Place-based evidence and policy for cities, regions, and urban–rural systems.
I work at the intersection of territorial analysis, public policy, and governance to help decision-makers navigate transitions, strengthen cohesion, and deliver measurable outcomes.
Urban & territorial analysis
Territories are systems — shaped by connections, not borders.
Urban areas, towns, and rural communities are linked through labour markets, service catchments, mobility, and shared infrastructure. Understanding these functional relationships is the foundation for effective planning and investment.
How I help
- Diagnose how urban systems work (settlement networks, functional areas, accessibility)
- Identify strategic priorities grounded in spatial evidence and territorial indicators
- Translate complex patterns into decision-ready insights for strategies and plans
Typical outputs
- Territorial diagnostics and comparative benchmarking
- Indicator frameworks and spatial intelligence for strategic planning
- Urban–rural linkage assessments and policy implications
Selected work (projects & publications)
- Urban-Rural Linkages in Poland — OECD
- Regional development along the settlement network — OECD & European Commission (DG REGIO)
- Midsize Settlements in Europe: Definition, Population Trends, and Contribution to Regional Development — Journal of Regional Science
- Unlocking the potential of intermediary cities in the EU — OECD & European Commission (DG REGIO)
National urban policy, housing, and sustainable & resilient urbanisation
National frameworks set the rules of the game for local outcomes.
When national and regional policies align with local implementation capacity, cities can deliver on sustainability, inclusion, and resilience — including housing goals and crisis readiness.
How I help
- Support the design and monitoring of national/regional urban policy frameworks
- Strengthen policy coherence across levels of government
- Build practical systems for implementation, monitoring, and learning
Typical outputs
- Strategic frameworks, roadmaps, and governance arrangements
- Monitoring & evaluation architectures (theory of change, indicators, targets)
- Guidance notes and toolkits that make policies implementable
Selected work (projects & publications)
- Global State of National Urban Policy — OECD & UN-Habitat
- Cities for all ages: policy innovations that support growing up, growing old, and living well — OECD (incl. input to G7 Ministerial)
- Financing sustainable cities in Southeast Asia — OECD
Understanding and governing transitions in cities and territories
Transitions are territorial — and uneven.
Demographic change, the green and digital transition, and shocks (economic, climatic, social) reshape places differently. The challenge is to manage trade-offs, protect cohesion, and adapt services and infrastructure under uncertainty.
How I help
- Turn “drivers of change” into concrete priorities and policy choices
- Support adaptation strategies for services, infrastructure, and settlement systems
- Develop resilience-oriented approaches that convert crises into long-term improvements
Typical outputs
- Transition diagnostics (risks, opportunities, distributional impacts)
- Strategy options and “no-regret” priorities linked to measurable objectives
- Policy packages on demographic change, access to services, and resilience
Selected work (projects & publications)
- Shrinking smartly and sustainably in regions and cities — OECD & European Commission (DG REGIO)
- Getting to Services in Towns and Villages. Preparing Regions for Demographic Change — OECD
- Demographic change in cities — OECD Regional Development Papers
- Cities Turning crisis into change. Post-pandemic pathways to resilience in complex times — OECD
Urban & territorial economy, competitiveness, and innovation
Local prosperity depends on ecosystems — firms, skills, institutions, and places.
Competitiveness and innovation are deeply place-based: they rely on local networks, city centres, SMEs, and the capacity of territories to adapt and upgrade.
How I help
- Assess local economic performance and competitiveness constraints
- Map innovation dynamics and diffusion across territories
- Design place-based policy mixes for SMEs, city centres, and intermediary cities
Typical outputs
- Competitiveness and local economy assessments
- Innovation ecosystem mapping and policy recommendations
- Strategies for SMEs, retail revitalisation, and intermediary/midsize cities
Selected work (projects & publications)
- The twin transition and the future of retail SMEs in urban and rural areas — OECD & European Commission (DG GROW)
- Regional Innovation in Piedmont, Italy. From Innovation Environment to Innovation Ecosystem — OECD
- Regional innovation diffusion (Piedmont, Italy) — OECD & European Commission (DG REGIO)
Governance, participation, and collective intelligence
Good policies fail when governance fails.
Multi-level coordination, cross-boundary cooperation, and credible participation are essential to implementation — especially when decisions are contested or span multiple jurisdictions.
How I help
- Improve coordination across institutions and territories
- Design participation and co-creation processes that build legitimacy and ownership
- Facilitate peer learning and international policy dialogue to accelerate learning
Typical outputs
- Governance diagnostics and actionable recommendations
- Stakeholder strategies, facilitation, and co-creation workshops
- Peer-learning designs and learning products that support implementation
Selected work (projects & publications)
- Improving the multi-level governance of citizen participation in renewable energy projects (Netherlands) — OECD
- Urban-Rural Linkages in Poland — OECD
- The socio-economic sustainability of a non-renewable resource: marble in Carrara — IRTA
Methods & tools for urban and territorial analysis
Rigour is only useful if it helps decisions.
My approach combines quantitative evidence, spatial intelligence, and institutional insight to deliver outputs that are clear, policy-ready, and operational.
Methods
- Territorial indicators, benchmarking, applied economic analysis
- Spatial analysis (functional areas, accessibility, settlement patterns)
- Mixed-method research (data + institutions + stakeholder insight)
- Policy design and evaluation (theory of change, M&E frameworks, learning loops)
Tools
- Stata, R
- QGIS / ArcGIS (as relevant)
- Evidence communication: maps, dashboards, and decision-focused narratives