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This article explores the evolution of unaccompanied minors' (UMs') decisions and migratory experiences after arrival in Italy through Libya. Until now, research has not longitudinally documented UMs' decision-making processes and experiences during their migration in Europe. We draw on data collected within the ERC-ChildMove project, a multi-sited and follow-up study, and used a trajectory approach (Schapendonk et al. [2020]. "Re-Routing Migration Geographies: Migrants, Trajectories and Mobility Regimes." Geoforum; Journal of Physical, Human, and Regional Geosciences 116: 211–216.) to analyse in-depth interviews initially conducted with thirty-nine participants that were followed across Europe over a two-year period. We use the notion of 'mobility-in-migration' (Veale and Donà [2014]. Child and Youth Migration: Mobility-in-Migration in an Era of Globalization. Springer.) to question UMs' migratory decisions and analyse the periods of mobility and immobility experienced during these trajectories. Our findings indicate that UMs' decisions in Europe are heavily influenced by the quality of formal support and care, the length and outcomes of legal procedures, and trans-local support networks. The study analyses how such factors may repeatedly re-route or distort initially planned trajectories, produce involuntary mobility or end the minors' trajectories. Finally, the paper demonstrates that periods of mobility and immobility coexist at different local scales within the overall migration trajectory of unaccompanied minors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The engagement of young people has been a neglected area in youth justice and drug policy and practice. This paper explores the concept of 'engagement' in relation to drug interventions in custodial and community settings in different European countries. Interviews were undertaken with young people (aged 14–25 years) in contact with the criminal justice system who use illegal drugs and with practitioners involved in the delivery of interventions for our target group in Denmark, Italy, Poland, and the UK. The key techniques to engage young people were described in similar terms across the countries. These included forming relationships based on trust, honesty, and empathy, setting goals collaboratively, and employing practitioners with lived experience and understanding. The objectives and activities on offer are often constrained by criminal justice contexts. Despite the differences between the countries in terms of criminal justice systems and the structure of drug interventions, there were remarkable similarities in the ways young people and practitioners described effective engagement. Strong emphasis on operational engagement to ensure positive relationships between young people and practitioners was important in the design and delivery of interventions. Practitioners working in criminal justice contexts need to have flexibility and autonomy to work creatively to find ways to engage, connect, and inspire young people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on research undertaken as part of the EU funded EPPIC project, this paper aims to update and elaborate on the relationship between drug use and offending behaviours by exploring variations within a cross-national sample of drug-experienced young people in touch with criminal justice systems. Adopting a trajectory-based approach, interviews were undertaken with 198 young people aged 15–25 in six European countries (Austria, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Poland, and UK). Data were analysed by applying the Bennett and Holloway categorization of the drugs-crime link, with a focus on the concept of social exclusion as developed by Seddon. Three main types of mechanisms (economic, pharmaceutical, and lifestyles) are used to interpret the data, showing how the relationship between drugs and offending can vary according to type of substances and over time. Furthermore, it can be associated with very different degrees of social exclusion and needs. The results suggest that while economic inequalities still play key roles in explaining drug use and offending, both behaviours can originate from a state of relative deprivation, resulting from the contradictions inherent in 'bulimic societies' that raise aspirations and desires while providing young people scarce opportunities for self-realisation and social recognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Population aging is exacerbating the loss of competences in the workforce and simultaneously young people neither in employment nor in education and training (NEETs) are struggling to be reengaged in employment. These issues, which are deemed priorities for the European policy agenda, could be addressed by triggering active aging dimensions, valuing and exploiting older adult entrepreneurs' knowledge for enhancing youngsters' entrepreneurial attitudes, through mentoring. This paper reports the results of a study based on an intergenerational learning program, carried out in 2018 in Germany, Italy and Slovenia. The study was aimed at developing and testing one training on mentoring addressing 41 older adult entrepreneurs (55 and over), and two intergenerational learning trainings aiming at boosting entrepreneurial competences of 33 NEETs (aged 18–29). The impact of the program on older adult entrepreneurs and NEETs was assessed through a pre and post-evaluation using qualitative and quantitative tools. Findings at country level were treated as national case-studies and then the latter were compared by considering them as a multiple embedded case-study. Results indicated that, to different extent in the study countries, mentors learned and enhanced mentoring competences, e.g. active listening and the capability of orienting, improved well-being and self-esteem, social inclusion and active aging attitude. Moreover, NEETs acquired entrepreneurial and socio-relational competences by benefiting from the full exploitation of mentors' know-how and the trust relationship with them. Companies, trade unions, educational and voluntary organizations should cooperate to adopt intergenerational learning programs as good practices for older adults and NEETs' lifelong learning promotion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The European Disability Strategy (2010-2020) seeks to significantly raise the proportion of people with disabilities working in the open labour market. The ERGO WORK project is a collaboration of academic and industrial partners in six European countries, focused on understanding and tackling barriers to workplace inclusion for workers with disabilities. Methods: This study sought to explore the perceptions and needs of stakeholders in terms of workplace adaptation to the needs of employees with disabilities. An exploratory online survey was completed by 480 participants across six countries. Results: The analysis suggests that workplaces could be further improved to meet the needs of employees with considerable scope for training within companies to raise awareness about employees' needs, employers' obligations and workplace adaptation. Conclusions: This snapshot suggests there is still a gap between intent and reality in workplace inclusion and further strategies are needed to improve the opportunities for employees with disabilities. The paper argues that ergonomics may have a key role to play in tackling these challenges and adapting the workplace environment and job design to suit the needs of individual employees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the multiple dimensions in the identity constructions of the daughters of the Muslim migrations to Italy. It focuses on the transformations in the way girls and young women relate to religion, in the transition from the generation of mothers, who emigrated from countries with a Muslim majority, to the generation of daughters, who grow up in a European context where Islam is a minority religion. It discusses ‘transmissions’, ‘translations’ and ‘betrayals’ in the migration experience, from a standpoint which highlights the specificities of gender and of generation. The article is based on an intersectional analysis of biographical accounts by Muslim girls and young women of Bengali and Moroccan origin who were born and/or grew up in Italy. Intersecting religious identity with other identity lines such as national belonging (to the parents’ country of origin and to the country where they were born or grew up), gender, class, color and age, multiple reactions and positions emerged. In this context, the religious dimension inherited/experienced/reinvented/called into question by the daughters of migrations appeared to be in constant evolution. Indeed, the stories contained herein of young Muslims tell of the emergence of European Islam. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Due to a long-standing history of human impact, it is rare to find in Europe old-growth stands associated to primary forests; the term “old-growthness” is more appropriate to assess old-growth forests in European countries: i.e. the degree to which forest stands, which may or may not have been impacted by humans, express the structural variability commonly found in old-growth forests. The paper focuses on operational methods to assess and promote old-growthness in countries, like Italy, where old-growthness detection is a difficult task because of the scarcity of “relatively old” forest stands. Lessons learnt from research experiences carried out in Italy are reviewed; research findings mostly come from unmanaged tracts of previously managed forest stands that have reached structural and compositional traits typical of the mature stage of forest dynamics. A commentary discussion is provided on the following topics: (i) how to operationally assess old-growthness of forest stands, by coupling remote sensing based approaches and snapshot inventories of structural features; (ii) what forest structural attributes appear to be more strictly related to old-growthness in Mediterranean forests and (iii) how to promote old-growthness in managed forest stands. The paper concludes pointing out open research questions and pragmatic considerations for managing forests for old-growthness. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper highlights the juridical Genetic Modified Organisms statu artis and its legal definition in Italy, Europe and in the rest of the world in order to compare different cultural approaches to needs, interests, fears and precautions against a not scientifically certain innovation. It also stresses the legislative processes towards an extended participation that unifies economic interests, political goals, customer satisfaction, collective safety, and human construction for a sustainable future, a new form of governance. The paper ends with a sociological and comparative analysis of needs, fears, interests and responsibilities related to GMO in Italy and Europe, with the aim of defining some possible evolutions of ruling uncertainty today.

What explains regulators’ preferences concerning the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM)? The paper answers this question by providing an alternative account of the creation of the SSM using an institutionalist perspective. It is argued that the creation of the SSM does not simply reflect the material interests of governments and domestic financial firms, but that regulators’ positions were also significantly affected by the institutional environment in which they operated. Two characteristics of domestic supervisory governance are identified: the institutional responsibilities of banking regulators (microprudential and/or macroprudential) and the fragmentation of supervisory and monetary policies. The empirical analysis demonstrates the relevance of these factors for shaping regulators’ preferences both within and across countries. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Career decisions are amongst the most important we make. Unsurprisingly, much published research exists on this particular aspect of career behaviour. However, the overwhelming majority of studies have been carried out on young people making initial career decisions. This paper extends our understanding by examining how mid-career adults in three European countries (Denmark, France and Italy) actually make career decisions. Characteristic patterns of behaviour recur when individuals approach points of transition or of crisis; each of these transitioning styles is illustrated by an iconic case. Emergent findings support the growing body of evidence that challenges the dominant policy and practice orthodoxy, which places rationality at the centre of the process, by recognising the importance of emotion and context. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The growth of a societal base of xenophobia in Europe poses a challenge for the Muslim minorities to alter power relations in the society. In the light of the previous and the current research as well as established theoretical insights, this paper suggests that racial discourse now strategically allows a particular form of pluralism in society, a dominant pluralism, which occludes the possibility for the Muslims to be involved equally in the public and political life. The results of the qualitative analysis, based on interviews conducted with groups holding xenophobic ideas in Austria, Bulgaria and Italy, confirmed earlier observations on contemporary racism, which suggested incommensurability of Muslim minorities with the European culture; their non-assimilative adaptation to society; their expulsion if this adaptation fails and advocating populism. Space is a crucial aspect of exclusion in this discursive frame because minorities are excluded from public and communicative spaces. The discourse is supported by the conceptual sources of a dominant form of pluralism that are found in Michel Foucault and master–slave relationship in philosophy. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Since the late 1990s, the main Italian ‘welfare cultures’ and the resulting innovation strategies of the welfare system refer to the question of ‘pluralization’. The current crisis is causing the expansion of the public functions carried out by different private actors. As a consequence, discussions of welfare cultures are increasingly making reference to the notion of horizontal subsidiarity that requires new forms of governance. Three subsidiarity approaches emerge: the liberal subsidiarity approach which is related to the ‘free choice’ welfare model; the incomplete subsidiarity approach related to the ‘second welfare’ strategy; and the radical subsidiarity approach related to the ‘radical plural welfare society’ perspective. The paper develops a theoretical discussion of these different welfare cultures—these latter seen through the point of view of subsidiarity—arguing that the problems arising from an economic understanding of welfare pluralization could be addressed by a cultural change which sees in the definition of a new plural welfare system and role for the public sphere the opportunity for aggregating social demand, reinforcing social ties, creating shared value and re-socializing social risks. The hypothesis is that the ‘radical subsidiarity’ approach could better capture these chances for social innovation that this phase of crisis can unlock. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper explores graduates' views on the relationship between higher education and employment. It draws on a major European study involving graduates five years after graduation and highlights similarities and differences between UK graduates' experiences and their European counterparts. Specifically, we address questions raised in the study about the subjects studied and their relevance to entry into the labour market; if the academic level obtained was appropriate, whether graduates, with hindsight of five years, would choose the same subjects or the same institution again; and whether they were satisfied with their current job. Such specific questions relate to broader perspectives such as the perceived value of higher education study in relation to initial employment and future life histories. These have to be seen in the context of cultural differences in higher education systems at the time of the research and, perhaps, increasing convergences in the light of the Bologna Agreement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper provides some empirical evidence of the effectiveness of the “open innovation” model in the life science cluster of Emilia Romagna (a region of Italy), comparing the network of R&D collaborative activities in public research organizations (PROs) and the network linked to R&D collaborative activities in private firms. By presenting the main results of a field research in the life science sector in Emilia Romagna, we are contributing to the recent debate focused on the crises of the old “closed innovation” model and the rise of the “open innovation” model. Our survey consists of both primary data deriving from face-to-face interviews with researchers and entrepreneurs, and secondary data extracted from the Internet, the PubMed database, and from the European Patent Office. Our work is based on the analysis of a representative sample of 30 research groups in PROs, 2173 scientific articles published by the interviewed scientists, and a representative sample of 78 private firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the relationships between the migratory policies of the EU countries with more experience of immigration and their national political cultures. It focuses on France, Germany and the United Kingdom. It then looks at Italy, a relatively new country of immigration, which, with 3,000,000 legal immigrants, has become the fourth country of immigration in Europe and the first in the Mediterranean basin. In its final part it highlights the incipient process of 'communitarisation' of the immigration policies of EU countries in the last decade. This process, which has already entailed a significant convergence of their migratory policies, is expected to continue after the recent enlargement of the European Union. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper explores some issues in relation to oral history and memory that emerge in Alessandro Portelli's The Order Has Been Carried Out. I examine the contemporary role of the oral historian, the relationship between the present and the past in memory work, and make some comments about how we might articulate the field of oral history with memory studies more closely for the enrichment of Both. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article analyses the development and organization of the illegal drugs market in Italy. The first three sections of the paper reconstruct the evolution of drug use since the 1960s and discuss the key characteristics of illegal drug users, providing some estimates on their real number. The last three sections focus on the illegal drugs supply, identifying trends and constraints affecting the drug trade in Italy and the rest of Europe and assessing the involvement of southern Italian mafia associations in drug trafficking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on European integration is devoting increasing attention to the reconstruction of distinctive strategic attitudes and mediating capacities at the state level. Nevertheless, contradictions and conflicts in the Europeanization of state policies, whilst crucial for understanding the dynamics of institutional change in a European multi-level polity, are still scarcely highlighted. This paper addresses this dimension based on a case study from Italy, a country in which Europeanization fostered significant policy innovations in the second half of the 1990s. Programming for the 2000-2006 Structural Funds period in Ob.2 eligible regions highlights the intergovernmental constraints facing state actors in their efforts to mediate between distributive claims in the domestic arena and national interest representation in supranational arenas, as well as the influence exerted by contradictions in the Commission's policy styles and regulatory rationales in hampering a mediated convergence between contrasting policy aims. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we present a brief description of the evolution of quality assurance in Europe, paying particular attention to its relationship to the rising loss of trust in higher education institutions. We finalise by analysing the role of the European Commission in the setting up of new quality assurance mechanisms that tend to promote accreditation and stratification rather than quality enhancement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]