integrating digital technologies. Challenges such as the risk of exacerbating inequalities and the necessity for comprehensive governance to mitigate negative effects are discussed. The paper also delves into the digital transition within the agri-food sector, emphasizing the contrast between conventional agriculture and agroecological approaches, which prioritize diversity and resilience. It argues that digital tools can support more sustainable and diverse agricultural practices if correctly aligned with ecological principles. Finally, the text calls for targeted innovation policies to ensure that digital transition contributes effectively to ecological goals, suggesting that a thoughtful and directed approach is essential for realizing the transformative potential of digitalization in fostering a sustainable future.

The study aims to recommend Islamic macroprudential policy instruments to support Indonesia’s staple agricultural sector financing. Delphi-ANP analysis method is used to determine the optimal Islamic macroprudential instruments, which result is supported by meta-analysis and optimum method findings.The results show that Islamic Agricultural Lending to Sector (IALTS) is the optimal instrument to support agricultural sector financing. According to the ANP and optimum method findings, an Islamic macroprudential instrument should meet three criteria i.e., it should be able to increase financing for the agricultural sector, prevent speculative short-term transactions, and internalize systemic risk. Experts emphasized that IALTS have met the criteria to support sustainable growth and stability in the agricultural sector financing. Meta-analysis reveals a positive and significant correlation between agricultural financing and agricultural productivity across countries, which supports the instrument of macroprudential implementation.The government should adopt measures to boost agricultural production through macroprudential policy tools, financing for agriculture from Islamic banks, and policies that ensure inclusive agricultural financing for the benefit of all levels of farmers.

Dopo la pandemia, diversi settori del mercato del lavoro hanno denunciato una situazione di sofferenza dovuta all’incapacità di reperire personale. Le cause di questa sofferenza sono state attribuite a diversi fattori, tra i quali la crisi demografica, il disallineamento (mismatch) tra competenze disponibili e competenze richieste e l’inefficacia delle politiche migratorie. Di rado vengono citati, in queste analisi, la disaffezione al lavoro e la “crisi dell’offerta”, come l’hanno definita Seghezzi e Sala (2024). Ripercorrendo la letteratura e i dati istituzionali relativi al lavoro nella fase post-pandemica, questo articolo rinviene nella disaffezione un elemento centrale per comprendere la crisi odierna. La sua tesi è che l’analisi di questa categoria, e il superamento della sua latenza nella letteratura, sia necessaria per ricondurre all’interno dell’organizzazione del lavoro le cause e le potenziali soluzioni dell’attuale carenza di personale.

Self-employment, once seen as enhancing work-life balance, is now associated with a negative impact on work-family conflict when children are involved. Recent studies reveal a correlation between self-employment and increased work-to-family conflict. This review aims to examine the work-family conflict factors influencing changes in self-employment status through a systematic analysis of literature from 2015-2023. The results indicate a lack of consensus regarding how self-employment affects work-family conflict due to occupational status and gender. Some argue that self-employment reduces conflict, while others claim it amplifies it, often contingent on the country’s support systems for childcare and parental leave. This study contributes to the ongoing debate on self-employment’s role in assisting parents, especially women, in achieving better work-family balance.

Questo articolo presenta una riflessione di ordine teorico e metodologico sulla ricerca-intervento nell’ambito della sociologia dell’azione e del soggetto (Touraine 1978, 1992) sulla base di alcune esperienze di ricerca condotte nel contesto sindacale condotte negli ultimi anni. Partendo dalla prospettiva teorica definita da Touraine e dai ricercatori e dalle ricercatrici che per oltre trent’anni hanno animato la vita intellettuale del Centre d’Analyse et D’Intervention Sociologique (CADIS), l'articolo approfondisce quattro dimensioni che caratterizzano dal nostro punto di vista la ricerca-intervento: a) la prospettiva della soggettivazione; b) l’attivazione degli attori e il ruolo trasformativo della ricerca-intervento; c) gli orientamenti valoriali; d) il dialogo e l’elaborazione collettiva. In particolare, si evidenzia il ruolo determinante che la ricerca-intervento assume per la comprensione dell'epoca moderna, poiché cerca di fornire agli attori sociali gli strumenti per riflettere criticamente attraverso un processo inter-soggettivo. Infine, l’articolo si sofferma sulle sfide di ordine metodologico nello studio delle trasformazioni del lavoro e della vita sociale.

L’articolo propone l’analisi aggregata delle rivendicazioni dei conflitti di lavoro espresse dai sindacati e dalle organizzazioni che rappresentano i lavoratori, singolarmente e in alleanze intra-sindacali, per comprendere se queste propongano l’elaborazione di una nuova cultura alternativa a quella neoliberista. Il contesto teorico recupera il concetto di enjeu di A. Touraine. Empiricamente, l’analisi è condotta su un dataset originale costruito attraverso il metodo dell’analisi degli eventi di protesta (PEA), che include gli scioperi e le altre proteste, registrati in Italia dal 2008 al 2018. I risultati evidenziano che nel sistema delle relazioni industriali prevalgono le rivendicazioni economiche e una politica difensiva promossa dai sindacati confederali. Anche se in maniera marginale, rivendicazioni politiche, unitamente a quelle economiche, spingono i sindacati confederali e autonomi a collaborare, insieme ad attori non tradizionali, nell’opposizione alle politiche governative nazionali. Tuttavia, la contestazione al neoliberismo rimane ai margini del conflitto industriale, promossa da sindacati autonomi e gruppi autorganizzati di lavoratori.

Questo contributo si propone di rileggere l’esperienza dei disoccupati organizzati di Napoli alla luce del concetto di “posta in gioco” di Touraine. Ci siamo dunque chiesti: qual è la posta in gioco per la quale si mobilitano i disoccupati organizzati? E inoltre è lecito definirlo “nuovo movimento sociale” nel senso attribuitogli da Touraine? Dopo aver descritto l’evoluzione del ciclo di lotte dei disoccupati organizzati, che comincia a metà degli anni Settanta del secolo scorso, passiamo a individuare la posta in gioco delle mobilitazioni dei disoccupati organizzati in una diversa rappresentazione di sé come componente del proletariato marginale, non in quanto “lazzari”, e nella conseguente ricerca di forme di riconoscimento non solo sul piano identitario e culturale ma anche politico e sindacale.

Il testo prende in considerazione il contributo fornito dagli studi di Alain Touraine per la costruzione di una sociologia dell’organizzazione del lavoro. In primo luogo, la ricerca sulle diverse fasi tecnologiche svolta presso lo stabilimento di Billancourt della Renault ha reso evidente la complessità dell’organizzazione del lavoro come oggetto di studio, mostrando come in ogni singola fase si strutturano intorno alla tecnologia il sistema delle qualifiche professionali, le caratteristiche del lavoro svolto o i rapporti sul luogo di lavoro, sia quelli tra pari sia quelli gerarchici, fino al valore attribuito socialmente al lavoro. Le proposte più generali avanzate in seguito con la sua sociologia dell’azione sono poi utili ad una lettura della organizzazione del lavoro come posta in gioco nei conflitti. Alla luce di questi contributi l’analisi si sofferma infine sulle caratteristiche della organizzazione del lavoro in presenza della tecnologia informatica

L’articolo ha l’obiettivo di mostrare la fecondità analitica del lavoro di Touraine per lo studio del conflitto. Svolge questo compito in due riprese: nel secondo paragrafo si dedica alla concettualizzazione di Touraine sul movimento operaio, ponendolo in relazione con le controversie storiografiche relative soprattutto alla Gran Bretagna dell’Ottocento e dei primi del Novecento, mentre nel terzo si occupa del dibattito che si sviluppa intorno ai movimenti più recenti, dai c.d. nuovi movimenti sociali alle mobilitazioni in varie aree del mondo nei primi decenni del nostro secolo. Ma, nel valutare il contributo di Touraine allo studio del conflitto, non si può ignorare la divaricazione di approcci teorici che esiste in questo campo della sociologia. Nel primo paragrafo, infatti, l’articolo prende in considerazione l’altro paradigma nello studio del conflitto, originatosi negli Stati Uniti. Argomenta sulla sua unitarietà, ne sottolinea le differenze con l’approccio azionalista e avanza anche una ipotesi sulla genealogia della biforcazione.

This article analyses the emergence of a new political generation of progressive activists in the U.S. since 2008, and documents their growing engagement in labor organizing. It is argue that this development has inverted the dynamic Alain Touraine wrote about in the 1980s: rather than the new social movements learning from the traditional workers’ movement, activists with experience in those movements are building on those political experiences to revitalize and transform the labor movement. I also suggest that this new political generation may embody the ‘return of the actor’ that Touraine envisioned in the 1980s.