This research study represents one of the first attempts to measure the environmental impact of the cultural events (theatrical and festival) in order to evaluate the risks for formulating better policy. It is important to underline that this sector, which is not considered responsible in having a direct influence on the environment, has on the contrary a substantial ecological impact as other sectors, like services and commodity’s manufacturing. In this paper the impact both of theatrical and festivals events in Apulia region, through the tool of the I-O (input/output) Ecological Footprint Analysis (EFA), has been carried out.

The main purpose of the publication has been to individuate which factors influence the uptake of green practice in managing the event to be adopted by municipal and regional administrations, cultural departments and players in the cultural sector who are in a position to take responsibility for strengthening the cultural aspects of their city's or region's development.

In scientific literature, the interpretation of the term "green" growth is diverse- from meaningful limited to contradictory sense. The specific theme of the present paper is related to the definition of better and understandable meaning of the term "green" growth through two groups of indicators that defines it. The scope of the study is to present by using Granger causality test some main results from the interrelationship between ICT indicators and environment indicators (eg. emissions, renewable energy and others.). Indicators that make up this research database may be considered in the same time as a cause and as a consequence from one another. The study is dedicated to Bulgaria and covers a period of 15 years. Information security of the survey is based on data from the World Bank, Eurostat, National Statistic Institute-Bulgaria and others. In conclusion, it will be proposed a model / methodology to add the explanation of the term "green" growth through significant ICT and environmental indicators.

The public sector has realized the importance of successful internal changes in the means of environmental management of public administrations for improving its specific policies, targets, products and services. To embed in the public sector environmental indicators can help to provide, as for the private sector, useful information concerning Earth modifications by human actions for the top decision-makers. The aim of this study is to examine the citizen concerns and expectations by implementation of environmental public management (EPM) carried out by local authorities in Bulgaria. Based on the perceptivity of the Bulgarian citizens, also illustrated by relevant questionnaire, the authors of the present paper give some proposals about the creation of appropriate communication channels for environmental public management between institutions and citizens.

Negli ultimi anni si è diffuso un ravvivato interesse verso i prodotti di origine naturale, come i coloranti e i pigmenti di origine vegetale e quelli di origine animale. Ciò è avvenuto per diverse ragioni, come l'inquinamento ambientale derivante dall'utilizzo dei coloranti sintetici, la loro provata tossicità manifestatasi in notevoli rischi per la salute di lavoratori e consumatori e la crescente preferenza verso merci per la cui fabbricazione sono utilizzati estratti naturali. Anche le restrizioni imposte dalla legislazione nell'uso di alcuni coloranti sintetici, sia nel campo alimentare che tessile, hanno contribuito a sollecitare studi e ricerche nel settore dei coloranti derivanti da colture vegetali (ad esempio la Direttiva CEE 61/2002). L'obiettivo di questa nota è quello di passare in rassegna solo le specie vegetali da usare per la produzione di coloranti naturali, alternativi a quelli sintetici, e di valutare le potenzialità di mercato di questo settore. Inoltre vengono illustrati brevemente i metodi di estrazione e le applicazioni, con i loro vantaggi e svantaggi.

Lithium is the lightest of the alkali metals, and a high reactivity and specific heat capacity characterizes it. Lithium is not found in nature as a pure element, and it is included as a component in some minerals, such as igneous rocks (lepidolite, petalite, spodumene, and ambligonite), or in the natural springs and salt lakes. Lithium and its compounds possess particular features, which make them adapted to many commercial and industrial applications, such as ceramics, glass, aluminium, lubrication industries, and pharmaceuticals industries. Thanks to the particular properties, in the near future, lithium is expected to play an increasingly role in the energy sector and high technology flanking the rare minerals earths for strategic importance in the post-oil era. New energy policies adopted by European Union level and internationally will boost the status of lithium and its applications. The industrial sectors more interested into the technical innovation of this metal are the following: rechargeable batteries in the transport sector, as well as tablets and smartphones and the storage, and distribution of electrical energy. The first one should mainly develop the intensive production of the electric car with the aim of reducing significantly the CO2 emissions generated by the transport sector toward the zero emissions standard. The second one should be associated with power plants producing renewable energy from intermittent nature (e.g. solar or wind energy) and to be used in local distribution networks (smart grids) of electricity. The aim of this paper is twofold: a) to review the factors affecting the demand for lithium and its supply analysing the industrial application and the production chain; b) to examine lithium sources and its future perspectives.

In un sistema economico sempre più rivolto a modelli di sviluppo sostenibile l’uso dei sistemi di gestione ambientale diventano quasi strategici per il raggiungimento di una corretta gestione delle risorse naturali. Migliorare l’efficienza energetica e/o ridurre la produzione di rifiuti di un processo produttivo, di un settore industriale ma anche di un sistema economico porta al raggiungimento di vantaggi sia economici che ambientali. Per misurare questi vantaggi, è necessario disporre di strumenti analitici in grado di calcolare sia le interazioni esistenti tra sistema naturale e antropico in termini quantitativi durante le fasi di produzione e consumo ma anche di stimare i costi monetari associabili alle conseguenti performance ambientali. In quest’ultima direzione si muove la norma ISO 14051:2011 proponendo la Material Flow Cost Accounting. Quest’ultima, quantifica i flussi di materia e vi associa i relativi costi allo scopo di evidenziare i benefici economici corrispondenti al miglioramento delle performance ambientali apportabili. Appare evidente che l’efficacia di questo strumento sia fondamentalmente basata sulla possibilità di disporre di analisi quantitative (Material Flow Accounting ad esempio) quanto più precise possibili. Maggiore sarà il grado di dettaglio della prima tanto maggiore sarà l’utilità della seconda. Obiettivo di questo lavoro è stato quello di valutare e dimostrare attraverso la metodologia dell’MFCA il fondamentale ruolo della contabilità materiale anche per la valutazione dei benefici economici derivanti dal miglioramento della eco efficienza aziendale. A questo riguardo, è stato proposto un caso studio che ha consentito di verificare la stretta relazione tra la possibilità di misurare (in peso) la pressione ambientale esercitata dalla attività industriale della produzione del saccarosio e la valutazione dei costi (monetari) associati.

È noto che tutte le attività umane sono responsabili di modificazione sull’ambiente naturale (Turner et al. 1995). Questo accade per l’adozione di criteri di gestione non idonei sia nell’utilizzazione delle risorse naturali che nella gestione di rifiuti o inquinanti (Leoci 2007). Ne consegue che l’ambiente naturale subisce dei danni mettendo, peraltro, in difficoltà lo svolgimento di molte attività economiche, come il turismo, che si basano sull’utilizzo del capitale naturale. L’obiettivo di tale nota è di illustrare a) come la gestione di tutte le attività economiche deve essere innovata per tenere nella giusta considerazione i problemi ambientali e b) come la valorizzazione del territorio e dei prodotti locali rappresenti una possibile strategia di sviluppo. La nota nella prima parte richiama i concetti teorici che stimolano l’adozione di gestioni sostenibili per ogni tipo di attività economica, nella seconda si descrivono le norme volontarie di certificazione, che attestano la compatibilità tra ambiente naturale, società e mercato. L’ultima parte illustra un caso studio a testimonianza dell’opportunità e della possibilità d’innovare la gestione delle attività turistiche e delle potenzialità associate alla valorizzazione dei prodotti locali. Nelle conclusioni sono tracciate le osservazioni finali senza trascurare di proporre alcune linee future di ricerca.

In recent years enterprises have been paying attention to environmental issues relating to the production processes in terms of resource depletion, waste and wastewater generation and air emissions. Data, able to link information on the environmental and economic details of organizations, are missing and for this reason various research studies have been carried out with the aim of filling this gap. The objective of this paper is twofold: a) to apply the MFCA approach in an SME b) and to verify its usefulness optimizing the manufacturing process from a technical and economic point of view. The authors have carried out a case study within an SME operating in the plastic sector.

I petali delle rose sin dall’antichità sono stati utilizzati per le loro particolari essenze nell'industria cosmetica, pasticcera e liquoristica. La Rosa appartiene al philum Euphyta, classe Dicotyledones, ordine Rosales, famiglia delle Rosaceae e comprende circa 150 specie, con diversi ibridi e cultivar, originarie sia dell'Europa che dell'Asia. A tale famiglia appartengono altre specie quali il pero (Pirus communis) o il genere Prunus che comprende il mandorlo, il ciliegio e il pesco. La quasi totalità delle rose deriva da antiche ibridazioni i cui progenitori sono da ricercare tra R.gallica, R.moschata, R.foetida, R.chinensis, R.odorata, R.multiflora, R.wichuraiana, e R.pimpinellifolia. L’obiettivo di questa nota è quello di illustrare le potenzialità tecnico-economiche degli estratti della Rosa damascena trigintipetala della città Bulgara di Kazanlak che trovano impiego soprattutto nell’industria della cosmesi per via delle uniche caratteristiche organolettiche.

The introduction of Directive 2003/30 EC of the European Union (EU) on biofuels had the ambitious goal to both reduce greenhouse gas emission (GHG) and create new jobs in rural areas. The challenge lies in the availability of premises to convert biomass in energy, which depends on the availability of land. Thus an opportunity has been created on the EU market for biofuels, offering to each Member State with an excess of agricultural land, to benefit from both environmental and economic point of view. In this paper, the authors investigate whether it would be profitable for Bulgarian SMEs, operating in the agricultural sector, to shift into such a ‘green business’ and whether this shift could contribute in diversifying the role of agriculture by stimulating the development of new sources of income and by ensuring long-term competitiveness.

This The Apulia Region has large underutilized and, in some cases, abandoned areas. At the same time, soil and climatic conditions are suitable for the development of dyeing and fibre plants that could rise to the role of alternative crops in the context of local agriculture. This work intends to be a contribution to the appreciation of the tradition of dyeing and fiber crops of our country such as Reseda luteola L., Rubia tinctorum L. and Urtica dioica L. In particular for the latter crop, a cost-benefit analysis will be offered for disadvantaged areas of the Apulia Region. The development perspectives appear promising and worthy of testing on site.

Il presente lavoro si è proposto di selezionare le specie vegetali tintorie e da fibra più promettenti ai fini di una loro proficua coltivazione nella Regione Puglia. Le colture che sono state individuate sono: Reseda luteola L. e Rubia tinctorum L. per quanto concerne le specie vegetali tintorie, e l'Urtica dioica L. per quelle da fibra. L'analisi è stata estesa a colture non tradizionali, quali amaranto e agave.

The aim of this paper is to verify whether the voluntary environmental policy tools introduced in the last years in Europe, as Ecolabel, have achieved the pre-fixed results both from environmental and economic points of view. This paper presents the findings of a case study carried out in tourism sector in Italy. During the years, limited review works have been carried out in the EU in order to confirm or to reject the performance and the efficiency of the adoption of Eco-label certifications. This research enriches the empirical usefulness of the above-cited environmental tool.

Purchasing decisions are influenced by several factors. Among the most relevant there are religious belief and identity, two aspects highly considered by Muslims people Even if in the recent past Muslims purchased goods (mainly food) avoiding products not allowed by Islamic principles, today they actively ask for complying ones. Muslims use two opposite terms to describe products and services in or out of their religious code: halal and haram. Halal indicates what is permitted and haram what is forbidden. Muslims firmly request certified products matching halal process standards. It is estimated that the global halal market is growing mainly in the halal food sector, whose up to date value is approximately equal to 16% of the whole global food industry and in the near future, to 20% of total food world trade. A World Halal Secretariat research highlights that the global halal products market is estimated in US$ 2,300 billion (not including finance and insurance sectors) of which food and beverages represent the 67%, pharmaceuticals 22% and cosmetics and personal care amounting to 230 US$ billion. One of the key factors contributing to this market growth is the increase in the Muslim population equal to approximately 1.6 billion representing the 25% of the total. The European Union is an important halal market considering that the 7% (51 millions) of Muslims lives there especially in France, in Germany and the United Kingdom. There are also substantial Muslim communities in Eastern Europe, specifically Albania (70% Muslim). Halal certification is a valuable opportunity for Muslims toward a wider integration and for markets toward new targets. However so far there is not yet a unique standard procedure to guarantee halal products. The objective of this paper is mainly to analyses different worldwide halal certifications and then to evaluate their impact on Italian food market.

Researchers, politicians and decision-makers continue to search for a recipe for sustainable economic growth. International interest is growing in the use of material indicators for evaluating the impact of human activities on natural systems. Water footprinting is becoming a popular way of understanding the total water input used to produce goods and services to help managers and policy makers evaluate the sustainability of a country’s water resources. The goal of this study is to apply the water footprint (WF) indicator to Italy’s olive oil production. Based on the applied methodology, the total WF for annual Italian olive oil production is approximately 3,600–6,700 million m3. These figures are the sum of the internal and external WFs. Knowledge is a valuable contribution to understand future needs and freshwater availability. Furthermore, suggestions on its practical application are proposed.

It is long time since the efforts of researchers, politicians and decision makers are engaged, overall the world, to find the “recipe” to reach a sustainable economic growth. Even if significant steps are made, it is still far the final goal. In this contest, growing is the international interest towards Material Accounting and Material Indicators, useful tools to evaluate human activities impacts on natural system (air, water, ground, fauna, flora and climate). According to the common certainty that water scarcity will be one of the first limits to the future growth, the objective of this paper is to evaluate if a specific material indicator, the “Water footprint” (WF), represents a profitable tool to manage water natural resources. The aim is to underline pros and cons of this tool for private managers and public decision makers. In particular, WF has been applied to a specific product, the Italian extra virgin olive oil, with the aim to evaluate the effects of olive oil production chain on domestic water resource and to highlight suggestions for managers.