Waiting for 2005?s World Skiing Championship: an Experimental Assessment of Tourism Sustainability in Sondrio Province

The tourism sector is more and more regarded as a central element of territorial development in many countries. According to the sustainable development approach we have to look at tourism from two possible points of view. First tourism can be regarded as a sum of economic activities playing an important role in the production of income and wealth on a territory. Second, tourists and tourism structures and activities can produce important negative externalities on the environment and the ecosystems, reducing economic benefits because of collective costs related to the depletion of the quality of the environment and the ecosystems. Moreover, the quality and the variety of the environment and the different landscapes can be considered basic factors of production of tourism. As a result, from a long term perspective, the poorest quality of the environment and of the landscape can produce e reduction in tourism activities and, consequently, of revenues. These means that the durability of tourism itself is strictly linked to the durability (or better, improvement) of the environmental quality. The sustainability of tourism is more and more discussed at international and national level but the real challenge in choosing and starting along the path of sustainable development should be searched in the local territorial levels. This is the level at which different subjects and interests really confront and dispute. And this is the level where the choose for sustainable development of tourism becomes concrete. The goal of the work is to underline the role that sustainability indicators can play in territorial decision making processes on tourism development. A methodology and a first experimental application of tourism sustainability indicators will be proposed, taking into consideration environmental and territorial costs and benefits arising from tourism activities. The experimental area is Sondrio Province, in Lombardy Region, where in year 2005 the World Nordic Ski Championship will take place. We will first suggest a possible definition for sustainable tourism in an alpine territorial area. Then, starting from a long list of possible indicators especially developed to describe the sustainability performance of tourism in the Lombardy Region, we will propose the analysis for a selection of indicators, based on available data. The aim of this working phase is the description of the sustainability of the existing tourism model. We will finally compare these results with the potential additional impacts (but also benefits) coming from public and private action needed to improve not only winter sports facilities but also accommodation capacity, access and mobility infrastructures and additional tourism services, waiting for 2005?s World Championship.

The lombard broletto and communal architecture in the alpine areas, 15th–19th centuries

The broletto, the medieval building that housed the communal administration of the Lombard cities, has long been the subject of studies that examine it from ethical, political, stylistic, and formal points of view. In recent years, focus in medieval studies has shifted to areas of the ‘margins of the communal world’, territories that, although relevant to historical change, have been neglected by historiography. In this contribution, I consider the architecture of buildings in fringe areas from the valleys in the Rhaetian and Bergamasque Alps that date to the communal age and that were significantly transformed between the 15th century and the early contemporary period. I begin with general remarks about the context and then use the communal palace of Clusone in Bergamo and the Palazzo Pretorio di Chiavenna (Sondrio) as case studies, drawing on unpublished documents in the municipal archives of the two cities

GEOLOGIA DEL QUATERNARIO E GEOMORFOLOGIA DELLA BASSA VALCHIAVENNA (SO)

Situated in the Central Alps, Valchiavenna (Chiavenna Valley) has been geologically studied for centuries. From 2009, with a new field survey of the Upper Valchiavenna (an area of 194 square km), the Department of Earth Sciences of the University of Milan has started a methodical study of the Quaternary geology and of the geomorphology of the valley, which were poorly known, with the aim to obtain homogeneous, complete and detailed data. Given the geological and geomophological complexity of the area, in this study the field survey was carried out by a single person. This granted a privilege to the quality of the field survey, and permitted to obtain homogeneous field data. Both the Quaternary deposits (identified on the basis of the genetic sedimentary process) and the morphologies (of any origin: structural/tectonic, from slope dynamics, from erosion or deposition in glacigenic or fluvial environment, from periglacial processes) have been surveyed. This work continues in the Lower Valchiavenna (384 square km) the previous study, completing the field survey for the entire valley and concentrates on mapping and on the description of the field survey results for the Lower valchiavenna area. The map of geomorphology and Quaternary deposits of Lower Valchiavenna has been drawn at a 1:15.000 scale using a Geographic Information System from 1: 10.000 field data and subdivided into four thematic maps, concerning structural morphologies, slope dynamics, fluvial and glacial morphologies, periglacial morphologies. The identification of minor brittle faults and the measure of orientation data permitted to identify different structural patterns in the different tectonic units. Data show a strong connection between minor brittle faults and the valley network. Slope instability phenomena such as landslides or rock falls or deep-seated gravitational slope deformations (DSGSD) have been identified; and also the areas where the rock poor geomechanical characteristics. Permafrost presence at high altitudes was verified by the identification of periglacial morphologies. Tills and glacial morphologies of the last glaciation permitted to reconstruct the glaciated area and the glaciers dynamics at the LGM, and to understand the relative age of some DSGSD. The upper part of the sedimentary valley fill was analyzed, identifying sedimentary events prior, contemporary and subsequent the last glaciation; field data and historical maps let us reconstruct the fluvial dynamics in the last centuries. Field data, even if not analyzed in a complete and exhaustive way, permitted to suggest a reconstruction of the neogenic and quaternary geological history of this area, which suits data from literature for this region

La sfida delle Aree interne, da aree problema a luoghi di opportunità per un futuro diverso dei territori marginali

The abandonment and depopulation of small towns is a complex, diversified, and broader phenomenon that involves large areas of the EU. Although the question has its roots in the historical, political, and socio-economic events for over a century, the current demographic dynamics and urbanization are becoming increasingly important. Abandonment and depopulation are fundamentally local phenomena; however, small places may be connected to broader global, and interdependent dynamics. Given that the EU aims to promote harmonious, worldwide development and reduce disparities between development levels in different regions, policies concerning inner areas are part of its efforts to strengthen economic, social, and territorial cohesion. The purpose is also to look at sustainable the 17 Sustainable Development Goals ONU. Therefore, these areas can be privileged laboratories to experiment with innovative policies aimed at facing global challenges. In Spain and Italy, the case studies proposed have in common an integrated approach between the tourism sectors, cultural heritage, accessibility, services, agri-food supply chains, aimed at enhancing local specificities for innovative development scenarios. La sfida delle Aree interne, da aree problema a luoghi di opportunità per un futuro diverso dei territori marginali Il processo di abbandono e spopolamento dei piccoli centri è un fenomeno complesso, diversificato e di ampia portata ampia in quanto coinvolge vaste aree dell’UE e, pur essendo una questione che affonda le sue radici nelle vicende storico-politiche e socio-economiche di oltre un secolo, sta assumendo un’importanza crescente a causa dei ritmi accelerati delle attuali dinamiche demografiche e dell’urbanizzazione, della quale costituiscono la faccia più nascosta. Infatti, se da un lato abbandono e spopolamento sono un fenomeno fondamentalmente locale, tutti i luoghi, per quanto piccoli, possono essere connessi a più ampie dinamiche globali e fra loro interdipendenti. Considerato che l’UE punta a promuovere lo sviluppo armonioso globale e a ridurre le disparità tra i livelli di sviluppo delle varie regioni, le politiche riguardanti le aree interne rientrano nei suoi sforzi per rafforzare la coesione economica, sociale e territoriale, anche in coerenza con i 17 Obiettivi di Sviluppo Sostenibile ONU. Pertanto, queste aree possono essere laboratori privilegiati per sperimentare politiche innovative orientate ad affrontare le sfide globali. I casi di studio proposti, in Spagna e in Italia, sono accomunati da un approccio integrato fra i settori turistico-culturale, dell’accessibilità, dei servizi, della filiera agro-alimentare, che mira a valorizzare gli asset territoriali per scenari innovativi di sviluppo.Il processo di abbandono e spopolamento dei piccoli centri è un fenomeno complesso, diversificato e di ampia portata ampia in quanto coinvolge vaste aree dell’UE e, pur essendo una questione che affonda le sue radici nelle vicende storico-politiche e socio-economiche di oltre un secolo, sta assumendo un’importanza crescente a causa dei ritmi accelerati delle attuali dinamiche demografiche e dell’urbanizzazione, della quale costituiscono la faccia più nascosta. Infatti, se da un lato abbandono e spopolamento sono un fenomeno fondamentalmente locale, tutti i luoghi, per quanto piccoli, possono essere connessi a più ampie dinamiche globali e fra loro interdipendenti. Considerato che l’UE punta a promuovere lo sviluppo armonioso globale e a ridurre le disparità tra i livelli di sviluppo delle varie regioni, le politiche riguardanti le aree interne rientrano nei suoi sforzi per rafforzare la coesione economica, sociale e territoriale, anche in coerenza con i 17 Obiettivi di Sviluppo Sostenibile ONU. Pertanto, queste aree possono essere laboratori privilegiati per sperimentare politiche innovative orientate ad affrontare le sfide globali. I casi di studio proposti, in Spagna e in Italia, sono accomunati da un approccio integrato fra i settori turistico-culturale, dell’accessibilità, dei servizi, della filiera agro-alimentare, che mira a valorizzare gli asset territoriali per scenari innovativi di sviluppo.  The Challenge of Inner Areas: From Problematic Areas to Places of Opportunities for a Better Future of Marginal Territories The abandonment and depopulation of small towns is a complex, diversified, and broader phenomenon that involves large areas of the EU. Although the question has its roots in the historical, political, and socio-economic events for over a century, the current demographic dynamics and urbanization are becoming increasingly important. Abandonment and depopulation are fundamentally local phenomena; however, small places may be connected to broader global, and interdependent dynamics. Given that the EU aims to promote harmonious, worldwide development and reduce disparities between development levels in different regions, policies concerning inner areas are part of its efforts to strengthen economic, social, and territorial cohesion. The purpose is also to look at sustainable the 17 Sustainable Development Goals ONU. Therefore, these areas can be privileged laboratories to experiment with innovative policies aimed at facing global challenges. In Spain and Italy, the case studies proposed have in common an integrated approach between the tourism sectors, cultural heritage, accessibility, services, agri-food supply chains, aimed at enhancing local specificities for innovative development scenarios

Rilievi digitali e modelli 3D per la documentazione, l'analisi e il progetto di Palazzo Besta de' Gatti a Chiuro (So). Applicazioni ed esempi per il riuso come struttura ricettiva.

La tesi si basa sul rilievo digitale di Casa Besta De’ Gatti di Chiuro (SO) e sperimenta, mettendole a punto, alcune fra le possibili applicazioni del rilievo stesso e dei modelli tridimensionali che a partire da esso si costruiscono. Il rilievo è stato eseguito tramite laser scanner integrato da applicazioni di fotogrammetria digitale, procedura che consente di ottenere risultati più precisi e veloci rispetto alle tecniche tradizionali. Casa Besta De’ Gatti sorge su una dimora fortificata di origine medievale, con successive fondamentali modifiche fra i secoli XV e XVIII e numerosi rimaneggiamenti successivi per adeguare l’edificio alle esigenze delle diverse famiglie che lo abitarono. L’edificio così come lo vediamo oggi è solo una parte di un nucleo più vasto e complesso, che nel corso dei secoli è stato trasformato e diviso in varie proprietà. Il lavoro di rilievo ha consentito di ottenere il modello 3D dell’intero edificio, comprensivo degli spazi interni ed esterni, da cui sono stati ricavati gli elaborati 2D dello stato di fatto. In seguito, a partire dal materiale bidimensionale e tridimensionale, si è proceduto ad elaborare una proposta di riuso dell’edificio attraverso una restituzione 3D, includendo attività e funzioni che il comune di Chiuro ha interesse ad incentivare. A questo scopo è stato valutato il riuso dell’edificio come struttura ricettiva comprensiva di zona ristorazione e un’area benessere. L’obiettivo principale della proposta è quello di utilizzare il modello digitale ottenuto dal rilievo come base per la produzione di schemi tridimensionali distributivi delle varie attività e di viste realistiche. Per fare ciò gli elementi tridimensionali originali del palazzo ottenuti sono stati integrati con nuovi modelli elaborati mediante software di modellazione 3D, in una commistione tra caratteri originali e caratteri di nuova concezione

ROCK MASS CHARACTERIZATION AND SPATIAL ESTIMATION OF GEOMECHANICAL PROPERTIES THROUGH GEOSTATISTICAL TECHNIQUES

This thesis deals with geostatistics, which is a branch of statistics focusing on spatial or spatiotemporal datasets, and explores its possible application to rock mechanics, with particular reference to wide areas, located in the Alpine context. The final objective of this work is the estimation (i.e. the prediction), through geostatistical techniques, of the geomechanical parameters determining the quality of rock masses, starting form punctual and scattered sampling locations.This thesis is a contribute in assessing how the rock mass features, in the Alpine geological context, can be regarded as regionalized variables, and the geostatistical tool can be used to foresee the spatial structure of rock masses. The main topic regards the estimation of rock mass properties, and their associated variations, at regional scale, through geostatistical techniques. The estimation consists in forecasting the behaviour and the values of a regionalized variable, in an area, starting form punctual and scattered measures. The main challenge is to understand if the geostatistical techniques, applied so successfully to local and specific problems, can be applied also at regional scale (i.e. considering very wide portion of territory), finding the best method useful to make estimation of that scale. Actually to have a tool able to predict the rock mass parameters at regional scale can be very useful in areas interested by the planning and construction of large-scale engineering works. The study areas, chosen to verify the applicability of geostatistical methods at regional scale, are both located in the Central Alps: the first is the Italian Alpine Valley named Valchiavenna (SO), while the second is in Switzerland, near the Grimselpass.The main innovative aspercts of this thesis, respect to the previous works, are: - the area involved in the estimations: very wide areas have been considered in order to verify if geostatistics give good results also at regional scale; - the geology of the site: hard rock masses outcropping on two different location of the Alpine chain have been investigated: the first one is in the Italian Central Alps and the second one in the Swiss Alps;- the starting measurements: data have been collected in situ using both direct and indirect measurements (i.e. geomechanical survey in Valchiavenna, combined with photogrammetric analysis at Grimsel test site)

Chapter Signorie e relazioni interstatali. Opportunità e rischi del potere locale lungo la frontiera alpina dello stato di Milano (secolo XV)

This essay analyzes the ways in which rural lordship was legitimized, maintained and sometimes contested in the late Middle Ages. The focus is not on the local societies and the political competition within the regional state, but rather on the position of seigneurial power in the interstices of international relations. Specifically, the dynamics of the frontier allowed the lords to enforce their power, but produced situations that put their authority in risk, providing opportunities for their subjects to contrast it. Political brokerage is the key to exploring the competition and the relationship between a variety of local actors and the state authorities. The source I selected is the Carteggio sforzesco, consisting of the written correspondence between these protagonists. From this viewpoint and thanks to records rich in narrative and descriptive contents, I will try to reconstruct economic tensions, military instability, the need for diplomatic agreements and for individual protection, that define the relationship between the Duchy of Milan, Valais, Switzerland and Grisons. Finally I will go into depth in the case-study of Val Formazza, where the domination of the lords family was in decline during the 15th Century, while local protagonists of this diversified local world – highlanders of lower social conditions settled in a peripheral valley forming an ethno-cultural minority of German speakers – were capable