AISRE XLVI Annual Scientific Conference
Territorial Inequalities: Prospects for Regions and Cities
10-12 September 2025, Pescara, Italy

The Italian Regional Science Association (A.I.S.Re), the Italian Section of the Regional Science Association International (RSAI), announces its XLV Annual Scientific Conference and welcomes contributions from researchers working on different disciplines in the field of regional science.

The venue is Università “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara, Pescara Campus, Viale Pindaro 42.

The central theme of the conference will be that of territorial inequalities between regions, cities, urban and rural areas, in an international context characterized by sudden changes and radical transformations. Despite numerous interventions by European and national policies, persistent and sometimes growing inequalities still represent a concrete and serious problem for many territories. For these areas, development opportunities are significantly limited, with the risk that divergences will increase to the point of undermining the principles of territorial cohesion, which are the foundation of the European Union. Even the desired effect of the extensive policies of the NRRP requires constant monitoring, with particular attention to those local actions capable of promoting economic development, the well-being of individuals and the respect for ecosystems, specific of each territory. Therefore, if on the one hand the energetic action of policy makers aims to reduce economic, social and environmental inequalities, the current contingency, characterized by serious tensions and global conflicts, risks exposing regional economies and, above all, of the weakest ones. The conference aims to be an opportunity for analysis and discussion for scholars, researchers and qualified observers regarding the regional development models to follow and implement and the possible prospects for reducing inequalities and territorial disparities. In this context, it seems essential to focus attention on some current issues in the regional debate: digital transformation, ecological transition, social sustainability, the essential components for the resilience, competitiveness and growth of territories.

Besides the main theme, the A.I.S.Re conference encourages the discussion on the major topics in regional science. Thus, A.I.S.Re invites all those interested to present original scientific works on the following themes:

A. Governance, regional and territorial public policies, European programming
B. Growth, decline, and regional disparities
C. Globalization, value chains and local production systems
D. Methods of territorial analysis and spatial econometrics
E. Labor, welfare, personal services and social policies
F. Tourism, culture and local development
G. Urban planning, real estate market and city development processes
H. Infrastructure, transport, mobility and local development
I. Wellbeing, sustainability, and local development
L. Urban development and agglomeration economies
M. Development and local entrepreneurship
N. Innovation, creativity and local development
O. Policy evaluation methods

HOW TO JOIN THE ASSOCIATION/CONFERENCE

There are two ways to participate in the Conference:

  • with organized sessions. Participants can propose themselves as session organizers (no more than two sessions per organizer) on specific themes. The proposal can be submitted directly from the login area of the website, by entering the name of the scientific manager, the session title and the tentative number of presentations. The deadline for the submission is January 31, 2025.
  • with individual papers. Those interested should submit an abstract by February 28, 2025, directly from the login area of the website. The detailed instructions for presenting authors on the editing of papers are available at the conference website (LINK).

 

IMPORTANT DEADLINES

January 31  Deadline for special sessions proposals
February 28  Deadline for abstract submission
March 31 Paper acceptance
April 28 Deadline for application to AISRe Award “G.Leonardi” Best PhD Dissertation
May 19 Deadline for application to AISRe Award “Young Author Best Paper”
May 31  Deadline reduced registration fee
June 20
 Deadline conference registration at full fee
July 15 Papers submission
July 20
 Programme publication on the website (www.aisre.it), based on payed registration
September 10-12
 Conference

 

AWARDS

AISRe promotes the diffusion of studies in regional science by awarding young scholars with:

  • Best PhD Dissertation Award,
  • Best young scholar paper.

The call for candidatures and their instructions are available on A.I.S.Re. website (Awards section).

CONFERENCE REGISTRATION AND MEMBERSHIP

Registration and participation in the Conference is subject to A.I.S.Re. membership, as individual, corporate or young member, available in the login area. Registration and membership fees are available at this LINK.

AISRe membership benefits include:

  • the subscription to Scienze Regionali (Italian Journal of Regional Science) for the following calendar year;
  • the volumes of the AISRe E-book (Donzelli);
  • the registration to the Regional Science Association International (RSAI), which includes an online subscription to the journals Papers in Regional Science and Regional Science Policy and Practice for the following calendar year, the opportunity to pay a reduced fee at the Annual Conferences of the European Regional Science Association (ERSA) (www.ersa.org) and the Regional Science Association International (RSAI) (www.regionalscience.org):
  • Young scholars have also the opportunity to participate to the Summer/Winter Schools of AISRe.

COMMITTEES

Local Organizing Committee

  • Alfredo Cartone, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Martina D’Amario, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Dario D’Ingiullo, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Claudio Di Berardino, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Andrea Di Fiore, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Alessandro Marra, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Sara Mascitti, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Simone Mazzaferro, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Marialisa Mazzocchitti, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Paolo Postiglione, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara (Chair)

Scientific Committee

  • Roberta Capello, Politecnico di Milano
  • Alessandra Faggian, Gran Sasso Science Institute
  • Camilla Lenzi, Politecnico di Milano
  • Marco Modica, Gran Sasso Science Institute
  • Gianfranco Piras, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Paolo Postiglione, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Fernando Rubiera Morollón, Universidad de Oviedo
  • Davide Quaglione, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Alessandro Sarra, Università degli Studi “G. d’Annunzio” Chieti-Pescara
  • Domenico Scalera, Università del Sannio

Executive Board AISRe

  • Mariarosaria Agostino, Università della Calabria
  • Cristina Bernini, Università di Bologna
  • Cristina Brasili, Università di Bologna
  • Roberta Capello, Politecnico di Milano
  • Augusto Cerqua, Università di Roma La Sapienza
  • Marusca De Castris, Università degli Studi Roma Tre
  • Silvia Emili, Università di Bologna
  • Valeria Fedeli, Politecnico di Milano
  • Camilla Lenzi, Politecnico di Milano
  • Marco Mariani, IRPET
  • Ilaria Mariotti; Politecnico di Milano
  • Marco Modica, Gran Sasso Science Institute (GSSI)
  • Davide Piacentino, Università di Palermo
  • Elena Ragazzi; IRCrES-CNR – Istituto di
  • Ricerca sulla crescita economica sostenibile
  • Laura Resmini, Università di Milano Bicocca
  • Domenico Scalera, Università del Sannio
  • Daniela Storti, Consiglio per la ricerca in agricoltura e l’analisi dell’economia agraria (CREA)
  • Silvia Cerisola, Politecnico di Milano
  • Simone Landini, IRES Piemonte
  • Pietro Pizzuto, Università di Palermo

Technical Secretary AISRe
Diana Sarmiento, segreteria.tecnica@aisre.it