Chapter 9: Environmental Issues

Title: Rural development in areas affected by desertification in the mediterranean: an integrated model to assess ecological and socio-economic effects

Reference: WORLD SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OUTLOOK 2006 pp. 274 - 281

Abstract/Summary: One of the greatest problems facing the Mediterranean Basin both people and land surface is desertification. In this area, for long time, this phenomenon has been relegated to the developing countries of the Southern side. But desertification threatens also the Northern and, in the last years, the European and the International institutions have started to implement different strategies, such as rural development measures, to combat it. But are these tools of regeneration always and everywhere sustainable in the Mediterranean Countries? This paper suggests an integrated model, Territorial Footprint (TF), aiming to assess the impacts of rural development initiatives on Mediterranean marginal areas. It has been validated considering a typical agri-food chain related to a local product of the Basilicata Region used as a measure to regenerate the territory. All the relationships with the environmental issues involved, as well as the socio-economic implications, have been discussed with local stakeholders with a participatory approach.

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