Paola Bertolini

Industrial districts and internationalization: the case of the agri-food industry in Modena, Italy

The paper explores the structural changes, in response to internationalization, in an important traditional activity (food chain, meat processing) in a typical ‘district area’. In the paper, attention is focused on the ‘Institutional structure of production’ (Coase, R. 1992) and the cluster is considered as a whole, as a complex economic player, capable of generating coherent action, regulated by institutional mechanisms, and founded on a set of ‘public assets’ which make up its ‘social capital’.  The paper is based on many empirical studies and surveys aimed at exploring the structure of SMEs and the role of the local institutions: the changes observed over time and in response to internationalization underline the reinforcement of the activitys cluster configuration. These features emphasize the existence of a specific unit of analysis, indivisible from the individuals which constitute it. The discussion touches on the classical themes of the efficiency of the net-economy based on SMEs, and their prospects in a context of growing globalization. The paper does not aim to enter into the debate on the origins and mechanism of innovation. However, the case study does illustrate the strength of the hypothesis of a unit of analysis different from the firm for discussion of a number of topics: some empirical examples of innovation, of significance for the economic consolidation of the ID, highlight the importance of district relationships in the production and spread of innovation.

Un approccio territoriale al tema della povertà in Europa : dimensione rurale e urbana

Lo scopo del presente lavoro e quello di condurre una prima indagine esplorativa sul tema della poverta a livello territoriale nell’Unione Europea, distinguendo tra aree rurali ed urbane. Il lavoro affronta nella parte iniziale la discussione sull’esistenza di una specificita delle aree rurali in Europa per quanto riguarda i problemi dello sviluppo economico e della poverta, per concentrarsi poi sul problema della definizione di area rurale a livello internazionale, con particolare riferimento alla definizione elaborata dall’OCSE, che e quella piu frequentemente utilizzata. Lo studio propone poi una diversa distinzione tra aree rurali e non rurali basata sulla densita della popolazione e sull’incidenza dell’occupazione nel settore dell’agricoltura. Nel paper vengono cosi distinte le aree “urbane”, “intermedie” e “rurali”, che vengono messe a confronto tra di loro rispetto ai seguenti aspetti socio-economici: reddito, caratteristiche demografiche, istruzione,mercato del lavoro. Lo studio e esteso a tutta l’area dell’Unione Europea a 27 membri; il livello di disaggregazione territoriale per l’individuazione delle 3 tipologie corrisponde al livello NUTS3 e si avvale dei dati disponibili nel database EUROSTAT, integrato in alcuni casi con statistiche nazionali. Le conclusioni del lavoro evidenziano la rilevanza del fenomeno della poverta delle aree rurali in Europa e suggeriscono la necessita di analizzare ulteriormente tale fenomeno per poter adattare meglio le politiche contro la poverta alla situazione delle aree rurali.

Quality of life and territorial imbalances. A focus on italian inner and rural areas

The Italian National Strategy for Inner Areas stresses the importance of improving socio-economic conditions of people as the only way to reverse negative demographic trends in those areas. In this respect, improving quality of life (QoL) may represent a key driver. This work provides a statistical tool to measure existing gaps in QoL levels across Italian NUTS 3 regions, by focusing on inner areas. Being QoL a multidimensional concept, a composite indicator is computed following a non-compensatory approach: the QoL Mazziotta-Pareto Index. Firstly, we consider the variability of this indicator across Italy, with respect to the presence of inner areas. This analysis breaks down the supposed negative relationship between QoL and presence of inner areas, which the paper proves to be mostly overlapping with rural ones, by controlling for sub-national structural divides. Secondly, spatial aspects make the picture more complex. Neighbourhood affects QoL at local level and through global, and local indicators of spatial autocorrelation, groups of NUTS 3 regions sharing similar QoL levels with their neighbours, are detected. From a policy perspective, locked-in paths among neighbouring regions can influence the effectiveness of place-based policies.