Massimo Rovai is an associate professor in Principles of Economy and Real Estate Evaluation at the University of Pisa, and a researcher with about 30 years of experience in research projects at national, regional and local levels. In the last 10 years, he has also been involved in various European projects. During his academic career, his research has been primarily focused on rural development and agri-food system dynamics. In particular, he examined the linkages between production, agri-environmental resources, valorization strategies from a territorial perspective, and re-localization of production-consumption chains. This work has resulted in 10+ scientific publications, several books and book chapters, about 10 conference papers and other academic contributions. In recent years, his research focus has shifted to the evaluation of ecosystem services from a spatial planning perspective. Related to that, he is also studying how urban-rural relations can be enhanced taking into account the principles of sustainable territorial development..