Presentazione di PowerPoint

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LPT INFODAY
Patras, 23rd September, 2005 INNOREF
Innovation and Resource Efficiency as Driving
Forces for Sustainable Growth Umbria PSC
presentation
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INNOREF is a contribution for supporting local
societies to switch from a linear economy
(unsustainable direct link between GDP growth
and resource use increase) to a closed cycle
economy (sustainable use of a limited amount of
resources for an expanding socio-economic system)
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Resource efficiency the last frontier
The average efficiency of resource use (rate
between their uptake and final use by consumer)
is not higher than 10 worlwide. So while
natural resource deposits (forests, fishes,
fertile soil, fossil fuels, biodiversity,
underground water tables, ecosystem services,
etc.) are declining in presence of an
extraordinary growth of the demand, especially in
the developing countries, the new consistent
resource availability has to be pursued in their
efficient use, which can be boosted up to a
factor 10.
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Overcoming the old paradigm
Efficient resource use reduces also
environmental impacts thus improving the life
quality and economic welfare positively affecting
GDP (i.e. de-linking GDP growth from resource
use).
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INNOVATION In the classic economy (old paradigm)
innovation is considered as an ancillary tool of
the market, necessary for switching from a
technology to an other one each time the basic
resources become scarce, without any particular
attention for their efficient use.
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INNOVATION In the new paradigm innovation has
to be used to increase resource efficiency for
a closed cycle economic system, similarly to the
ecosystems mechanisms (industrial ecology).
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oil
car
oil
ict
eco-inn.
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The old paradigm linear growth

Resource uptake
Production
Consumption
Waste
Emissions
Environmental impact increases
Economic cost (ext.) increase
Welfare declines
GDP increases
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The new paradigm closed cycle

Production
Consumption
Resource uptake
Emissions
Waste
Environmental impact reduces
Economic cost (ext.) reduces
Welfare improves
GDP increases
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The European way
The European commission has focussed its
environmental strategy on the efficient use of
natural resources (see Communication of oct. 3,
2003) and is prepairing new detailed policies to
implement a de-linking between economic
development and resource uptake. At this end
Eurostat has developed an official methods for a
progressive integration of the physical resource
accounting with the financial one (see
Economy-wide material flow accounts and derived
indicators. A methodological guide, Eurostat
2000).
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The European way
Some member countries (Germany, Danemark, etc.)
since many years are engaged in implementing such
new instruments.
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The Italian paces
Italy has started applying the method since a
couple of years and now at least one region is
engaged to build from the bottom this integration
to the conventional financial accounting. (see
http//www.istat.it/dati/dataset/20050412_00/)
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Umbria perspective
Umbria region in 2002 has issued a Development
Pact, subscribed by all the main regional
stakeholders with which an orientation for a
sustainable development through an efficient use
of the local resources has been clearly stated.
Therefore, the outputs of INNOREF and its
sub-projects, aiming at a more efficient use of
energy, water, land, transport, tourism, etc.,
will be essential to the success of the policies
that have been started for a more efficient
regional management.
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Works in progress..
Progressively the change is taking place. The
first important document on the regional state of
the environment has been carried out by a large
team of experts ranging from ecology to economy
and sociology (2004). New policies for
sustainability, based on innovation and efficient
use of local resources have been clearly
targeted. Agenzia Umbria Ricerche (AUR) has been,
therefore selected as the subject for
implementing and managing INNOREF PSC.
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The orientation

• Efficient use of local energy resources
• Efficient use of land
• Reducing socio-economic divide of rural
  population
• Industrial Ecology
• Integrating tourism with agricolture, history,
  culture and
• environment
• are the main policies which are growingly the
  focus of the regional agenda.

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A final remark
UN has recently (march 2005) issued the results
of a global environmental survey, concluding that
ecosystems around the world are in decline and
will continue to be so unless their value is
factored into financial thinking (see Nature
434,547 2005). One solution, suggests the
report, is that development responsibles focus on
wealth created when people work together to
manage local ecosystems. Development
responsibles until now have failed to involve
researchers in schemes that focus on ecosystem
services.
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Some quotations from the UN report
There is lots of good science available, but
very little is tapped for public policy. We have
two cultures Most people who have trained in
economics are not trained in science. The few
researchers who have taken part to the UN work
say that scientific input can help people see if
changes of natural resources are working and test
out future options.
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and some comments from the PSC
Leadership knowledge is rarely at the base of
decision processes. Economics are not related to
sufficient knowledge to solve problem, and
decision makers are not willing to deal with it.
A strong commitment is necessary to overcome
such obstacles and INNOREF with its sub-projects
is a valuable opportunity.