Innovation system in the metropolitan agriculture of Bologna: some evidences from the MADRE project

This contribution aims at illustrating the preliminary results concerning the metropolitan area of Bologna (Italy) of the MADRE (Metropolitan Agriculture for Developing an innovative, sustainable and Responsible Economy) project, founded by Interreg MED Program. As the acronym suggest, the main purpose of this project is to explore the models of Metropolitan and peri-urban agriculture (MPA) in different Mediterranean countries, in order to better understand and support its possible role in the sustainable development of the cities. To pursue this purpose, the traditional conflict between “urban” and “rural” must be re-thought: not just conflictual, but rather as an opportunity of “synergic transformation” within a “rural-urban continuum”. In this continuum, different actors can constantly find new opportunities of comparison and collaboration, toward a synthesis of their needs. Therefore, according with the innovative approach of the MADRE project, the stakeholders of the “quadruple helix” have been involved and heard, in order to identify some of the main good practices of the territory and their specific innovative dimensions, highlighting the main facet of the MPA “innovation system” of Bologna.