Mariagrazia Alabrese | Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna (original) (raw)

Papers by Mariagrazia Alabrese

EnglishThe importance of the agricultural sector in the fight against climate change is increasin... more EnglishThe importance of the agricultural sector in the fight against climate change is increasingly evident. It also emerges from the lPCC "Climate Change and Land" Report of August 2019. Agricultural activity and climate change are in a very close and two ways relationship. It is known that agriculture is at the same time one of the causes of climate change and one of the sectors most threatened by it. Moreover, looking at the policies, climate policies can have an impact on the agricultural sector if, for example, they provide for emission limits for conventional agriculture or taxation mechanisms that discourage the use of fertilizers or non-renewable energy. Agricultural policies, in turn, can support climate action through appropriate measures. For these reasons, climate policies and agricultural policies need to "dialogue" and be coherent with each other. Startingfrom these assumptions, the article reflects on the way in which climate policies take agriculture into account in the context of international agreements. It also focuses on the assessment of a possible better integration existing at the EU level to reach the conclusion that, although many steps have been taken, effective coordination is still needed to ensure that the primary sector becomes part of the solution in the fight against climate change. italianoL'importanza del settore agricolo nella lotta ai cambiamenti climatici e sempre piu evidente, come emerge anche dal Rapporto IPcc "Climate Change and land" dell'agosto 2019. Esiste, in effetti, uno strettissimo intreccio tra l'attivita agricola e i cambiamenti climatici. E noto che l'agricoltura e al contempo tra le cause del cambiamento climatico ed uno dei settori piu minacciati dallo stesso. Se si guarda alle politiche, si deve rilevare che le politiche climatiche possono avere un impatto non secondario sul settore agricolo se, ad esempio, prevedono limiti di emissioni per l'agricoltura convenzionale o meccanismi di tassazione che disincentivano l'uso di fertilizzanti o di energie non rinnovabili. Le politiche agricole, a loro volta, possono supportare le azioni climatiche attraverso misure adeguate. Per tali ragioni occorre che le politiche climatiche e le politiche agricole "dialoghino" e siano coerenti tra loro. L'articolo, partendo da tali presupposti, conduce una riflessione sul modo in cui le politiche climatiche tengono conto dell'agricoltura nel contesto degli accordi internazionali. Si sofferma inoltre sulla valutazione di una possibile migliore integrazione esistente a livello dell'UE, per giungere alla conclusione che, nonostante molti passi siano stati compiuti, c'e ancora bisogno di un coordinamento efficace per fare in modo che il settore primario diventi parte della soluzione nella lotta ai cambiamenti climatici.

Comité européen de droit rural European Council for Rural Law Europäische Gesellschaft für Agrarr... more Comité européen de droit rural European Council for Rural Law Europäische Gesellschaft für Agrarrecht und das Recht des ländlichen Raums Congrès européen de droit rural-18-21 septembre 2019 Poznań (Pologne) European Congress of Agricultural Law-18-21 September 2019 Poznań (Poland) Europäischer Agrarrechtskongress-18.-21. September 2019 Posen (Polen) organisé sous la direction du C.E.D.R.

Journal of World Trade, Jun 1, 2022

In February 2021, the members of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) endorsed the first-ev... more In February 2021, the members of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) endorsed the first-ever Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition (VGFSyN) aimed at supporting countries in their efforts to eradicate all forms of hunger and malnutrition, while strengthening the process towards sustainable food systems. This article investigates whether and how the VGFSyN address international trade, whose role in the functioning of food systems is clearly highlighted in current global policy initiatives. The analysis examines the relationship between trade policies and food security and nutrition. It highlights the most important positions on the matter of the members of the CFS during the preparation of the guidelines. We argue that the CFS missed the opportunity to include trade and its profound effect on nutrition in the supposedly systemic approach adopted in the guidelines. We believe that the VGFSyN would have been an ideal opportunity to emphasize the relationship between trade and food and nutrition security, and to call attention to the importance of trade in the transition towards sustainable food systems. world food security, nutrition security, food systems, sustainable food systems, trade policies, Voluntary Guidelines on Food Systems and Nutrition (VGFSyN), WTO Agreement on Agriculture, non-trade concerns, agricultural trade liberalization, right to food

Rivista di diritto agrario, 2017

1. Introduzione. – 2. Evoluzione nei contenuti degli accordi regionali commerciali. – 3. Cenni su... more 1. Introduzione. – 2. Evoluzione nei contenuti degli accordi regionali commerciali. – 3. Cenni sugli accordi “mega-regionali”. – 4. La frammentazione del sistema di produzione alimentare e il bisogno di integrazione profonda. – 5. Gli strumenti dell’Accordo SPS e l’effettiva armonizzazione. – 6. Ruolo dei “mega-regionali” nell’elaborazione del diritto agrario e alimentare “del futuro”.

Rivista di diritto agrario, 2013

sottoprodotti di origine animale e rifiuti; condizioni per l'appartenenza all'ele... more sottoprodotti di origine animale e rifiuti; condizioni per l'appartenenza all'elenco dei biocombustibili e per la qualificazione dei sottoprodotti

Social Science Research Network, 2020

Agricoltura Istituzioni Mercati, May 1, 2015

La strategia per la bioeconomia proposta dall’Ue, sviluppando quanto gia previsto nelle iniziativ... more La strategia per la bioeconomia proposta dall’Ue, sviluppando quanto gia previsto nelle iniziative che compongono la cosiddetta strategia "Europa 2020", costruisce un nuovo modello di sviluppo in grado di conciliare la sicurezza alimentare con lo sfruttamento sostenibile delle risorse rinnovabili, garantendo al contempo la protezione dell’ambiente. Tale ambizioso piano, prefiggendosi di contribuire al passaggio dell’Europa verso un’economia post-petrolio, sollecita un maggiore utilizzo delle fonti rinnovabili nel settore energetico e, nel fare cio, considerando che le varie forme di sfruttamento concorrenziale della biomassa contribuiscono a causare una forte pressione sulle risorse naturali, prospetta un sempre maggiore uso dei residui agricoli e forestali e dei rifiuti. In sintonia con queste linee di indirizzo la recente proposta di modifica della disciplina Ue in materia di promozione di energie rinnovabili prevede l’introduzione di misure volte a favorire i cosiddetti "biocarburanti avanzati". L’articolo ripercorre le maggiori tappe che hanno portato l’UE ad attribuire sempre maggiore considerazione alle problematiche legate alla destinazione della terra per le produzioni energetiche. A giudicare dagli ultimi atti e documenti in materia di agroenergie, infatti, si potrebbe pensare di essere in presenza di un cambiamento di rotta con riferimento in particolare al settore dei biocarburanti.

Springer eBooks, 2015

This chapter examines the European Union policy on biofuels from a legal point of view in order t... more This chapter examines the European Union policy on biofuels from a legal point of view in order to discuss whether and to what extent the regulations have been shaped by the social and environmental issues connected to biofuels. Legal and policy documents will be analyzed in order to see how EU policy has addressed the questions arising from the growth of the biofuel sector and whether the efforts to solve the problems of fossil fuel dependence and greenhouse gas emissions have created other issues. The starting point will be the growing global demand for biofuels triggered by their public promotion in a number of countries worldwide. This will help to understand the magnitude of the phenomenon and of the concerns believed to stem from it. In the last part of this chapter, the current biofuel regulations will be discussed in order to see whether the proclamations became commitments, that is, if each social and environmental need was fully integrated into the regulations. Some of the environmental pressures have pushed for an amendment to current EU legislation, which could lead to a new ‘indirect land-use change’—‘indirect food insecurity’ (ILUC-IFI) dilemma. This could be interesting in terms of understanding how the EU is proceeding towards environmental and social sustainability in the production and use of biofuels. The main conclusion of this review is that although the EU policy articulates a range of principles and criteria on sustainability, each of which can be agreed upon, the real challenge has been in implementing the policy, which has not been without its problems.

Rivista di diritto agrario, 2004

Perspectives on Federalism, 2019

Food security is a hugely important and complex issue. Such complexity is demonstrated, inter ali... more Food security is a hugely important and complex issue. Such complexity is demonstrated, inter alia, by the lack of a consistent definition of food security under the international policy framework. Of the various elements that can affect food security, trade in agriculture plays a significant role both in positive and negative terms. This article considers the concept of food security as emerging from the WTO Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) and discusses it in the light of the most commonly accepted definition of food security (i.e. the FAO’s definition). The analysis highlights a bifurcation in the concept at stake, depending on the forum considered. According to the AoA, food security is conceived as an exception. It does not consider the individual condition, but focuses either on a country’s agricultural self-sufficiency or on the suitability of food self-reliance at national and global levels. While within the UN agencies, a multifaceted and multidimensional concept emerges

Envisioning a future without food waste and food poverty, 2015

Food wastage poses environmental and economic as well as social and ethical questions. The signif... more Food wastage poses environmental and economic as well as social and ethical questions. The significance of these questions places the food wastage issue to the attention of the institutions, civil society and academia. International and EU documents widely discuss the role of some legal disciplines in the generation of wastage, both as a direct cause and as a mean for its reduction. So far, the majority of public and private interventions in Europe focused on the distribution and consumption segment of the food supply chain, while a lack of reduction measures is registered in the previous segments. Nevertheless, the European Commission estimates that the food waste attributable to industrial processing is around 39%. The paper is aimed at analysing the EU legal framework which influences the generation of wastage during the food processing chain. It addresses the emerging legal opportunities in reducing food wastage, recognising two main areas: labelling strategies and by-products valorisation. After a synthetic exposition of the data related to food wastage (Section 1), the paper shows how in the European legislation food safety requirements and food waste reduction strategies interrelate (Section 2). The paper moves on to assess the EU legal framework on waste, in particular the definition and the potential valorisation of food by-products, (Section 3) the food labelling regulation and the contractual practices (Section 4), underlying the opportunities for food wastage reduction. In conclusion, the paper highlights the emerging legal opportunities and the related shortcomings of the potential strategies for reducing the wastage generation during the food processing chain.

Legal issues in transdisciplinary environmental studies, 2017

This introductory chapter sets the scene for the following contributions. It starts with the basi... more This introductory chapter sets the scene for the following contributions. It starts with the basic question, “what is agricultural law?” and traces the changes in its content. The chapter looks at the academic theories used to define what agriculture means, together with the objectives of this branch of law. It also provides an overview of the new challenges that agricultural law will address, in order to frame the new and emerging issues within a global perspective. Agricultural regulations affect essential human needs and values, which need to be understood and dealt with from a comprehensive and coordinated global vision. A system approach is also needed in order to understand the web of interdependent issues involved in the agri-food sector and the related regulations. The shape of current agricultural law is thus described as the complex and dynamic set of laws, regulations, policies, and principles established under multilevel authorities, both public and private, governing the agricultural system and its intersection with food and environmental systems.

Journal of Human Rights and The Environment, Nov 25, 2021

Global Jurist

Some recent studies have found that food insecurity is one of the factors that can lead to the in... more Some recent studies have found that food insecurity is one of the factors that can lead to the insurgence of eating disorders, thus challenging the stereotype that associates eating disorders with high-income, Western, white, young women. However, this ground-breaking research and its implications do not seem to have been taken into account by legal scholars. In order to fill this gap, this article explores whether and how the law and policy of food security, and the relevant human rights international monitoring system are dealing with this link between eating disorders and food insecurity. Our analysis shows that these legal and policy frameworks have failed to address this relationship. We argue that the circumstance that marginalised food insecure populations, irrispective of sex, age, and ethinicity, might also suffer from eating disorders should be recognized by policy makers as it could bring to more comprehensive legal and policy responses.

Journal of World Trade

Food sovereignty and food security : concepts and legal framework, 2019

Journal of World Trade, Jun 1, 2022

Rivista di diritto agrario, 2017

Rivista di diritto agrario, 2013

Social Science Research Network, 2020

Agricoltura Istituzioni Mercati, May 1, 2015

Springer eBooks, 2015

Rivista di diritto agrario, 2004

Perspectives on Federalism, 2019

Envisioning a future without food waste and food poverty, 2015

Legal issues in transdisciplinary environmental studies, 2017

Journal of Human Rights and The Environment, Nov 25, 2021

Global Jurist

Journal of World Trade

Food sovereignty and food security : concepts and legal framework, 2019

Il regime della food security nel commercio agricolo internazionale Dall’Havana Charter al proces... more Il regime della food security
nel commercio agricolo internazionale
Dall’Havana Charter al processo di riforma dell’Accordo agricolo WTO

This book focuses on the social and environmental issues being addressed by agricultural law with... more This book focuses on the social and environmental issues being addressed by agricultural law within the current globalised system.
What is agricultural law? Agricultural regulations concern and affect essential human needs and values that must be dealt with by pursuing a comprehensive and coordinated global approach. By tracking the developments in this context, this book explores the new challenges that agricultural law needs to address in order to frame emerging dilemmas.
International governance of natural resources and their role in addressing food insecurity is the object of the first Part of the volume, which deals with sustainable agriculture and agro-ecosystem services in connection with the food security issue.
The second Part focuses on the regulation of food as the main product of agricultural activity, and explores the answers that the law can provide in order to accommodate consumers’ interests and concerns (inter alia, novel foods, animal welfare, direct sales and e-commerce).
The third Part examines the social, environmental and legal consequences of a renewed interest in agricultural investments. Further, it analyses the evolution and the interplay between different legal systems with regard to land tenure, environmental concerns and investments in agriculture.

IN GENERALE SULLA NATURA PREGIURIDICA DEL RISCHIO RICHIAMI AI PRECEDENTI SULLA NOZIONE DI RISCHIO... more IN GENERALE SULLA NATURA PREGIURIDICA DEL RISCHIO
RICHIAMI AI PRECEDENTI SULLA NOZIONE DI RISCHIO DELLA DOTTRINA CIVILISTICA
LA QUALIFICAZIONE DEI RISCHI IN AGRICOLTURA: APPUNTI PER UNA CLASSIFICAZIONE DELLE VARIE TIPOLOGIE
IL RISCHIO E «L’ORDINAMENTO GIURIDICO» DELL’AGRICOLTURA

Il rischio di 'bioterrorismo' -vale a dire del rilascio intenzionale di microrganismi patogeni pe... more Il rischio di 'bioterrorismo' -vale a dire del rilascio intenzionale di microrganismi patogeni per provocare panico, terrore, morte o malattie, al fine di rivendicazioni politiche, religiose o economiche -è uno dei pericoli più temuti che di tanto in tanto rimbalza nelle notizie dei media.

Global Jurist, 2019

Natural and technological disasters have the potential to severely undermine the capacity of Stat... more Natural and technological disasters have the potential to severely undermine the capacity of States to comply with their human rights obligations. Among the most vital rights of disaster victims are the rights to food and water, encapsulated in the Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. In this article, the scope of State obligations under international human rights law to secure sufficient amounts of adequate food and water in disaster settings is explored. After assessing if and to what extent the exercise of such rights can be restricted in the wake of a major disaster, the focus of the analysis shifts to the core content of State obligations, which are explored in the light of commonly accepted humanitarian standards. Lastly, the relationship between the obligation to ensure access to a minimum essential amount of food and water and the non-derogable right to life is examined.

Corso intensivo di 40 ore rivolto a studenti e studentesse iscritti/e a Lauree di I Livello, a La... more Corso intensivo di 40 ore rivolto a studenti e studentesse iscritti/e a Lauree di I Livello, a Lauree magistrali o ad un dottorato di ricerca e provenienti sia da aree di scienze sociali che da aree di scienze sperimentali.
La winter school, attraverso un percorso multidisciplinare, si pone l’obiettivo di fornire la capacità di orientarsi nella complessità dei sistemi agroalimentari moderni e di sviluppare competenze in grado di promuoverne il cambiamento verso la sostenibilità ambientale e l’inclusività sociale. Il programma introdurrà i/le partecipanti al tema della food governance, delle politiche e regole multilivello che riguardano il cibo, con particolare attenzione alla sicurezza nutrizionale, alla conservazione dell’ambiente e della biodiversità, ai cambiamenti climatici, alla frammentazione dei sistemi alimentari e al commercio mondiale, al ruolo dell’innovazione digitale e della blockchain nel settore agri-food. Si darà attenzione, inoltre, alle principali questioni scientifiche legate ai modelli di agricoltura e ai possibili impatti sulla salute delle filiere alimentari.