IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/sustdv/v33y2025i1p554-564.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Toward sustainable cities: Assessing drivers of SDG performance in Italian municipalities

Author

Listed:
  • Nicola Raimo
  • Vitiana L'Abate
  • Arcangelo Marrone
  • Filippo Vitolla

Abstract

In the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, municipalities are increasingly recognized as pivotal actors in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Their significant contributions have also garnered attention in academic literature. However, only a limited number of studies have investigated the integration of the SDGs into the visions and strategies of municipalities, as well as the factors driving their efforts toward the SDGs. Therefore, this study aims to fill this important gap by examining, under the lens of stakeholder theory, the SDG performance of Italian municipalities and the drivers of these performance levels. The results reveal a delay in the progress toward achieving the SDGs. Furthermore, they demonstrate a negative impact of population size on the SDG performance of Italian municipalities, alongside positive effects of multiculturalism, location in the northern regions, and the level of tourism. The results significantly contribute to academic literature and hold important practical implications.

Suggested Citation

  • Nicola Raimo & Vitiana L'Abate & Arcangelo Marrone & Filippo Vitolla, 2025. "Toward sustainable cities: Assessing drivers of SDG performance in Italian municipalities," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(1), pages 554-564, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:sustdv:v:33:y:2025:i:1:p:554-564
    DOI: 10.1002/sd.3141
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.3141
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/sd.3141?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Vitiana L'Abate & Nicola Raimo & Francesco Albergo & Filippo Vitolla, 2024. "Social media to disseminate circular economy information. An empirical analysis on Twitter," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(1), pages 528-539, January.
    2. Júlia A. Nagy & József Benedek & Kinga Ivan, 2018. "Measuring Sustainable Development Goals at a Local Level: A Case of a Metropolitan Area in Romania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-15, October.
    3. Idiano D’Adamo & Massimo Gastaldi, 2023. "Monitoring the Performance of Sustainable Development Goals in the Italian Regions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-19, September.
    4. Filippo Vitolla & Vitiana L’Abate & Felice Petruzzella & Nicola Raimo & Antonio Salvi, 2023. "Circular Economy Disclosure in Sustainability Reporting: The Effect of Firm Characteristics," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-15, January.
    5. Hyunjung Ji & Nicole Darnall, 2022. "How do external conditions affect the design of local governments' sustainability strategies?," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(3), pages 910-929, July.
    6. Pedro-José Martínez-Córdoba & Nicola Raimo & Filippo Vitolla & Bernardino Benito, 2020. "Achieving Sustainable Development Goals. Efficiency in the Spanish Clean Water and Sanitation Sector," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-13, April.
    7. Benedetta Gesuele, 2016. "Municipalities and Facebook Use: Which Key Drivers? Empirical Evidence from Italian Municipalities," International Journal of Public Administration, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(10), pages 771-777, August.
    8. Idiano D’Adamo & Massimo Gastaldi, 2022. "Sustainable Development Goals: A Regional Overview Based on Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-15, August.
    9. Edward Freeman, R. & Phillips, Robert A., 2002. "Stakeholder Theory: A Libertarian Defense," Business Ethics Quarterly, Cambridge University Press, vol. 12(3), pages 331-349, July.
    10. Kjersti Granås Bardal & Mathias Brynildsen Reinar & Aase Kristine Lundberg & Maiken Bjørkan, 2021. "Factors Facilitating the Implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals in Regional and Local Planning—Experiences from Norway," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-19, April.
    11. Leonardo S. Alaimo & Filomena Maggino, 2020. "Sustainable Development Goals Indicators at Territorial Level: Conceptual and Methodological Issues—The Italian Perspective," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 147(2), pages 383-419, January.
    12. Rosa Puertas & Luisa Marti, 2023. "Regional analysis of the sustainable development of two Mediterranean countries: Spain and Italy," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(2), pages 797-811, April.
    13. United Nations UN, 2015. "Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development," Working Papers id:7559, eSocialSciences.
    14. Dalia Streimikiene & Biruta Svagzdiene & Edmundas Jasinskas & Arturas Simanavicius, 2021. "Sustainable tourism development and competitiveness: The systematic literature review," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(1), pages 259-271, January.
    15. Bernardino Benito & María‐Dolores Guillamón & Ana‐María Ríos, 2023. "The sustainable development goals: How does their implementation affect the financial sustainability of the largest Spanish municipalities," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(4), pages 2836-2850, August.
    16. Hans Verboven & Lise Vanherck, 2016. "Sustainability management of SMEs and the UN Sustainable Development Goals," Sustainability Nexus Forum, Springer, vol. 24(2), pages 165-178, November.
    17. Nicola Dempsey & Glen Bramley & Sinéad Power & Caroline Brown, 2011. "The social dimension of sustainable development: Defining urban social sustainability," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 19(5), pages 289-300, September.
    18. Nicola Raimo & Michele Rubino & Paolo Esposito & Filippo Vitolla, 2023. "Measuring quality of popular annual financial reports: Features of the rewarded US reporting municipalities," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(1), pages 17-27, January.
    19. Filippo Vitolla & Nicola Raimo & Michele Rubino & Antonello Garzoni, 2019. "The impact of national culture on integrated reporting quality. A stakeholder theory approach," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(8), pages 1558-1571, December.
    20. Nafila Dwi Mutiarani & Dodik Siswantoro, 2020. "The impact of local government characteristics on the accomplishment of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)," Cogent Business & Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 7(1), pages 1847751-184, January.
    21. Filippo Vitolla & Nicola Raimo & Michele Rubino & Antonello Garzoni, 2019. "How pressure from stakeholders affects integrated reporting quality," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(6), pages 1591-1606, November.
    22. da Cruz, Nuno Ferreira & Marques, Rui Cunha, 2014. "Revisiting the determinants of local government performance," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 91-103.
    23. Nicola Raimo & Giuseppe Nicolò & Vitiana L'Abate & Filippo Vitolla, 2024. "Analyzing the factors affecting university contributions to achieving the sustainable development goals in European Union countries," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(6), pages 6033-6044, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Tahir Yousaf & Muhammad Faisal Shahzad & Qurat ul Ain, 2025. "Evaluating the environmental impacts of Chinese decentralization policies toward SDG 13," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(1), pages 939-956, February.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Bernardino Benito & María‐Dolores Guillamón & Ana‐María Ríos & Javier Cifuentes‐Faura, 2025. "The relationship between culture and sustainable development goal compliance at the municipal level," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 33(1), pages 333-348, February.
    2. Bernardino Benito & María‐Dolores Guillamón & Ana‐María Ríos, 2023. "The sustainable development goals: How does their implementation affect the financial sustainability of the largest Spanish municipalities," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(4), pages 2836-2850, August.
    3. Idiano D'Adamo & Cristina Di Carlo & Massimo Gastaldi & Antonio Felice Uricchio, 2024. "Equitable and sustainable well‐being indicators: A study of Italian regional disparities towards sustainable development," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 32(5), pages 5538-5549, October.
    4. Nicola Raimo & Alessandra Caragnano & Marianna Zito & Filippo Vitolla & Massimo Mariani, 2021. "Extending the benefits of ESG disclosure: The effect on the cost of debt financing," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(4), pages 1412-1421, July.
    5. Luisa Marti & Roberto Cervelló‐Royo, 2023. "Disparities in sustainable development goals compliance and their association with country risk," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(4), pages 3038-3051, August.
    6. Nicola Raimo & Filippo Vitolla & Valentina Minutiello & Arcangelo Marrone & Patrizia Tettamanzi, 2022. "Readability of integrated reports: Evidence from worldwide adopters," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 29(3), pages 524-534, May.
    7. Jose Cuesta & Lucia Madrigal & Natalia Pecorari, 2024. "Social sustainability, poverty and income: An empirical exploration," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 36(3), pages 1789-1816, April.
    8. Vitiana L'Abate & Nicola Raimo & Francesco Albergo & Filippo Vitolla, 2024. "Social media to disseminate circular economy information. An empirical analysis on Twitter," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(1), pages 528-539, January.
    9. Camilla Salvatore & Silvia Biffignandi & Annamaria Bianchi, 2022. "Corporate Social Responsibility Activities Through Twitter: From Topic Model Analysis to Indexes Measuring Communication Characteristics," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 164(3), pages 1217-1248, December.
    10. Vitiana L'Abate & Nicola Raimo & Benedetta Esposito & Filippo Vitolla, 2024. "Examining the impact of circular economy disclosure on the cost of debt: A signaling theory approach via social media," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(5), pages 4007-4019, September.
    11. Nicola Raimo & Michele Rubino & Paolo Esposito & Filippo Vitolla, 2023. "Measuring quality of popular annual financial reports: Features of the rewarded US reporting municipalities," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(1), pages 17-27, January.
    12. Yanqi Sun, 2023. "Can the innovation in sustainability disclosures reflect organisational sustainable development? An integrated reporting perspective from China," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(3), pages 1668-1680, June.
    13. Baskaran Venkatesh & R Velkennedy, 2023. "Formulation of citizen science approach for monitoring Sustainable Development Goal 6: Clean water and sanitation for an Indian city," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(1), pages 56-66, February.
    14. Nessa Winston, 2022. "Sustainable community development: Integrating social and environmental sustainability for sustainable housing and communities," Sustainable Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 30(1), pages 191-202, February.
    15. Kim, Jinhee & de Leeuw, Evelyne & Harris-Roxas, Ben & Sainsbury, Peter, 2023. "Five urban health research traditions: A meta-narrative review," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 336(C).
    16. Filippo Vitolla & Nicola Raimo & Arcangelo Marrone & Michele Rubino, 2020. "The role of board of directors in intellectual capital disclosure after the advent of integrated reporting," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 27(5), pages 2188-2200, September.
    17. Łuczak, Aleksandra & Just, Małgorzata, 2021. "Sustainable development of territorial units: MCDM approach with optimal tail selection," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 457(C).
    18. Isabel-María García-Sánchez & Nicola Raimo & Arcangelo Marrone & Filippo Vitolla, 2020. "How Does Integrated Reporting Change in Light of COVID-19? A Revisiting of the Content of the Integrated Reports," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-11, September.
    19. Pablo González & Kirsten Sehnbruch & Mauricio Apablaza & Rocío Méndez Pineda & Veronica Arriagada, 2021. "A Multidimensional Approach to Measuring Quality of Employment (QoE) Deprivation in Six Central American Countries," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 158(1), pages 107-141, November.
    20. Boitumelo Caroline Rasethuntsa, 2024. "The Negative Spillover Effects Of Tourism On Society," Cactus - The tourism journal for research, education, culture and soul, Bucharest University of Economic Studies, vol. 6(1), pages 65-70.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:wly:sustdv:v:33:y:2025:i:1:p:554-564. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1099-1719 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.