My work relates to the underlying structures that may enable the transition towards a more sustainable and resilient food system. In a localized food system, cooperatives may play a vital role in this process. Recently my research has been on advancing the role of production cooperatives in food and agriculture. Through the H2020 PRIMA project AgriCompet, my research group within the Faculty of Economics and Management has expertise in analysing organizational structures of cooperatives leading to better economic performance as well as to more engagement in social and environmental sustainability. Moreover, we have a focus on analysing KPIs for geographical indications (GIs) and regional brands which may also support the transition towards resilient food systems. Recently, we have started to work on incentives to foster food waste reductions including the challenges imposed by the thriving tourism sector in South Tyrol. This work can be supported by technical solutions such as the development of apps to engage consumers in lowering food waste and/or product innovations and teaching projects to strengthen local and regional brands as vehicles to advance the transition towards more resilient food systems.

UNIBZ is in one of the most fascinating EU regions, at the crossroads between the German-speaking and Italian economies and cultures. Unibz is trilingual in teaching and research and is endowed with exceptional facilities, thus resulting in a high level of internationalization, an ideal study and research environment and consistently achieving top ranks in national and international rankings. UNIBZ is composed of 5 faculties (Economics and Management, Engineering, Education, Design and Art, Agriculture Environmental and Food Sciences) and 8 Competence Centers with specific research focuses relevant for the territory.
Despite its recent foundation (1997), unibz has already established itself as an important research institution, both in Italy and abroad. In 2022, for the sixth time in a row, UNIBZ was placed first among the small non-state universities (less than 5,000 students), reaching also the highest average score among all Italian universities, state and non-state ones (Censis). At the international level in the 2020 Times Higher Education World University Rankings unibz ranked in the band of 401-500 this year out of 1.527 institutions worldwide). At the international level in the 2020 Times Higher Education World University Rankings unibz ranked in the band of 401-500 this year out of 1.527 institutions worldwide. Our strongest pillars were "Citations" (with a score of 83,3 among the top 300) and "International outlook" (with a score of 74,2 among the top 300). In Italy we are on the 19th position out of 56 universities ranked.
UNIBZ has invested in state-of-the-art laboratories (currently 40) and equipment to carry out cutting-edge research in a dynamic environment (NOI Tech Park) that gathers research institutions, companies and start-up, thus enhancing fruitful collaborations as part of the mission to initiate, develop, foster and support collaborative projects with public institutions and local, national and international companies. As for projects, UNIBZ is currently active in almost 300 international and local projects, 86 of which at European level, including 44 Erasmus+ and 22 HORIZON projects (7 HEU, of which 2 CL4 1 CL6 and 2 Mission Soil, 1 MSCA-RISE, 1 WIDERA; 15 H2020 of which 8 MSCA and 7 RIA/IA in various societal challenges); and 1 PRIMA project (AgriCompet, which I am coordinating within Italy). UNIBZ, with the financial support of the Province of Bolzano, is currently managing 9 Individual Fellowships that were awarded the Seal of Excellence by the EU Commission. In addition, UNIBZ is core partner of EIT Food and associated member of the BIC consortium.