After defining the concept of resilience and its application to the regional context, the paper presents a preliminary evaluation of regional economic resilience in the case of the Italian regions. In doing so, we follow the approach by Martin (J Econ Geogr 12:1–32, 2012) and Martin and Sunley (2015) who identify three different dimensions to regional economic resilience: (a) resistance, i.e., the degree of sensitivity or depth of reaction of a regional economy to a recessionary shock; (b) recovery, i.e., the speed and magnitude of the recovery; (c) reorientation and renewal, i.e., the ability of a region to adapt in response to the shock and renew its growth path. The analysis is conducted at the local labor systems (LLS) geographical level and focuses, at this stage, only on the first two dimensions of resilience, i.e., resistance and recovery. The recessionary shock (2009–2010) is defined following the Italian National Statistical Institute approach for which a recession implies a decrease in GDP for three consecutive trimesters. The pre-recessionary period is 2007–2008 and the recovery period 2011 (as a new recession started again in Italy at the end of 2011). The results clearly point at very heterogeneous resilience for the Italian LLS

This paper examines the role of biophysical and anthropogenic factors as potential drivers of land degradation in a large Mediterranean urban region. The sensitivity of land to degradation is examined in relation to the territorial disparities observed within Rome's metropolitan area (Italy), and to the changes in its spatial organisation resulting from urban shrinkage. We derive a composite index of land sensitivity to degradation using the Environmentally Sensitive Areas Index (ESAI) at the municipal level. The observed regional disparities in ESAI scores are analysed diachronically for the period 1990–2008, based on elevation, distance from the coast and population density. The results indicate that spatial disparities in ESAI recorded in 1990 had decreased by 2008, although the degree of land sensitivity had increased throughout the urban region. We subsequently relate these changes to different models of urban organisation (i.e. ‘compact growth’ vs ‘sprawl’) observed in Rome since the 1990s. In 1990, the highest degree of land sensitivity was on the urban fringe of Rome, whereas by 2008 the greatest increase in land sensitivity was observed within suburban municipalities. This sensitivity progressively spread further away from the main urban centre during the study period. The results suggest the need to reconsider the polycentric spatial framework as an environmentally sustainable model for Rome and other urban regions in the Mediterranean.

In recent years, the surface area affected by land degradation (LD) has significantly increased in southern European regions where the socioeconomic development has been proposed as a basic factor underlying the degree of vulnerability to LD. This paper investigates the correlation between several socioeconomic indicators and the level of vulnerability to LD in Italy, expressed as changes (1990-2000) in a composite index of land vulnerability (Delta LVI). The analysis was carried out over 784 local districts. The impact of per capita value added, agricultural intensity, industrial and tourism concentration, and urban growth was separately tested on Delta LVI. Results indicate that a lower district value added, crop intensification, irrigation, and the level of land vulnerability to degradation are strongly associated with the increasing level of land vulnerability over time, highlighting the role of the socioeconomic development as a main process underlying LD. In this framework, spatially equitable sustainable development may represent the effective strategy to mitigate the detrimental effects of economic growth and regional disparities on Mediterranean LD

Land quality, a key economic capital supporting local development, is affected by biophysical and anthropogenic factors. Taken as a relevant attribute of economic systems, land quality has shaped the territorial organization of any given region influencing localization of agriculture, industry and settlements. In regions with long-established human-landscape interactions, such as the Mediterranean basin, land quality has determined social disparities and polarization in the use of land, reflecting the action of geographical gradients based on elevation and population density. The present study investigates latent relationships within a large set of indicators profiling local communities and land quality on a fine-grained resolution scale in Italy with the aim to assess the potential impact of land quality on the regional socioeconomic structure. The importance of land quality gradients in the socioeconomic configuration of urban and rural regions was verified analyzing the distribution of 149 socioeconomic and environmental indicators organized in 5 themes and 17 research dimensions. Agriculture, income, education and labour market variables discriminate areas with high land quality from areas with low land quality. While differential land quality in peri-urban areas may reflect conflicts between competing actors, moderate (or low) quality of land in rural districts is associated with depopulation, land abandonment, subsidence agriculture, unemployment and low educational levels. We conclude that the socioeconomic profile of local communities has been influenced by land quality in a different way along urban-rural gradients. Policies integrating environmental and socioeconomic measures are required to consider land quality as a pivotal target for sustainable development. Regional planning will benefit from an in-depth understanding of place-specific relationships between local communities and the environment.

Land degradation has expanded in the Mediterranean region as a result of a variety of factors, including economic and population growth, land-use changes and climate variations. The level of land vulnerability to degradation and its growth over time are distributed heterogeneously over space, concentrating on landscapes exposed to high human pressure. The present study investigates the level of land vulnerability to degradation in a shrinking urban area (Rome, Italy) at four points in time (1960, 1990, 2000 and 2010) and it identifies relevant factors negatively impacting the quality of land and the level of landscape fragmentation. A multi-domain assessment of land vulnerability incorporating indicators of climate quality, soil quality, vegetation quality and land management quality was carried out based on the Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) framework. The highest rate of growth in the level of land vulnerability was observed in OPEN ACCESSSustainability 2015, 7 11981 low-density suburban areas. The peri-urban mosaic formed by coastal woodlands and traditional cropland preserved high-quality land with a stable degree of vulnerability over time. Evidence suggests that the agro-forest mosaic surrounding Mediterranean cities act as a "buffer zone" mitigating on-site and off-site land degradation. The conservation of relict natural landscapes is a crucial target for multi-scale policies combating land degradation in suburban dry regions.