The pandemic has revealed the global fragility of the current model of production and consumption.

Despite this, the sectors of the bioeconomy have proven to be more resilient and therefore represent a consolidated and robust asset to accelerate the restart in our contry, Italy.

Our MESCI DIrector, Prof.Becchetti and lectures gathered together on 11 October 2022 at UnitelmaSapienza University to better reflect on these topics and on the necessary lines of action. MESCI students and researchers intervened actively during discussions proposing possible strategies. 

Participation, sharing, creativity will be the fundamental engines of economic development in the coming years. Our MESCI Programme Director Prof. Becchetti was one of the guest speakers to discuss on the main topics of this festival of Civil Economy. MESCI team together with tutors provided an important contribution on the organization of this 3 day event that took place from 16-18 September 2022, at Palazzo Vecchio in Firence, Italy. The Civil Economy is the vision of an economy that focuses on the company and on the person, a person capable of cooperating, of imagining new solutions and of creating positive and generative relationships. In the Civil Economy, WORK is a value which must be protectedand included, not only because produces inclusion and dignity but also because contributes to enriching life with meaning.For a fair and sustainable wellness we need live experiences, tested models, truly generated jobs, spaces for young and dynamic  companies. It is on these issues that the Civil Economyis trying to be distinguished and to bring her authenticity.

We felt compassion last summer and sympathized this photo of a little girl who had the opportunity to hope for a better future (unfortunately leaving her country)...

We don't forget the tragedies and conflicts of the past and this year we offered two scholarship for MESCI Master to Afghan students who fled the country...

A choice that enriches the meaning of our work and makes more beautiful our class of 2022/2023...

Save the date 20th of May 2022 and come and join us in the Seminar organized in collaboration with IFAD and MESCI on "IFAD Activity and Impact Evaluation for Agricultural and Sustainable Development". Honoured to have as guest speakers: Prof. Becchetti and IFAD Representatives Prof.Savastano and Mr.Aslan who wil share with all the partecipants their precious experience from International Fund for Agricultural and Development.

The event will be opened for all students of 2-year degrees and in connection to students from other Universities in Rome.

MESCI 2021/2022 students have sucesfully completed the workshop in Barcelona (7-10 February 2022). Students, divided in work groups made a research by selecting case studies that responded as closely as possible to the disaster type and/or geographic locations assigned. Each group presented their disaster research, case study analysis and critique in a digital presentation. You can find here a short video with some beautiful moments from the workshop.

Maya Terro is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of FoodBlessed, a hunger-relief and food rescue organization.

For Maya Terro, the work of her organization Foodblessed is entirely community-based and volunteer-driven; the very essence of the initiative is to rekindle the lost bond between the people of Lebanon. She believes that volunteering has tremendously shaped her, personally and professionally, and that by consistently trying to make this world a better place for her community and herself, she became a better person in the process.

More information here

2021 MUNDUS URBANO WORKSHOP 

The workshop is addressed to post-graduate university students enrolled in the Master in International Cooperation and Urban Development, and will include sessions presented by university professors, international experts and government officials. The event represents as an opportunity to explore current urbanisation trends and analyse implications for the future of food systems, food security and nutrition.[read more]

Take Five: A decade of making public spaces safe for women and girls

Lizzette Soria works as policy specialist for UN Women’s flagship initiative Safe Cities and Safe Public Spaces. The initiative was launched in 2010 with local and national governments, grassroots women and girls, women’s rights organizations and other civil society groups, UN agencies, and other partners in five cities: Quito (Ecuador), Port Moresby (Papua New Guinea), Kigali (Rwanda), Cairo (Egypt), and Delhi (India). The initiative aims to develop and implement evidence-based and comprehensive approaches to prevent and respond to sexual harassment against women and girls in public spaces.Today, nearly 50 cities, including cities in the Global South and North, are part of the initiative. [read more]

Small family farms make up 85 per cent of all farms worldwide, and smallholder farmers make up the majority of the world’s rural poor. To mitigate the challenges that come with working in isolation − and to increase profitability and productivity − these smallholders often form organizations.

Working together makes it easier for small-scale farmers to access raw materials such as seeds, water and fertilizer and to aggregate their yields, enabling them to reach larger markets. This in turn allows them reduce costs and improve their bargaining power, better positioning them to improve their food security and move out of poverty. And when farmers thrive, other players in the food system benefit, too.

But to fulfil this role, these organizations often need tailored attention and support. IFAD recognises the central role of farmers’ organizations in smallholder development and is committed to supporting them in building their capacity and strengthening their ability to perform.

In 2005, IFAD established the Farmers’ Forum, a framework for the partnership between IFAD and organizations of smallholder farmers. [more]

Christmas holidays are getting closer and the end of the first semester is about to end. Good luck to all Mesci students for this first goal!

Mesci Tutors 2019/2020

The economists Abhijit Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer are the winners of the Nobel Prize in Economics. Their work adopts an experimental approach in studying global poverty, which will dominate the scenario of Development Economics in the next future. World Bank's most recent data display that more than 700 million people live in extreme poverty and their research will considerably improve our ability to fight global poverty. Their first findings date back to mid 1990's with surprising results. Since then, over 5 million Indian children have benefited from effective poverty-reduction policies, like tutoring programs in schools. Another example is represented by the subsidies for preventive health care that have been introduced in many countries. The winning of this year Nobel Prize, thus, is only the conclusion of a long-standing path, which helped to undertake and achieve strong improvements in developing countries' welfare.
Finally, another little but relevant good news is that Esther Duflo is the second woman in history receiving the Nobel, 10 years after the first winner. Having obtained the renowned prize at 46 years old, she also classifies as the youngest winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics, evidencing all the value of their work.

Mesci Tutors 2019/2020

On 25th of June Villa Mondragone hosted the annual Tor Vergata's Economics seminar. Lectures and discussions among academics, young economists and international hosts on sustainable development and the future of globalization took place here. MESCIs students enjoyed the conference and the view of beautiful roman lanscape from the Villa.

MESCI's students in front of Villa Mondragone.