The GreenItaly 2023 Report, realised by the Symbola Foundation and Unioncamere, with the collaboration of the Tagliacarne Study Centre and the patronage of the Ministry for the Environment and Energy Security, recounts an Italy that is already in the forefront of the green transition. An Italy that, by focusing on sustainability, innovation, territories and communities, is moving towards an economy on a more human scale and therefore more capable of facing crises. 

The fourteenth edition of the Report was presented in Rome on 31 October by Ermete Realacci, president of the Symbola Foundation, and Andrea Prete, president of Unioncamere; Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, Minister for the Environment and Energy Security, and Alessandro Rinaldi, director of studies and research at the Guglielmo Tagliacarne Chamber of Commerce Study Centre, attended the meeting.

Green companies cope better with crises 

The Report is a journey through numbers and stories of the Italian green economy that shows how sustainability can support companies in responding to crises and improving their competitiveness. 

"There are 510,000 Italian companies that have invested in the green economy in the last five years and there are 3.2 million greenjobs. - says Ermete Realacci - Accelerating investments in green transition and renewable energies increases financial stability as shown by the studies of the ECB and the Bank of Italy, gives strength to Made in Italy, reduces medium-term costs for families and businesses, and strengthens our energy independence. We are a European superpower of the circular economy and this makes us more competitive and capable of the future'. 

Andrea Prete, President of Unioncamere, goes on to say that 'GreenItaly, with its numbers and business stories, clearly highlights the commitment of the Italian production system to the green transition. Thanks to a trend of corporate investments in the direction of environmental sustainability that has not stopped even in the most difficult periods - such as those linked to the pandemic crisis and world conflicts - for years we have in fact been among the eco-leading countries in Europe'.

GreenItaly 2023 Report: eco-investments and green jobs 

Let us come to the data of the GreenItaly 2023 Report. In the five-year period 2018-2022, 510,830 companies made eco-investments, equal to 35.1% of the total, or more than 1 in 3. 

In terms of employment, at the end of last year, professional figures related to the green economy accounted for 13.9% of total employment, 3,222,000. In 2022, the contracts activated for these figures amounted to 1,816,120, 35.1% of the total contracts planned for the year (about 5.2 million), an increase of 215,660 units compared to the previous survey. 

Among the company areas most affected by the total number of activations are design and development (87% incidence), logistics (81.7%) and marketing and communication (79.2%). Looking more broadly at the demand for green skills and culture, in 2022 - out of a total of almost 5.2 million contracts expected in the labour market - this knowledge was considered necessary in 81.1% of cases, for about 4.2 million contracts. 

At a territorial level, the North-West is confirmed as the area with the highest number of green activations planned, 598,250 units in 2022, marking an increase of 13.5% over the previous year.

The most significant growth rate is recorded in the Centre, +15.9% between 2021 and 2022 (323,590 new green contracts at the end of the period), while growth is less than the national average in the South, +11.2% (453,620 green contracts).

In terms of green jobs, the North-West is once again the leader with 39.2%, followed by the North-East (35.4%), both with values above the national average (35.1%). Below the national average, on the other hand, is the Centre with 31.7% of green contracts out of the total macro-area and the South and Islands. 

At the regional level, Lombardy continues to stand out as the most dynamic region, with 421,170 new green jobs contracts expected in 2022 (up 14.7% compared to 2021). The first four regions in terms of number of green jobs activations (Lombardy, Veneto, Emilia-Romagna and Latium) account for 51.9% of new contracts. 

At a provincial level, Milan also marks the highest number of green activations in 2022 (186,360 contracts expected, equal to 10.3% of the total number of green jobs contracts on a national scale and 41% of the total activations expected in the province).

Circular economy: excellent results for Italy 

Italy is a leader in the circular economy and has the highest percentage of the total amount of waste, both urban and special: 83.4%, more than 30 percentage points higher than the European average, with a historic growth in the use of secondary materials in industrial sectors in the 2020-2021 period. 

An excellent result for the ecological transition and the development of an increasingly circular economy. On the subject of the circular economy, it should be noted that in 2022 Italy approved the National Strategy for the Circular Economy, which defines the following objectives: to foster the market for secondary raw materials; to extend the responsibility of producers and consumers; to spread sharing practices and the principle of 'product as a service'; and to define a roadmap of actions and objectives up to 2040. 

The strategy is part of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRP), with a specific allocation of EUR 2.1 billion to improve waste management and the circular economy through a package of investments and reforms, including the adoption of the National Strategy for the Circular Economy and the National Waste Management Plan.

GreenItaly 2023: the wood-furnishing sector companies 

The GreenItaly 2023 Report also recounts and highlights the experience of 36 of the wood-furnishing sector companies that are members of FederlegnoArredo. 

As we find written in the Report, the supply chain stands out for its commitment to sustainability: starting from the theme of environmental protection through the regeneration of natural habitats and the contribution to the improvement of the management of the national forest heritage, moving on to the increasing use of renewable raw materials or semi-finished products and consequently also the diffusion of circular business models and new Ecodesign criteria. 

FederlegnoArredo is one of the founding members of the Cluster Nazionale Italia Foresta Legno (Italian National Forest Wood Cluster), established in July 2023 to promote and support initiatives between the forestry world and the world of first and second wood processing. 

The Federation has also always been committed to the development of multiple projects in order to meet the different needs introduced by the green transition facing the wood-furniture sector at European level. The importance of the circular economy for companies is undeniable. This approach not only helps mitigate environmental problems, but also offers economic benefits and growth opportunities. Businesses that embrace circularity demonstrate that they are at the forefront of sustainability and can thrive in a world where responsibility amb