Forestry governance and collective learning process in Italy: Likelihood or utopia?

A shift from government to governance in the approaches to forest policy formulation and related decision-making procedures is taking place at global level. Policy-makers and other actors traditionally involved in forestry-related decision-making have to tackle and apply new concepts and tools, like public participation, networking and governance mechanisms. These issues are taken into consideration in the paper, using a research approach based on six explicatory–exploratory case studies in Italy. New ideas and tools are slowly entering the Italian forest policy arena as a result of international driving forces like the global dialogue on forests and the growing demand for responsible behaviour and transparency. Case studies are analyzed considering two main types of decision-making processes (one based on conventional–hierarchical/government approach and the other on innovative-networking/governance approach), the position and role of different stakeholders, the special role of public authorities, the efficacy and efficiency of (eventual) negotiation and adaptation processes. Policy change processes and policy learning processes, and their relationships, are considered. Three case studies have been selected to represent ‘unsuccessful examples’ of governance as a collective learning process, at three different scales (national, regional, local). These include the FLEGT Action Plan implementation at national level; the Rural Development Programme 2007–2013 developed by Veneto Region; and a forest camping site in the Dolomites at local level. Three other case studies have been selected as ‘encouraging examples’. These include the Strategic Framework Programme for Forests at national level, the afforestation/reforestation programme to create forests in plain areas in Lombardy at regional level and, finally, the creation of a peri-urban forest close to Venice at local level. Two main scenarios are likely in terms of changes possibly deriving from a collective learning process due to adoption of new governance approaches in the Italian forestry context: i) ‘no real changes’, which mainly occurs when national level policies and actors are involved and when a conservative approach prevails (limited or no interactions among different actors, with a dominant ‘government learning’ approach); and ii) ‘slight changes’, which usually occurs when local level policies and actors are involved, and when a tentative–innovative approach prevails, sometimes with the specific goal of improving governance, mainly based on a ‘lesson-drawing learning’ approach. Key-factors to establish more favourable conditions for starting-up or consolidating positive examples for governance as a collective learning process in Italy are presented and discussed in the final recommendations.