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Papers by Alessandro Bonifazi
This doctoral research aims to contribute to the academic debate about whether and how evaluation... more This doctoral research aims to contribute to the academic debate about whether and how evaluation is fostering the environmental democratization of urban governance in the European Union. The dissertation starts with identifying a long-lasting intellectual ...
SOMMARIO: 1. I concetti di Environmental Democracy e valutazione ambientale di piani e progetti; ... more SOMMARIO: 1. I concetti di Environmental Democracy e valutazione ambientale di piani e progetti; 2. Il quadro normativo delle valutazioni ambientali; 3. Dalla VIA dei progetti alla VAS dei piani; 4. Analisi e valutazione del piano: due concetti non coincidenti; 5. Un caso: il processo di VAS nel Piano Urbanistico Generale del Comune di Monopoli; 6. Il ruolo della valutazione nell'uso della campagna. L'“appartenenza” della risorsa rurale; 7. Riflessioni finali. 1. i concetti di environmental Democracy e valutazione ambientale di piani e progetti
Il "Principio di Precauzione" può arrivare ad asserire che, se il massimo incidente possibile è d... more Il "Principio di Precauzione" può arrivare ad asserire che, se il massimo incidente possibile è di un certo tipo, la tecnologia deve essere bandita dallo sviluppo indipendentemente dai benefici che potrebbe apportare, agendo cioè come una dottrina e non come una scienza della sicurezza.
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 2013
SpringerBriefs in Geography, 2014
ABSTRACT This work concerns an application of the Landscape Character Assessment (LChA) method to... more ABSTRACT This work concerns an application of the Landscape Character Assessment (LChA) method to peri-urban countryside in the metropolitan area of Bari, Italy. Motivations are rooted in an interest for participatory approaches to ordinary landscape research and policy making. Following the principles laid down in the European Landscape Convention, the research design included, beyond desk studies and field surveys, also semi-structured interviews and focus groups to involve local stakeholders. Findings point to a clear potential for LChA to help address issues of scale (despite peri-urbanity being an elusive subject), for interactive action-research methods to harness the growing interest in landscape policy among a diversity of social actors, and for photography to assist the development of alternative approaches to landscape quality. Finally, neo-rural practices emerge as a possible means to reconcile rural development programmes and landscape policy, with a view to coping with the in-betweenness of peri-urban landscapes.
Sustainability, 2012
Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is a major policy evaluation tool, for institutional pro... more Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is a major policy evaluation tool, for institutional processes, when they need to cope with fundamental risks, give voice to non-human agents, manage commons, and address environmental justice. The interplay of SEA with planning, unravels key issues and criticalities in both urban governance and environmental democracy. How can evaluation be developed to support the process? Structured evaluation methods applied in environmental assessment are maybe not sufficient to solve complex social conflicts. We point out some key reflections with the aim of opening up the discussion, by taking the case study of the environmental assessment of pollutant activities in the main industrial port cities of Southern Italy. They represent, at the moment, the most significant social criticality in our country, related to the interplay between environmental assessment and risk for labor. The paper focuses on the case study by mentioning the evolution of some thoughts about the red stripe that links sustainability, environmental democracy, and social evaluation, and illustrates the issues of these aspects in the case study, with the aim of underlining the difficulty of environmental assessment tools as a major support for planning processes, when social conflicts arise.
Cities stand up as a major concern for environmental governance and democracy, and an ideal targe... more Cities stand up as a major concern for environmental governance and democracy, and an ideal target for theoretical investigations and practical innovations alike. Our work is concerned with reconstructing the links between democracy and the environment, by targeting urban governance and tapping into the institutional practices of Urban Planning and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). SEA is a major policy tool, and its interplay with planning unravels key issues in both urban governance and environmental democracy, including coping with fundamental risks, voicing non-human agents, managing commons, addressing environmental justice. The observations we present in this paper rest on two parallel approaches. First, we carried out a content review of 12 SEA reports concerning urban plans in Italy. Second, we were involved in two case studies concerning urban planning and SEA in the towns of Monopoli and Magenta. We point to some key reflections with the aim of opening up the discussion. Participation often languishes in institutional arenas, yet it thrives in other forms that affect decision-making. Negotiation around individual planning processes should be framed in the general governance arrangements that are constantly reshaped through interactions among fluid transorganizational networks. Legally binding measures have an ambivalent relation with environmental governance strategies, and they are handled with difficulty by deliberative planning approaches. In mainstreaming new policy tools (such as SEA), procedural aspects are usually stressed, whereas a focus on process and desired outcomes could foster, respectively, capacity building and salience.
DI-fusion, le Dépôt institutionnel numérique de l'ULB, est l'outil de référencementde l... more DI-fusion, le Dépôt institutionnel numérique de l'ULB, est l'outil de référencementde la production scientifique de l'ULB.L'interface de recherche DI-fusion permet de consulter les publications des chercheurs de l'ULB et les thèses qui y ont été défendues.
Sustainable Development in Europe: Concepts, Evaluation And Applications, 2007
As drastic as it might sound, our findings suggest that the evaluation of sustainable development... more As drastic as it might sound, our findings suggest that the evaluation of sustainable development in Italy has never really taken off. In general terms, and at the national level, the country is lagging behind both on sustainable development and on evaluation culture. However, speaking in general terms would conceal the wealth of academic, professional, political and institutional changes going on in Italy in this field. Indeed, some trends are emerging that could eventually lead to evaluation practices inspired by the core principles ...
Journal of Environmental Planning and Management
This paper investigates the application of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to spatial pl... more This paper investigates the application of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to spatial planning in Italy. We discuss SEA effectiveness by focusing on three main dimensions: sustainable development, environmental policy integration and democratic governance. The methodology includes the analysis of 27 SEA reports and interviews with key actors. Findings suggest that SEA is beginning to insinuate ecological rationality and improving environmental policy integration across planning levels and disciplinary boundaries. SEA also leads to progress in transparency and communication, whereas the actual involvement of the public in decision making is still weak. Future developments may address the potential contribution of SEA to focusing planning on long-term, shared, visions of socio-ecological systems.
Cities stand up as a major concern for environmental governance and democracy, and an ideal targe... more Cities stand up as a major concern for environmental governance and democracy, and an ideal target for theoretical investigations and practical innovations alike. Our work is concerned with reconstructing the links between democracy and the environment, by targeting urban governance and tapping into the institutional practices of Urban Planning and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). SEA is a major policy tool, and its interplay with planning unravels key issues in both urban governance and environmental democracy, including coping with fundamental risks, voicing non-human agents, managing commons, addressing environmental justice. The observations we present in this paper rest on two parallel approaches. First, we carried out a content review of 12 SEA reports concerning urban plans in Italy. Second, we were involved in two case studies concerning urban planning and SEA in the towns of Monopoli and Magenta. We point to some key reflections with the aim of opening up the discussion. Participation often languishes in institutional arenas, yet it thrives in other forms that affect decision-making. Negotiation around individual planning processes should be framed in the general governance arrangements that are constantly reshaped through interactions among fluid transorganizational networks. Legally binding measures have an ambivalent relation with environmental governance strategies, and they are handled with difficulty by deliberative planning approaches. In mainstreaming new policy tools (such as SEA), procedural aspects are usually stressed, whereas a focus on process and desired outcomes could foster, respectively, capacity building and salience.
This doctoral research aims to contribute to the academic debate about whether and how evaluation... more This doctoral research aims to contribute to the academic debate about whether and how evaluation is fostering the environmental democratization of urban governance in the European Union. The dissertation starts with identifying a long-lasting intellectual ...
SOMMARIO: 1. I concetti di Environmental Democracy e valutazione ambientale di piani e progetti; ... more SOMMARIO: 1. I concetti di Environmental Democracy e valutazione ambientale di piani e progetti; 2. Il quadro normativo delle valutazioni ambientali; 3. Dalla VIA dei progetti alla VAS dei piani; 4. Analisi e valutazione del piano: due concetti non coincidenti; 5. Un caso: il processo di VAS nel Piano Urbanistico Generale del Comune di Monopoli; 6. Il ruolo della valutazione nell'uso della campagna. L'“appartenenza” della risorsa rurale; 7. Riflessioni finali. 1. i concetti di environmental Democracy e valutazione ambientale di piani e progetti
Il "Principio di Precauzione" può arrivare ad asserire che, se il massimo incidente possibile è d... more Il "Principio di Precauzione" può arrivare ad asserire che, se il massimo incidente possibile è di un certo tipo, la tecnologia deve essere bandita dallo sviluppo indipendentemente dai benefici che potrebbe apportare, agendo cioè come una dottrina e non come una scienza della sicurezza.
Lecture Notes in Computer Science, 2013
SpringerBriefs in Geography, 2014
ABSTRACT This work concerns an application of the Landscape Character Assessment (LChA) method to... more ABSTRACT This work concerns an application of the Landscape Character Assessment (LChA) method to peri-urban countryside in the metropolitan area of Bari, Italy. Motivations are rooted in an interest for participatory approaches to ordinary landscape research and policy making. Following the principles laid down in the European Landscape Convention, the research design included, beyond desk studies and field surveys, also semi-structured interviews and focus groups to involve local stakeholders. Findings point to a clear potential for LChA to help address issues of scale (despite peri-urbanity being an elusive subject), for interactive action-research methods to harness the growing interest in landscape policy among a diversity of social actors, and for photography to assist the development of alternative approaches to landscape quality. Finally, neo-rural practices emerge as a possible means to reconcile rural development programmes and landscape policy, with a view to coping with the in-betweenness of peri-urban landscapes.
Sustainability, 2012
Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is a major policy evaluation tool, for institutional pro... more Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) is a major policy evaluation tool, for institutional processes, when they need to cope with fundamental risks, give voice to non-human agents, manage commons, and address environmental justice. The interplay of SEA with planning, unravels key issues and criticalities in both urban governance and environmental democracy. How can evaluation be developed to support the process? Structured evaluation methods applied in environmental assessment are maybe not sufficient to solve complex social conflicts. We point out some key reflections with the aim of opening up the discussion, by taking the case study of the environmental assessment of pollutant activities in the main industrial port cities of Southern Italy. They represent, at the moment, the most significant social criticality in our country, related to the interplay between environmental assessment and risk for labor. The paper focuses on the case study by mentioning the evolution of some thoughts about the red stripe that links sustainability, environmental democracy, and social evaluation, and illustrates the issues of these aspects in the case study, with the aim of underlining the difficulty of environmental assessment tools as a major support for planning processes, when social conflicts arise.
Cities stand up as a major concern for environmental governance and democracy, and an ideal targe... more Cities stand up as a major concern for environmental governance and democracy, and an ideal target for theoretical investigations and practical innovations alike. Our work is concerned with reconstructing the links between democracy and the environment, by targeting urban governance and tapping into the institutional practices of Urban Planning and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). SEA is a major policy tool, and its interplay with planning unravels key issues in both urban governance and environmental democracy, including coping with fundamental risks, voicing non-human agents, managing commons, addressing environmental justice. The observations we present in this paper rest on two parallel approaches. First, we carried out a content review of 12 SEA reports concerning urban plans in Italy. Second, we were involved in two case studies concerning urban planning and SEA in the towns of Monopoli and Magenta. We point to some key reflections with the aim of opening up the discussion. Participation often languishes in institutional arenas, yet it thrives in other forms that affect decision-making. Negotiation around individual planning processes should be framed in the general governance arrangements that are constantly reshaped through interactions among fluid transorganizational networks. Legally binding measures have an ambivalent relation with environmental governance strategies, and they are handled with difficulty by deliberative planning approaches. In mainstreaming new policy tools (such as SEA), procedural aspects are usually stressed, whereas a focus on process and desired outcomes could foster, respectively, capacity building and salience.
DI-fusion, le Dépôt institutionnel numérique de l'ULB, est l'outil de référencementde l... more DI-fusion, le Dépôt institutionnel numérique de l'ULB, est l'outil de référencementde la production scientifique de l'ULB.L'interface de recherche DI-fusion permet de consulter les publications des chercheurs de l'ULB et les thèses qui y ont été défendues.
Sustainable Development in Europe: Concepts, Evaluation And Applications, 2007
As drastic as it might sound, our findings suggest that the evaluation of sustainable development... more As drastic as it might sound, our findings suggest that the evaluation of sustainable development in Italy has never really taken off. In general terms, and at the national level, the country is lagging behind both on sustainable development and on evaluation culture. However, speaking in general terms would conceal the wealth of academic, professional, political and institutional changes going on in Italy in this field. Indeed, some trends are emerging that could eventually lead to evaluation practices inspired by the core principles ...
Journal of Environmental Planning and Management
This paper investigates the application of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to spatial pl... more This paper investigates the application of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) to spatial planning in Italy. We discuss SEA effectiveness by focusing on three main dimensions: sustainable development, environmental policy integration and democratic governance. The methodology includes the analysis of 27 SEA reports and interviews with key actors. Findings suggest that SEA is beginning to insinuate ecological rationality and improving environmental policy integration across planning levels and disciplinary boundaries. SEA also leads to progress in transparency and communication, whereas the actual involvement of the public in decision making is still weak. Future developments may address the potential contribution of SEA to focusing planning on long-term, shared, visions of socio-ecological systems.
Cities stand up as a major concern for environmental governance and democracy, and an ideal targe... more Cities stand up as a major concern for environmental governance and democracy, and an ideal target for theoretical investigations and practical innovations alike. Our work is concerned with reconstructing the links between democracy and the environment, by targeting urban governance and tapping into the institutional practices of Urban Planning and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). SEA is a major policy tool, and its interplay with planning unravels key issues in both urban governance and environmental democracy, including coping with fundamental risks, voicing non-human agents, managing commons, addressing environmental justice. The observations we present in this paper rest on two parallel approaches. First, we carried out a content review of 12 SEA reports concerning urban plans in Italy. Second, we were involved in two case studies concerning urban planning and SEA in the towns of Monopoli and Magenta. We point to some key reflections with the aim of opening up the discussion. Participation often languishes in institutional arenas, yet it thrives in other forms that affect decision-making. Negotiation around individual planning processes should be framed in the general governance arrangements that are constantly reshaped through interactions among fluid transorganizational networks. Legally binding measures have an ambivalent relation with environmental governance strategies, and they are handled with difficulty by deliberative planning approaches. In mainstreaming new policy tools (such as SEA), procedural aspects are usually stressed, whereas a focus on process and desired outcomes could foster, respectively, capacity building and salience.