Businesses, supply chains, and consumers moving toward sustainability. The Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa hosts the final stage of the PNRR GRINS project

On Monday 24 and Tuesday 25 November, the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa will host the conference ‘Businesses, supply chains and consumers towards sustainability’, the final event of the PNRR GRINS - Growing Resilient, INclusive and Sustainable project. The initiative, scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m. in the Aula Magna of the Sant'Anna School, represents a privileged opportunity for discussion on the latest frontiers of research in the field of environmental, economic, and social sustainability. The conference will also offer an important networking opportunity between businesses, researchers, representatives of institutions, and the third sector, promoting new collaborations and the sharing of experiences and best practices.

During the event, a preview of the numerous tools, datasets, and innovations developed as part of the GRINS project will be presented, which will become fully available starting in the spring of 2026. Participation will be possible both in person and online, to allow broad and inclusive access to the project's content and results.

The GRINS project

Over the last two decades, Italy has faced economic, financial, and geopolitical crises, as well as a pandemic, which have profoundly affected the country's socio-economic fabric, accentuating inequalities and putting pressure on entire communities. In this context, businesses, families, and public administrations find themselves operating in conditions of great uncertainty and with often limited information resources.

The GRINS project aims to develop AMELIA (dAta platforM for the transfEr of knowLedge and statistIcal Analysis), an online platform that will provide access to high-quality data and advanced statistical and econometric analysis tools.

Through AMELIA, GRINS will produce validated data, research, and tools to support fundamental and applied research, businesses and households, and the analysis and evaluation of public policies.

The project integrates data on businesses, households, and institutions within an ecosystem of heterogeneous and georeferenced databases, useful for analyzing socio-economic, environmental, health, and financial trends at both the local and national levels.

GRINS also aims to bridge important gaps in the Italian system through technology and skills transfer actions—such as incubators, training courses, new start-ups, and spin-offs—with the goal of maximizing the project's impact across the entire country.

Spoke 1: businesses, consumers, and supply chains in the sustainable transition

Spoke 1, coordinated by the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, has as its main objective the evaluation and measurement of business strategies and consumer behaviors necessary to address the challenges of sustainability, with particular attention to environmental issues and paths towards the circular economy.

The approach adopted is multidisciplinary and integrates sustainable finance, production process management, consumer behavior analysis, and the study of global value chains and product end-of-life models.

The activities of Spoke 1, whose scientific advisor is Prof. Marco Frey, coordinator of the Interdisciplinary Research Center on Sustainability and Climate at the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, are divided into four flagship projects:

• Consumers and sustainability: a six-phase longitudinal study to analyze the evolution of consumer behavior and attitudes in response to changes in the socio-economic context.
• Digital configurator for business resilience: development of an innovative tool to support businesses in defining strategies for resilience and sustainability.
• Life Cycle Inventory (LCI): creation of LCI databases for various industrial and agri-food sectors, in line with the Made Green in Italy model.
• Measuring territorial sustainability: development of tools and guidelines to support the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Bank of Italy.

The conference program

During the first day (Monday, November 24), the results of the four Work Packages of Spoke 1 will be presented:

• WP1: strategies and tools to effectively engage consumers in the ecological and digital transition;
• WP2: improving the resilience of businesses to external shocks and environmental crises;
• WP3: efficiency in the circular management of resources along the value chain;
• WP4: creating value in local areas by supporting business sustainability.

Tuesday, November 25, will be dedicated to a discussion between the academic world and businesses with the round table “The impact of GRINS on the sustainability and resilience of Italian businesses”, with the participation of representatives from Barilla, Andriani, Casillo, Oropan, ART-ER, ENEA, Cartiere Carrara, Unioncamere, and Intesa Sanpaolo.

In the afternoon, the focus “Combating greenwashing: the experience of Made Green in Italy” will explore the opportunities and challenges of environmental communication, with presentations by Monia Niero, Fabio Iraldo, Francesco Testa (Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna), and Fiamma Valentino (Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security).

This will be followed by a round table discussion, moderated by Fabio Iraldo, with representatives from Altroconsumo, Codici, Confindustria Toscana Nord, Zucchi, and the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security.