Social Sustainability in Urban Regeneration: Indicators and Evaluation Methods in the EU 2020 Programming

Abstract

The contribution deals with some orientations for impact analysis within the process of urban regeneration, on the basis of guidelines of the European Structural Funds 2014–2020 aiming at regional development policies which are more focused on desired results and on a place-based approach. The impact assessments is now deemed essential in order to improve use of resources, making more effective programs and ensuring transparency of public decision-making. In this regard, the contribution underlines the need to strengthen the connections between urban/territorial planning and decision support systems. In particular, starting with a review of the concept of social sustainability, the paper outlines some of the main indicators existing in recent European studies for urban regeneration, so to identify the impacts of the interventions and defining suitable decision making processes to guide policies. Some references to the ANP multi-criteria network approach (Saaty and Cillo 2008) are reported in reference to the case of Pescara (Italy), as useful method to understand whether the urban regeneration orientations determines a condition of development which is preferable than the baseline.