The 2014 European Parliament election and the 2016 Constitutional Referendum in Italy occurred in the middle of two general elections. These votes, taking place respectively at the beginning and the end of the government led by Matteo Renzi of the Democratic Party (PD), represented a public test of the PD leadership. The election results were diverse in many respects, but they replicate social, economic, political, and cultural differences. In particular, between the two electoral exercises the differential electoral behaviour of South compared with the rest of the country is deepened. Moreover, the results can be interpreted as the outcome of differences in age, educational levels, social, and economic unrest; all these variables are synthesized by the territorial distribution of the vote and this helps in interpreting the evolution of political sentiment in Italy. A spatial statistics methodology is utilized to analyse votes by means of their territorial distributions. The outcomes indicate that referendum result was influenced by the economic vote. Apart from the substance of the constitutional reform, the referendum result can be traced back to economic factors: the absence of perceived economic improvements and the persistence of high unemployment.

We investigate the growth enhancing variables in a group of countries belonging to the same geographical area namely, India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh over the period 1960-2010. We find that this "homogeneity" does not necessarily imply that countries have the same growth enhancing variables due mainly to differences in institutions and policies. Our result suggests that time-series econometrics are preferable to identify the growth drivers for a country accurately.

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We carried out an analysis of political and electoral changes of left‐wing parties which occurred in the last general election in Tuscany. The social environment in Tuscany historically supported leftist values. This social tissue, deep‐rooted in territory, represented the milieu in which grew up: on the one hand a leftist political culture and, on the other, an economic culture based on co‐operative firms. These two factors reinforced each other representing the basis of left electoral prevalence. The strong decrease of left is caused by different factors such as the erosion of old social values and the unresolved effects of economic crisis.

<abstract> <p>Environmental sustainability plays a crucial role in influencing policy actions and people's behavior. The 2030 Agenda highlights the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which can be achieved through tourism, particularly in its most sustainable form, such as ecotourism. Ecotourism provides an ideal platform for experimenting with new lifestyles oriented towards sustainability and well-being. Additionally, ecotourism emphasizes territorial identities, particularly through the promotion of food and wine, which can contribute to the creation of sustainable tourism areas. Food quality production serves as evidence of the attention paid by producers to the sustainability of territories and a lifestyle that prioritizes well-being. European citizens are increasingly recognizing the environment as a resource for good living. In Italy, agritourism, which includes activities offered by 25 certified quality agricultural producers, is becoming increasingly popular among tourists. Within this context, sustainability can be experienced through tourism, which offers an opportunity to live differently. This paper examines two Italian regions (Tuscany and Apulia) where farmhouse, food and tourism (FFST) areas have been successfully implemented as a form of sustainable tourism. The study demonstrates that FFST areas can be defined using spatial analysis, and then can become a model for sustainable tourism development. In conclusion, environmental sustainability holds ethical significance and can be achieved through tourism, specifically through ecotourism and FFST areas, which enable tourists to experience sustainable lifestyles while emphasizing territorial identities.</p> </abstract>