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In the recent past, sustainable development has been considered a major issue for urban and regional studies. Adaptive reuse appears to be a practical solution for sustainable urban development. Beyond and in addition to a conceptual base consistent with circular economy and sustainability principles, how do we know if adaptive reuse is actually sustainable, provided that it constitutes a multidisciplinary and multilevel process? The present study aims at evaluating, in as much as feasible quantitative terms, adaptive reuse practices sustainability. This was attained using a set of indicators, developed combining PESTLE (the Political, Economic, Technical, Social, Legal, and Environmental aspects) and SWOT (the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) approaches, of which the results were subjected to evaluation by experts (pairwise comparisons), following the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). The indicators representing strengths and opportunities of the process were calculated to be of higher value (overall level of final cumulative indicators values; 70.4%) compared with indicators representing weaknesses and threats. Enhancing strengths and opportunities and counteracting weaknesses and threats contribute making the potential of adaptive reuse practices in urban sustainability more evident. Among analysis dimensions, political and economic aspects rank first, followed by environmental, socio-cultural, technological-technical, and legal aspect. The empirical results of this paper serve as a useful reference point for decision-making and policy formulation addressing adaptive reuse practices in sustainable development strategies.
Ioannis Vardopoulos; Evangelia Tsilika; Efthymia Sarantakou; Antonis Zorpas; Luca Salvati; Paris Tsartas. An Integrated SWOT-PESTLE-AHP Model Assessing Sustainability in Adaptive Reuse Projects. Applied Sciences 2021, 11, 7134 .
AMA StyleIoannis Vardopoulos, Evangelia Tsilika, Efthymia Sarantakou, Antonis Zorpas, Luca Salvati, Paris Tsartas. An Integrated SWOT-PESTLE-AHP Model Assessing Sustainability in Adaptive Reuse Projects. Applied Sciences. 2021; 11 (15):7134.
Chicago/Turabian StyleIoannis Vardopoulos; Evangelia Tsilika; Efthymia Sarantakou; Antonis Zorpas; Luca Salvati; Paris Tsartas. 2021. "An Integrated SWOT-PESTLE-AHP Model Assessing Sustainability in Adaptive Reuse Projects." Applied Sciences 11, no. 15: 7134.
Urban dynamics in European Mediterranean countries reflect a mosaic of responses to different economic impulses. Suspended between suburbanisation and reurbanisation, socio-economic development in Southern Europe outlines a possible ‘Mediterranean’ path to gentrification that deserves further investigation. By considering together population, housing, business dynamics and specific aspects of life quality, we developed a quali-quantitative analysis of urban dynamics and gentrification processes in postcrisis Athens, Greece. The political side of gentrification, informal planning and the difficulty to stabilise a nexus with inner city rehabilitation accounts for the heterogeneous outcomes of urban transformations in Southern Europe. In such contexts, inner city gentrification was interpreted as an informal process consolidating a social mix similar to the most advanced cities in Western Europe. Our study delineates a Mediterranean perspective to inner city gentrification, reconnecting these processes with more general socio-economic conditions, and demonstrates the intrinsic advantage of quali-quantitative assessments of gentrification patterns and processes in urban Europe. A refined knowledge of these processes—also in light of more recent urban crises (e.g., driven by the pandemic challenge)—finally provides an interpretative key for a better management of inner city gentrification, not only in advanced economies but also in emerging (or peripheral) contexts.
Luca Salvati. Seeking (desperately) for gentrification? Population change, immigration and economic recovery in a Mediterranean city. Population, Space and Place 2021, e2502 .
AMA StyleLuca Salvati. Seeking (desperately) for gentrification? Population change, immigration and economic recovery in a Mediterranean city. Population, Space and Place. 2021; ():e2502.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLuca Salvati. 2021. "Seeking (desperately) for gentrification? Population change, immigration and economic recovery in a Mediterranean city." Population, Space and Place , no. : e2502.
Land sensitivity to degradation is a spatially varying attribute of local systems that experience rapid changes in socio-ecological conditions. To answer the increasing demand of quantitative risk assessment of land degradation and desertification - taken as a final stage of land degradation - in non-affected countries, our study estimates land sensitivity to degradation in the Czech Republic at 1:10,000 scale using the Environmental Sensitive Area (ESA) framework. Czech land was classified into four sensitivity levels (‘insensitive’, ‘potentially sensitive’, ‘fragile’, and ‘critical’). ‘Fragile’ and ‘critical’ land concentrated in accessible lowlands with intensive agriculture. Climate and vegetation quality contributed the most to land sensitivity to degradation in the country. Low soil quality and land management quality were causes of land sensitivity in few, sparse agricultural districts. A comparison with Mediterranean and South-Eastern European countries indicates that land sensitivity to degradation in the Czech Republic is only slightly lower than in neighbouring, affected countries (sensu UNCCD, Annex IV), with the same acting drivers (agriculture intensification and urban sprawl). In light of climate change, national and regional policies are required to face with the increase of land sensitivity in ‘formally non-affected’ countries of Central-Eastern Europe, taking stock of the ‘Mediterranean’ experience in assessing and managing land sensitivity to degradation.
Vilém Pechanec; Marcela Prokopová; Luca Salvati; Ondřej Cudlín; Jan Procházka; Pavel Samec; Renata Včeláková; Pavel Cudlín. Moving toward the north: A country-level classification of land sensitivity to degradation in Czech Republic. CATENA 2021, 206, 105567 .
AMA StyleVilém Pechanec, Marcela Prokopová, Luca Salvati, Ondřej Cudlín, Jan Procházka, Pavel Samec, Renata Včeláková, Pavel Cudlín. Moving toward the north: A country-level classification of land sensitivity to degradation in Czech Republic. CATENA. 2021; 206 ():105567.
Chicago/Turabian StyleVilém Pechanec; Marcela Prokopová; Luca Salvati; Ondřej Cudlín; Jan Procházka; Pavel Samec; Renata Včeláková; Pavel Cudlín. 2021. "Moving toward the north: A country-level classification of land sensitivity to degradation in Czech Republic." CATENA 206, no. : 105567.
The COVID-19 pandemic has rapidly evolved into an acute health crisis with extensive socioeconomic and demographic consequences. The severity of the COVID-19 pandemic requires a refined (and more comprehensive) understanding of virus dissemination over space, transmission mechanisms, clinical features, and risk factors. In line with this assumption, the present study illustrates a comparative, empirical analysis of the role of socioeconomic and demographic dimensions in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic grounded on a large set of indicators comparing the background context across a global sample of countries. Results indicate that—in addition to epidemiological factors—basic socioeconomic forces significantly shaped contagions as well as hospitalization and death rates across countries. As a response to the global crisis driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, all-embracing access to healthcare services should be strengthened along with the development of sustainable health systems supported by appropriate resources and skills. The empirical findings of this study have direct implications for the coordination of on-going, global efforts aimed at containing COVID-19 (and other, future) pandemics.
Kostas Rontos; Maria-Eleni Syrmali; Luca Salvati. Unravelling the Role of Socioeconomic Forces in the Early Stage of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Global Analysis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2021, 18, 6340 .
AMA StyleKostas Rontos, Maria-Eleni Syrmali, Luca Salvati. Unravelling the Role of Socioeconomic Forces in the Early Stage of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Global Analysis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18 (12):6340.
Chicago/Turabian StyleKostas Rontos; Maria-Eleni Syrmali; Luca Salvati. 2021. "Unravelling the Role of Socioeconomic Forces in the Early Stage of COVID-19 Pandemic: A Global Analysis." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 12: 6340.
The long-term impact of demographic transitions on the spatial distribution of human settlements was occasionally evaluated in Europe. Assuming the distinctive role of urban–rural divides, our study investigates local-scale population trends (1861–2017) in Southern Italy, a disadvantaged region of Mediterranean Europe, as a result of long-term socioeconomic transformations. A quantitative analysis of municipal-scale population data based on descriptive and exploratory multivariate statistics, mapping, inferential approaches, and regression models identified four time intervals with distinctive demographic dynamics: (i) a spatially homogeneous population growth between 1861 and 1911, (ii) a moderate population increase rebalancing a traditional divide in coastal and internal areas (1911–1951), (iii) accelerated population growth enlarging spatial divides in urban and rural districts (1951–1981), and (iv) population stability (or slight decline) leading to heterogeneous demographic patterns since the early 1980s. The first three stages reflect a prolonged transition from high fertility and mortality to high fertility and low mortality, with accelerated population growth typical of the latest stage of the first demographic transition. Outcomes of time interval (iv) reflect the early stages of the second demographic transition, with lowest-low fertility and rising life expectancy. While the first transition reflected spatially homogeneous population trends along a considerable time spam, the second transition has been associated with heterogeneous (leapfrog) demographic patterns as a result of socially mixed (and spatially) fragmented dynamics of growth and change.
Rosanna Salvia; Luca Salvati; Giovanni Quaranta. Beyond the Transition: Long-Term Population Trends in a Disadvantaged Region of Southern Europe, 1861–2017. Sustainability 2021, 13, 6636 .
AMA StyleRosanna Salvia, Luca Salvati, Giovanni Quaranta. Beyond the Transition: Long-Term Population Trends in a Disadvantaged Region of Southern Europe, 1861–2017. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (12):6636.
Chicago/Turabian StyleRosanna Salvia; Luca Salvati; Giovanni Quaranta. 2021. "Beyond the Transition: Long-Term Population Trends in a Disadvantaged Region of Southern Europe, 1861–2017." Sustainability 13, no. 12: 6636.
Official statistics demonstrate the role of traffic accidents in the increasing number of fatalities, especially in emerging countries. In recent decades, the rate of deaths and injuries caused by traffic accidents in Iran, a rapidly growing economy in the Middle East, has risen significantly with respect to that of neighboring countries. The present study illustrates an exploratory spatial analysis’ framework aimed at identifying and ranking hazardous locations for traffic accidents in Zanjan, one of the most populous and dense cities in Iran. This framework quantifies the spatiotemporal association among collisions, by comparing the results of different approaches (including Kernel Density Estimation (KDE), Natural Breaks Classification (NBC), and Knox test). Based on descriptive statistics, five distance classes (2–26, 27–57, 58–105, 106–192, and 193–364 meters) were tested when predicting location of the nearest collision within the same temporal unit. The empirical results of our work demonstrate that the largest roads and intersections in Zanjan had a significantly higher frequency of traffic accidents than the other locations. A comparative analysis of distance bandwidths indicates that the first (2–26 m) class concentrated the most intense level of spatiotemporal association among traffic accidents. Prevention (or reduction) of traffic accidents may benefit from automatic identification and classification of the most risky locations in urban areas. Thanks to the larger availability of open-access datasets reporting the location and characteristics of car accidents in both advanced countries and emerging economies, our study demonstrates the potential of an integrated analysis of the level of spatiotemporal association in traffic collisions over metropolitan regions.
Mohsen Kalantari; Saeed Zanganeh Shahraki; Bamshad Yaghmaei; Somaye Ghezelbash; Gianluca Ladaga; Luca Salvati. Unraveling Urban Form and Collision Risk: The Spatial Distribution of Traffic Accidents in Zanjan, Iran. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2021, 18, 4498 .
AMA StyleMohsen Kalantari, Saeed Zanganeh Shahraki, Bamshad Yaghmaei, Somaye Ghezelbash, Gianluca Ladaga, Luca Salvati. Unraveling Urban Form and Collision Risk: The Spatial Distribution of Traffic Accidents in Zanjan, Iran. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18 (9):4498.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMohsen Kalantari; Saeed Zanganeh Shahraki; Bamshad Yaghmaei; Somaye Ghezelbash; Gianluca Ladaga; Luca Salvati. 2021. "Unraveling Urban Form and Collision Risk: The Spatial Distribution of Traffic Accidents in Zanjan, Iran." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 9: 4498.
Climate change leverages landscape transformations and exerts variable pressure on natural environments and rural systems. Earlier studies outlined how Mediterranean Europe has become a global hotspot of climate warming and land use change. The present work assumes the olive tree, a typical Mediterranean crop, as a candidate bioclimatic indicator, delineating the latent impact of climate aridity on traditional cropping systems at the northern range of the biogeographical distribution of the olive tree. Since the olive tree follows a well-defined latitude gradient with a progressive decline in both frequency and density moving toward the north, we considered Italy as an appropriate case to investigate how climate change may (directly or indirectly) influence the spatial distribution of this crop. By adopting an exploratory approach grounded in the quali-quantitative analysis of official statistics, the present study investigates long-term changes over time in the spatial distribution of the olive tree surface area in Northern Italy, a region traditionally considered outside the ecological range of the species because of unsuitable climate conditions. Olive tree cultivated areas increased in Northern Italy, especially in flat districts and upland areas, while they decreased in Central and Southern Italy under optimal climate conditions, mostly because of land abandonment. The most intense expansion of the olive tree surface area in Italy was observed in the northern region between 1992 and 2000 and corresponded with the intensification of winter droughts during the late 1980s and the early 1990s and local warming since the mid-1980s. Assuming the intrinsic role of farmers in the expansion of the olive tree into the suboptimal land of Northern Italy, the empirical results of our study suggest how climate aridity and local warming may underlie the shift toward the north in the geographical range of the olive tree in the Mediterranean Basin. We finally discussed the implications of the olive range shift as a part of a possible landscape scenario for a more arid future.
Jesús Rodrigo-Comino; Rosanna Salvia; Giovanni Quaranta; Pavel Cudlín; Luca Salvati; Antonio Gimenez-Morera. Climate Aridity and the Geographical Shift of Olive Trees in a Mediterranean Northern Region. Climate 2021, 9, 64 .
AMA StyleJesús Rodrigo-Comino, Rosanna Salvia, Giovanni Quaranta, Pavel Cudlín, Luca Salvati, Antonio Gimenez-Morera. Climate Aridity and the Geographical Shift of Olive Trees in a Mediterranean Northern Region. Climate. 2021; 9 (4):64.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJesús Rodrigo-Comino; Rosanna Salvia; Giovanni Quaranta; Pavel Cudlín; Luca Salvati; Antonio Gimenez-Morera. 2021. "Climate Aridity and the Geographical Shift of Olive Trees in a Mediterranean Northern Region." Climate 9, no. 4: 64.
This study investigates long-term landscape transformations (1949–2016) in urban Rome, Central Italy, through a spatial distribution of seven metrics (core, islet, perforation, edge, loop, bridge, branch) derived from a Morphological Spatial Pattern Analysis (MSPA) analyzed separately for seven land-use classes (built-up areas, arable land, crop mosaic, vineyards, olive groves, forests, pastures). A Principal Component Analysis (PCA) has been finally adopted to characterize landscape structure at 1949 and 2016. Results of the MSPA demonstrate how both natural and agricultural land-uses have decreased following urban expansion. Moreover, the percent ‘core’ area of each class declined substantially, although with different intensity. These results clearly indicate ‘winners’ and ‘losers’ after long-term landscape transformations: urban settlements and forests belong to the former category, the remaining land-use classes (mostly agricultural) belong to the latter category. Descriptive statistics and multivariate exploratory techniques finally documented the intrinsic complexity characteristic of actual landscapes. The findings of this study also demonstrate how settlements have expanded chaotically over the study area, reflecting a progressive ‘fractalization’ and inhomogeneity of fringe landscapes, with negative implications for metropolitan sustainability at large. These transformations were unable to leverage processes of settlement and economic re-agglomeration around sub-centers typical of polycentric development in the most advanced socioeconomic contexts.
Samaneh Nickayin; Luca Salvati; Rosa Coluzzi; Maria Lanfredi; Rares Halbac-Cotoara-Zamfir; Rosanna Salvia; Giovanni Quaranta; Ahmed Alhuseen; Luisa Gaburova. What Happens in the City When Long-Term Urban Expansion and (Un)Sustainable Fringe Development Occur: The Case Study of Rome. ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information 2021, 10, 231 .
AMA StyleSamaneh Nickayin, Luca Salvati, Rosa Coluzzi, Maria Lanfredi, Rares Halbac-Cotoara-Zamfir, Rosanna Salvia, Giovanni Quaranta, Ahmed Alhuseen, Luisa Gaburova. What Happens in the City When Long-Term Urban Expansion and (Un)Sustainable Fringe Development Occur: The Case Study of Rome. ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information. 2021; 10 (4):231.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSamaneh Nickayin; Luca Salvati; Rosa Coluzzi; Maria Lanfredi; Rares Halbac-Cotoara-Zamfir; Rosanna Salvia; Giovanni Quaranta; Ahmed Alhuseen; Luisa Gaburova. 2021. "What Happens in the City When Long-Term Urban Expansion and (Un)Sustainable Fringe Development Occur: The Case Study of Rome." ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information 10, no. 4: 231.
Experiencing climate changes and increased human pressure, Mediterranean regions are considered representative hotspots of desertification. However, relatively few studies have been devoted to quantify the individual impact of different factors shaping land sensitivity to desertification in these contexts. Our study contributes to this deserving (positive and normative) issue with a diachronic analysis of the impact of multiple drivers of desertification risk on six indicators of land sensitivity based on the Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) approach. Indicators (average and maximum ESA score, coefficient of variation and normalized range in the ESA scores, share of ‘fragile’ and ‘critical’ areas in total landscape) were calculated in 777 rural districts of Italy at three time points (early-1960s, early-1990s, and early-2010s). Multivariate models were used to determine the impact of 12 predictors (climate, soil, vegetation, and land management quality) on each indicator of land sensitivity. Results of the analysis identified two non-redundant dimensions respectively associated with the average level of land sensitivity and its intrinsic variability across space. Impacts of climate and vegetation qualities on the level of land sensitivity were high, decreasing over time, and more intense respectively in Northern and Southern Italy. Impacts of soil and land management qualities were moderate, increasing over time, and involving almost all the country's area. Our study emphasizes the role of context-based measures promoting sustainable land management. The ‘local’ dimension proved to be crucial in any strategy of risk mitigation undertaken at disaggregated spatial scales.
Gianluca Egidi; Sirio Cividino; Enrico Paris; Adriano Palma; Luca Salvati; Pavel Cudlin. Assessing the impact of multiple drivers of land sensitivity to desertification in a Mediterranean country. Environmental Impact Assessment Review 2021, 89, 106594 .
AMA StyleGianluca Egidi, Sirio Cividino, Enrico Paris, Adriano Palma, Luca Salvati, Pavel Cudlin. Assessing the impact of multiple drivers of land sensitivity to desertification in a Mediterranean country. Environmental Impact Assessment Review. 2021; 89 ():106594.
Chicago/Turabian StyleGianluca Egidi; Sirio Cividino; Enrico Paris; Adriano Palma; Luca Salvati; Pavel Cudlin. 2021. "Assessing the impact of multiple drivers of land sensitivity to desertification in a Mediterranean country." Environmental Impact Assessment Review 89, no. : 106594.
The present work investigates the increase of confirmed cases of West Nile virus and the relationship between weather-related patterns and the geographical expansion of West Nile virus in Greece, with a special focus on West Attica, Central Greece, a semi-arid, ecologically fragile Mediterranean area. Using data from the European Environment Agency, European Drought Observatory of Joint Research Centre, the pairwise relationship between surface air temperature anomalies, precipitation anomalies, soil moisture index anomalies, and the fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation anomalies (fAPAR) was evaluated during summer time of 2018, a particularly intense virus outbreak. The empirical results of this study indicate that total precipitation during 2018 was extremely high, nearly 500% above the average. These conditions contributed to the increase of soil moisture index anomaly and fAPAR, creating an ideal microenvironment (wet soils and green pastures) for mosquito breeding. This phenomenon was directly associated with a drastic outbreak of West Nile virus cases in the area, compared with earlier years. Our results indicate how unusually high values of summer precipitation may have contributed (both through direct and indirect ecological channels) to the rapid spread of the West Nile virus in West Attica, causing a significant number of confirmed cases and fatalities. Climate change may bring forth other issues aside from natural disasters, including—but not limited to—virus expansion.
Anastasios Mavrakis; Christina Papavasileiou; Dimitrios Alexakis; Evangelos C. Papakitsos; Luca Salvati. Meteorological patterns and the evolution of West Nile virus in an environmentally stressed Mediterranean area. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 2021, 193, 1 -11.
AMA StyleAnastasios Mavrakis, Christina Papavasileiou, Dimitrios Alexakis, Evangelos C. Papakitsos, Luca Salvati. Meteorological patterns and the evolution of West Nile virus in an environmentally stressed Mediterranean area. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. 2021; 193 (4):1-11.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAnastasios Mavrakis; Christina Papavasileiou; Dimitrios Alexakis; Evangelos C. Papakitsos; Luca Salvati. 2021. "Meteorological patterns and the evolution of West Nile virus in an environmentally stressed Mediterranean area." Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 193, no. 4: 1-11.
The Mediterranean region is exposed to desertification risk because of the joint impact of soil degradation, land-use change and global warming, although the individual role of such drivers has been occasionally investigated. The present study clarifies the spatial linkage between desertification risk and urbanization, intended as a pervasive form of landscape transformation in Southern Europe, by analyzing trends over time in the Environmentally Sensitive Area Index (1960–2010) at different settlement densities in Italy. Seven density classes, representing a vast range of local contexts from pristine, natural sites to peri-urban conditions with moderate (or high) human pressure, were considered. While land surface with medium-high settlement density increased between 1960 and 2010, reflecting semi-dense urban growth (1960–1990) and settlement sprawl (1990–2010), the spatial distribution and extent of land sensitive to desertification in Italy followed more complex dynamics over both time and space. Divergences in the level of desertification risk along the settlement density gradient increased markedly in 1990 and 2010. The highest level of risk was observed for land with intermediate settlement density, representing economically dynamic rural contexts with high (and possibly increasing) human pressure. Despite some exceptions, a lower level of risk was observed in urban and peri-urban areas with denser settlements. The spatially asymmetric increase in the level of desertification risk contributed to alter the polarization in affected and non-affected areas characteristic of early-1960s Italy. A rising impact of settlement density on desertification risk has been recorded in more recent years. Based on the empirical results of this study, National Action Plans to combat desertification in Mediterranean Europe are definitely required to incorporate specific measures of urban containment and mitigation of the negative effect of sprawl on land degradation at a local scale.
Gianluca Egidi; Giovanni Quaranta; Rosanna Salvia; Luca Salvati; Renata Včeláková; Pavel Cudlín. Urban sprawl and desertification risk: unraveling the latent nexus in a mediterranean country. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management 2021, 1 -25.
AMA StyleGianluca Egidi, Giovanni Quaranta, Rosanna Salvia, Luca Salvati, Renata Včeláková, Pavel Cudlín. Urban sprawl and desertification risk: unraveling the latent nexus in a mediterranean country. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management. 2021; ():1-25.
Chicago/Turabian StyleGianluca Egidi; Giovanni Quaranta; Rosanna Salvia; Luca Salvati; Renata Včeláková; Pavel Cudlín. 2021. "Urban sprawl and desertification risk: unraveling the latent nexus in a mediterranean country." Journal of Environmental Planning and Management , no. : 1-25.
This work provides a multi-scale, multi-temporal assessment of the robustness of 6 indicators of land degradation aggregated at various spatial domains relevant to environmental reporting. Based on the Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) approach – widely used for environmental reporting of land degradation in Europe – we tested six indicators including (i) the average ESA score, (ii) the maximum ESA score, (iii) the coefficient of variation in the ESA scores, (iv) the normalized range in the ESA scores, as well as the extent of (v) ‘fragile’ and (vi) ‘critical’ areas based on a standard land classification developed on behalf of the ESA framework. Statistical robustness and intrinsic stability of these indicators were verified at six spatial domains (administrative regions, provinces, elevation belts, homogeneous economic districts, rural districts, municipalities) separately for three time points (early-1960s, early-1990s, and early-2010s). Results of a mixed parametric/non-parametric correlation analysis indicate that pair-wise relationships between indicators were mostly linear. A Principal Component Analysis identified two non-redundant dimensions associated with the average level of land degradation sensitivity and its intrinsic variability over space; indicators resulted to be associated exclusively with one of these two dimensions for all study years. Average level of sensitivity and variability over space provide, together, a comprehensive and statistically robust assessment of land degradation at vastly different planning levels, irrespective of the territorial domain adopted for environmental reporting.
Samaneh Sadat Nickayin; Giovanni Quaranta; Rosanna Salvia; Sirio Cividino; Pavel Cudlin; Luca Salvati. Reporting land degradation sensitivity through multiple indicators: Does scale matter? Ecological Indicators 2021, 125, 107560 .
AMA StyleSamaneh Sadat Nickayin, Giovanni Quaranta, Rosanna Salvia, Sirio Cividino, Pavel Cudlin, Luca Salvati. Reporting land degradation sensitivity through multiple indicators: Does scale matter? Ecological Indicators. 2021; 125 ():107560.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSamaneh Sadat Nickayin; Giovanni Quaranta; Rosanna Salvia; Sirio Cividino; Pavel Cudlin; Luca Salvati. 2021. "Reporting land degradation sensitivity through multiple indicators: Does scale matter?" Ecological Indicators 125, no. : 107560.
Diachronic variations in demographic rates have frequently reflected social transformations and a (more or less evident) impact of sequential economic downturns. By assessing changes over time in Total Fertility Rate (TFR) at the regional scale in Italy, our study investigates the long-term transition (1952–2019) characteristic of Mediterranean fertility, showing a continuous decline of births since the late 1970s and marked disparities between high- and low-fertility regions along the latitude gradient. Together with a rapid decline in the country TFR, the spatiotemporal evolution of regional fertility in Italy—illustrated through an exploratory time series statistical approach—outlines the marked divide between (wealthier) Northern regions and (economically disadvantaged) Southern regions. Non-linear fertility trends and increasing spatial heterogeneity in more recent times indicate the role of individual behaviors leveraging a generalized decline in marriage and childbearing propensity. Assuming differential responses of regional fertility to changing socioeconomic contexts, these trends are more evident in Southern Italy than in Northern Italy. Reasons at the base of such fertility patterns were extensively discussed focusing—among others—on the distinctive contribution of internal and international migrations to regional fertility rates. Based on these findings, Southern Italy, an economically disadvantaged, peripheral region in Mediterranean Europe, is taken as a paradigmatic case of demographic shrinkage—whose causes and consequences can be generalized to wider contexts in (and outside) Europe.
Jesus Rodrigo-Comino; Gianluca Egidi; Luca Salvati; Giovanni Quaranta; Rosanna Salvia; Antonio Gimenez-Morera. High-to-Low (Regional) Fertility Transitions in a Peripheral European Country: The Contribution of Exploratory Time Series Analysis. Data 2021, 6, 19 .
AMA StyleJesus Rodrigo-Comino, Gianluca Egidi, Luca Salvati, Giovanni Quaranta, Rosanna Salvia, Antonio Gimenez-Morera. High-to-Low (Regional) Fertility Transitions in a Peripheral European Country: The Contribution of Exploratory Time Series Analysis. Data. 2021; 6 (2):19.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJesus Rodrigo-Comino; Gianluca Egidi; Luca Salvati; Giovanni Quaranta; Rosanna Salvia; Antonio Gimenez-Morera. 2021. "High-to-Low (Regional) Fertility Transitions in a Peripheral European Country: The Contribution of Exploratory Time Series Analysis." Data 6, no. 2: 19.
Following an operational framework derived from earlier research, our study research estimates the specific contribution of biophysical and socioeconomic factors to soil sensitivity to degradation at two-time points (Early-1990s and Early-2010s) in Italy, a Mediterranean hotspot for desertification risk. A total of 34 variables associated (directly or, at least, indirectly) with different processes of soil degradation (erosion, salinization, sealing, contamination, and compaction) and climate change were considered here, delineating the predominant (underlying) cause (i.e., biophysical or socioeconomic). This set of variables represented the largest (quantitative) information available from national and international data sources including official statistics at both national and European scale. Contribution of biophysical and socioeconomic dimensions to soil sensitivity to degradation was heterogeneous in Italy, with the level of soil sensitivity to biophysical factors being the highest in less accessible, natural areas mostly located in hilly and mountainous districts. The highest level of soil sensitivity to socioeconomic drivers was instead observed in more accessible locations around large cities and flat rural districts with crop intensification and low (but increasing) population density. All these factors delineated an enlarged divide in environmental quality between (i) flat and upland districts, and between (ii) Northern and Southern Italian regions. These findings suggest the appropriateness of policy strategies protecting soils with a strong place-specific knowledge, i.e., based on permanent monitoring of local (biophysical and socioeconomic) conditions.
Filippo Gambella; Andrea Colantoni; Gianluca Egidi; Nathan Morrow; Marcela Prokopová; Luca Salvati; Antonio Giménez-Morera; Jesús Rodrigo-Comino. Uncovering the Role of Biophysical Factors and Socioeconomic Forces Shaping Soil Sensitivity to Degradation: Insights from Italy. Soil Systems 2021, 5, 11 .
AMA StyleFilippo Gambella, Andrea Colantoni, Gianluca Egidi, Nathan Morrow, Marcela Prokopová, Luca Salvati, Antonio Giménez-Morera, Jesús Rodrigo-Comino. Uncovering the Role of Biophysical Factors and Socioeconomic Forces Shaping Soil Sensitivity to Degradation: Insights from Italy. Soil Systems. 2021; 5 (1):11.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFilippo Gambella; Andrea Colantoni; Gianluca Egidi; Nathan Morrow; Marcela Prokopová; Luca Salvati; Antonio Giménez-Morera; Jesús Rodrigo-Comino. 2021. "Uncovering the Role of Biophysical Factors and Socioeconomic Forces Shaping Soil Sensitivity to Degradation: Insights from Italy." Soil Systems 5, no. 1: 11.
Urban growth is a largely debated issue in social science. Specific forms of metropolitan expansion—including sprawl—involve multiple and fascinating research dimensions, making mixed (quali-quantitative) analysis of this phenomenon particularly complex and challenging at the same time. Urban sprawl has attracting the attention of multidisciplinary studies defining nature, dynamics, and consequences that dispersed low-density settlements are having on biophysical and socioeconomic contexts worldwide. The present commentary provides a brief overview on nature and implications of the latent relationship between sprawl, demographic dynamics, and background socio-environmental contexts with special focus on Europe. Empirical evidence supports the idea that spatial planning should cope more effectively with the increasing environmental and socioeconomic exposure of European regions to sprawl and demographic transitions, being progressively far away from a traditional urban cycle with sequential waves of urbanization, suburbanization, counter-urbanization, and re-urbanization. Growing socio-ecological vulnerability of metropolitan regions was evaluated based on a literature review demonstrating how a better comprehension of the intimate linkage between long-term demographic dynamics and urban cycles is necessary to inform fine-tuned policies controlling sprawl and promoting a sustainable management of peri-urban land.
Daniela Smiraglia; Luca Salvati; Gianluca Egidi; Rosanna Salvia; Antonio Giménez-Morera; Rares Halbac-Cotoara-Zamfir. Toward a New Urban Cycle? A Closer Look to Sprawl, Demographic Transitions and the Environment in Europe. Land 2021, 10, 127 .
AMA StyleDaniela Smiraglia, Luca Salvati, Gianluca Egidi, Rosanna Salvia, Antonio Giménez-Morera, Rares Halbac-Cotoara-Zamfir. Toward a New Urban Cycle? A Closer Look to Sprawl, Demographic Transitions and the Environment in Europe. Land. 2021; 10 (2):127.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDaniela Smiraglia; Luca Salvati; Gianluca Egidi; Rosanna Salvia; Antonio Giménez-Morera; Rares Halbac-Cotoara-Zamfir. 2021. "Toward a New Urban Cycle? A Closer Look to Sprawl, Demographic Transitions and the Environment in Europe." Land 10, no. 2: 127.
Fertility is a spatially non-stationary property of regional demographic systems. Despite the wealth of quantitative (micro–macro) information delineating short-term population dynamics in advanced economies, the contribution of economic downturns to local fertility has still been under-investigated along urban–rural gradients, especially in low-fertility contexts. Recent studies have assumed suburban fertility rates as systematically higher than urban and rural fertility rates. This assumption (hereafter known as the “suburban fertility hypothesis”) has been grounded on stylized facts and spatial regularities in advanced economies that reflect a significant role of both macro (contextual) and micro (behavioral) factors that positively influence fertility in suburban locations. To test the suburban fertility hypothesis at the macro-scale, the present study compares gross fertility rates from seven regional units of the Athens metropolitan area between 1991 and 2018. A refined spatial analysis of gross fertility rates during an economic expansion (1999–2008) and recession (2009–2018) was carried out in 115 urban, suburban, and rural municipalities of the same area. Experiencing sequential waves of economic expansion and recession, Athens’ socio-demographic dynamics were considered a sort of “quasi-experiment” for Southern Europe, linking late suburbanization with the multiple impacts of (rapid) economic downturns. Compared with both urban and rural locations, a higher fertility rate in suburban municipalities (15–20 km away from downtown Athens) was observed during the study period. However, a subtle distinction was observed during the economic expansion versus the recession. In the first period, the highest birth rates were recorded in industrial locations west of Athens, hosting economically disadvantaged communities with a relatively young population structure. With the recession, the highest fertility was associated with residential and service-specialized (wealthier) locations east of Athens, attracting resident population from neighboring areas, and better responding to crisis. The results of our study document how recent urban expansion and economic downturns have intrinsically shaped fertility dynamics, with implications for urban sustainability and social cohesion of metropolitan regions.
Rares Halbac-Cotoara-Zamfir; Gianluca Egidi; Rosanna Salvia; Luca Salvati; Adele Sateriano; Antonio Gimenez-Morera. Recession, Local Fertility, and Urban Sustainability: Results of a Quasi-Experiment in Greece, 1991–2018. Sustainability 2021, 13, 1052 .
AMA StyleRares Halbac-Cotoara-Zamfir, Gianluca Egidi, Rosanna Salvia, Luca Salvati, Adele Sateriano, Antonio Gimenez-Morera. Recession, Local Fertility, and Urban Sustainability: Results of a Quasi-Experiment in Greece, 1991–2018. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (3):1052.
Chicago/Turabian StyleRares Halbac-Cotoara-Zamfir; Gianluca Egidi; Rosanna Salvia; Luca Salvati; Adele Sateriano; Antonio Gimenez-Morera. 2021. "Recession, Local Fertility, and Urban Sustainability: Results of a Quasi-Experiment in Greece, 1991–2018." Sustainability 13, no. 3: 1052.
Early season fruit production for the northern European market is highly intensive in fertilization, machinery, irrigation and the use of herbicides. Those conditions increase the soil losses and soil compaction and threaten the Sustainable Goals for Development of the United Nations by 2030. Long-term soil erosion measurements are necessary to determine the sustainability of agriculture managements. Moreover, soil erosion on flood irrigation land is a topic that request more surveys and research as rainfed sloping terrains attracted all the attention of scientists and research investment. Improved Stock Unearthing Method (ISUM) was applied to two 15 years-old herbicide treated fields of Saturn peaches (Prunus persica var. platycarpa) to determine long-term soil erosion rates (2004–2019). Using ISUM, a 1 mm thick nylon rope (700 mm length) was used to connect trees perpendicular to the direction of rows at the height of the graft. To detection soil lowering, the vertical distance of the rope to the soil surface was measured at 10 cm intervals along the rope. The ring method (264 samples at 0–6 cm) was used to determine the soil bulk density, which was in average 1.15 gr cm−3 for both plots. There was found a compaction in the centre of both plots due to the pass of machinery with mean bulk density values of 1.23 gr cm−3, meanwhile underneath of the trees, the soil bulk density was 1.05 gr cm−3. The topography survey carried out with ISUM (2508 sampling points) informed that flood irrigation redistributed the soil from the upper to the lower field position, where a sedimentation layer was measured. We found that the two studied fields showed a contrasted response, with low soil erosion values in Benimodo and high in L'Alcúdia study sites. Soil erosion rates were in average 1.46 Mg ha−1 yr−1 and 8.02 Mg ha−1 yr−1 for Benimodo and L'Alcúdia, respectively. However, the maps development using ISUM allow to inform that the pattern of soil redistribution is similar for both fields as the highest soil lowering was found in the upper field part, where the flood discharge detach soil particles. In the lower field position sedimentation takes place. The dataset allows us to conclude that soil erosion in Saturn peaches fields is non-sustainable and more soil conservation management should be applied to reduce the soil erosion rates due to the bare soils as a consequence of the use of herbicides. This research informs that soil erosion in flood irrigated fields is a relevant process that needs more investigations around the world, where 94% of the irrigated land is under flood or furrow irrigation, and where irrigation is growing year after year.
Artemi Cerdà; Ioannis N. Daliakopoulos; Enric Terol; Agata Novara; Yalda Fatahi; Ehsan Moradi; Luca Salvati; Manuel Pulido. Long-term monitoring of soil bulk density and erosion rates in two Prunus Persica (L) plantations under flood irrigation and glyphosate herbicide treatment in La Ribera district, Spain. Journal of Environmental Management 2021, 282, 111965 .
AMA StyleArtemi Cerdà, Ioannis N. Daliakopoulos, Enric Terol, Agata Novara, Yalda Fatahi, Ehsan Moradi, Luca Salvati, Manuel Pulido. Long-term monitoring of soil bulk density and erosion rates in two Prunus Persica (L) plantations under flood irrigation and glyphosate herbicide treatment in La Ribera district, Spain. Journal of Environmental Management. 2021; 282 ():111965.
Chicago/Turabian StyleArtemi Cerdà; Ioannis N. Daliakopoulos; Enric Terol; Agata Novara; Yalda Fatahi; Ehsan Moradi; Luca Salvati; Manuel Pulido. 2021. "Long-term monitoring of soil bulk density and erosion rates in two Prunus Persica (L) plantations under flood irrigation and glyphosate herbicide treatment in La Ribera district, Spain." Journal of Environmental Management 282, no. : 111965.
The linkage between land-use change and demographic transitions in advanced countries has becoming increasingly complex because of the mutual interplay of environmental and socioeconomic spheres influencing the degree of sustainability of both regional and local developmental processes. The relationship between urbanization and economic development has been relatively well investigated by clarifying the consequent impacts on population dynamics. In the early phases of urbanization and economic development, population grew at a particularly high rate, declining (more or less rapidly) in the subsequent time interval. Improving income and education opportunities in urban settings resulted in further urbanization, leading to progressively lower fertility. At the same time, a more general view on the relationship between land-use change and demographic transition focusing on a broader spectrum of landscape processes (including farmland abandonment and forest expansion) at larger spatial scales (from regional to country and continental scale) is increasingly required. The present study provides an integrated view of the relationship between land-use change, urbanization, and demographic transitions with specific focus on Europe. Considering divergent processes of landscape transformations in a unified socioeconomic view may evidence the intimate linkage with recent population trends in both urban and rural areas.
Gianluca Egidi; Luca Salvati; Andrea Falcone; Giovanni Quaranta; Rosanna Salvia; Renata Vcelakova; Antonio Giménez-Morera. Re-Framing the Latent Nexus between Land-Use Change, Urbanization and Demographic Transitions in Advanced Economies. Sustainability 2021, 13, 533 .
AMA StyleGianluca Egidi, Luca Salvati, Andrea Falcone, Giovanni Quaranta, Rosanna Salvia, Renata Vcelakova, Antonio Giménez-Morera. Re-Framing the Latent Nexus between Land-Use Change, Urbanization and Demographic Transitions in Advanced Economies. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (2):533.
Chicago/Turabian StyleGianluca Egidi; Luca Salvati; Andrea Falcone; Giovanni Quaranta; Rosanna Salvia; Renata Vcelakova; Antonio Giménez-Morera. 2021. "Re-Framing the Latent Nexus between Land-Use Change, Urbanization and Demographic Transitions in Advanced Economies." Sustainability 13, no. 2: 533.
Density-dependent population growth is a powerful engine of metropolitan expansion. However, spatial heterogeneity in demographic dynamics of advanced economies makes identification of density-dependent mechanisms of population growth a particularly hard task. The intrinsic linkage between long-term population increase, settlement expansion, and economic growth was investigated in Southern Italy, a peripheral European region, with use of Geographically Weighted Regressions verifying (global and local) mechanisms of density-dependent population growth in 2500 municipalities between 1861 and 2019. At the global scale, results demonstrate that population growth rates increased with population density since 1951. At the local scale, this relationship was particularly evident in the largest metropolitan regions (Naples, Bari, Palermo, Cagliari) between 1951 and 1981, becoming more intense in coastal, rural districts between 1991 and 2019. These findings delineate the predominance of density-independent mechanisms of population growth up to World War II, in a context of high fertility and accelerated emigration rates from Southern Italy. A density-dependent population growth was observed since 1951, enlarging socioeconomic disparities and consolidating the urban hierarchy centred on few large cities. Taken together, these results evidence the intrinsic nexus between demographic dynamics and agglomeration/scale factors fuelling urban expansion and state-driven industrialization in Italy.
Gianluca Egidi; Giovanni Quaranta; Luca Salvati; Rosanna Salvia; Gimenez Morera Antonio. Investigating density-dependent patterns of population growth in Southern Italy, 1861–2019. Letters in Spatial and Resource Sciences 2021, 14, 11 -30.
AMA StyleGianluca Egidi, Giovanni Quaranta, Luca Salvati, Rosanna Salvia, Gimenez Morera Antonio. Investigating density-dependent patterns of population growth in Southern Italy, 1861–2019. Letters in Spatial and Resource Sciences. 2021; 14 (1):11-30.
Chicago/Turabian StyleGianluca Egidi; Giovanni Quaranta; Luca Salvati; Rosanna Salvia; Gimenez Morera Antonio. 2021. "Investigating density-dependent patterns of population growth in Southern Italy, 1861–2019." Letters in Spatial and Resource Sciences 14, no. 1: 11-30.
Understanding Soil Degradation Processes (SDPs) is a fundamental issue for humankind. Soil degradation involves complex processes that are influenced by a multifaceted ensemble of socioeconomic and ecological factors at vastly different spatial scales. Desertification risk (the ultimate outcome of soil degradation, seen as an irreversible process of natural resource destruction) and socioeconomic trends have been recently analyzed assuming “resilience thinking” as an appropriate interpretative paradigm. In a purely socioeconomic dimension, resilience is defined as the ability of a local system to react to external signals and to promote future development. This ability is intrinsically bonded with the socio-ecological dynamics characteristic of environmentally homogeneous districts. However, an evaluation of the relationship between SDPs and socioeconomic resilience in local systems is missing in mainstream literature. Our commentary formulates an exploratory framework for the assessment of soil degradation, intended as a dynamic process of natural resource depletion, and the level of socioeconomic resilience in local systems. Such a framework is intended to provide a suitable background to sustainability science and regional policies at the base of truly resilient local systems.
Filippo Gambella; Giovanni Quaranta; Nathan Morrow; Renata Vcelakova; Luca Salvati; Antonio Gimenez Morera; Jesús Rodrigo-Comino. Soil Degradation and Socioeconomic Systems’ Complexity: Uncovering the Latent Nexus. Land 2021, 10, 30 .
AMA StyleFilippo Gambella, Giovanni Quaranta, Nathan Morrow, Renata Vcelakova, Luca Salvati, Antonio Gimenez Morera, Jesús Rodrigo-Comino. Soil Degradation and Socioeconomic Systems’ Complexity: Uncovering the Latent Nexus. Land. 2021; 10 (1):30.
Chicago/Turabian StyleFilippo Gambella; Giovanni Quaranta; Nathan Morrow; Renata Vcelakova; Luca Salvati; Antonio Gimenez Morera; Jesús Rodrigo-Comino. 2021. "Soil Degradation and Socioeconomic Systems’ Complexity: Uncovering the Latent Nexus." Land 10, no. 1: 30.