Basse , F ancesco; Gia è, F ancesca
A icle
The sus ainabili y o social a ming: A s udy h ough he
Social Re u n on In es men me hodology (SROI)
I alian Re iew o Ag icul u al Economics (REA)
P o ided in Coope a ion wi h:
Fi enze Uni e si y P ess
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Basse , F ancesco; Gia è, F ancesca (2021) : The sus ainabili y o social a ming:
A s udy h ough he Social Re u n on In es men me hodology (SROI), I alian Re iew o Ag icul u al
Economics (REA), ISSN 2281-1559, Fi enze Uni e si y P ess, Flo ence, Vol. 76, Iss. 2, pp. 45-55,
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I alian Re iew o Ag icul u al Economics Vol. 76, n. 2: 45-55, 2021
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ISSN 0035-6190 (p in ) | ISSN 2281-1559 (online) | DOI: 10.36253/ ea-13096
REA ITALIAN REVIEW
OF AGRICULTURAL
ECONOMICS
ITALIAN REVIEW
OF AGRICULTURAL
ECONOMICS
Ci a ion: F ancesco Basse , F ances-
ca Gia è (2021) The sus ainabili y o social
a ming: a s udy h ough he Social
Re u n on In es men me hodology
(SROI). I alian Re iew o Ag icul u al
Economics 76(2): 45-55. DOI: 10.36253/
ea-13096
Recei ed: Oc obe 9, 2020
Re ised: Feb ua y 4, 2021
Accep ed: June 7, 2021
Copy igh : © 2021 F ancesco Basse ,
F ancesca Gia è. This is an open
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Da a A ailabili y S a emen : All el-
e an da a a e wi hin he pape and i s
Suppo ing In o ma ion iles.
Compe ing In e es s: The Au ho (s)
decla e(s) no con lic o in e es .
The sus ainabili y o social a ming: a s udy
h ough he Social Re u n on In es men
me hodology (SROI)
F ancesco Basse 1, F ancesca Gia è2
1 Uni e si y o Roma T e, I aly
2 CREA - Resea ch Cen e o Ag icul u al Policies and Bioeconomy, I aly
Abs ac . The aim o his pape is o s udy he sus ainabili y o Social a ming (SF),
wi h a en ion o p ac ices add essed people su e ing om addic ions. In his s udy
he Social Re u n on In es men (SROI) has been used as assessmen me hodology;
has been used, which is inc easingly used o app oach he quan i ica ion o social,
en i onmen al and economic bene i s on di e en ypes o in es men . The SF ac i i y
o he Ag icol u a Capoda co Coope a i e was s udied in o de o e alua e he ou -
come in mone a y e ms aking in o accoun all he bene icia ies in ol ed. The appli-
ca ion o SROI allowed o es ima e a e u n o in es men , coming mainly om he
social componen , anging om 1,89 o 4,10 imes, acco ding o he deg ee o conse -
a i eness o he es ima es. The s udy ex ends bo h he analysis o SF o people ca ego-
ies only ma ginally add essed be o e and he applica ion ields o SROI as assessmen
me hodology.
Keywo ds: sus ainabili y, social a ming, social inclusion, social e u n on in es men ,
quan i ica ion o social bene i .
JEL codes: Q15, Q18, Q19.
1. INTRODUCTION
Social Ag icul u e sus ainabili y is a majo new esea ch a ea in sus ain-
able economics, which is d i en by an inc easing in e es in he mul i unc-
ional ole o ag icul u e (OECD 2001; Casini, 2009) and in he economic,
en i onmen al and social bene i s associa ed wi h he ag icul u al sec o .
The alue o ag icul u e, when i shapes he landscape, con ibu ing o he
conse a ion o biodi e si y (Sche , McNeely, 2008; Henle e al., 2008; Tay-
leu e al., 2016), o ecological and hyd ogeological land p o ec ion (Bas iani,
2014), o he sus ainable managemen o na u al esou ces (Cla k e al., 2016)
and o he his o ical and cul u al he i age o local communi ies (e.g., P o-
ec ion and enhancemen o he landscape o he monumen al oli e ees o
Apulia by law – Apulia Region l. . 14/2007), goes beyond i s p ima y unc-
ion o p oducing ood and ibe . To hese en i onmen al, his o ical and cul-
u al alues o mul i unc ional ag icul u e, social ag icul u e u he adds
46 F ancesco Basse , F ancesca Gia è
he economic and social bene i s ela ed o i s peculia
cha ac e is ics o social inclusi i y, gende equali y, and
esponsible p oduc ion, which di ec ly con ibu e o he
Uni ed Na ions’ Sus ainable Goals De elopmen objec-
i e 8 (Deacon, 2016) and also objec i es 5, 10 and 12.
The phenomenon o Social Fa ming (he ea e , SF)
is egula ed by a b oad no ma i e amewo k which ol-
lows he e ical subsidia i y p inciple. A he Eu opean
le el he e is no no ma i e amewo k o de ine SF, e en
hough he need o he elabo a ion o an app op ia e
no ma i e amewo k o egula e i s ac i i ies, as well
as o coo dina e he policies and ins i u ions o he a i-
ous coun ies in his ield, has been ad oca ed (EESC,
2013). A a na ional le el, he law 141/2015 egula es he
unc ioning o SF, desc ibes i s ac i i ies and subjec s
and de ines i as: «one o he aspec s o he mul i unc-
ionali y o ag icul u al en e p ises aimed a he de el-
opmen o social, socio-sani a y, educa ional and social-
wo k in eg a ion in e en ions and se ices, in o de o
acili a e adequa e and uni o m access o he essen ial
se ices o be gua an eed o people, amilies and local
communi ies h oughou he na ional e i o y and in
pa icula in u al o disad an aged a eas». The di ec i e
e e s he law 381/1991 de ining he unc ions o Social
Coope a i es and he so-called disad an aged ca ego ies
o indi iduals.
Mo eo e , o he policies making signi ican con i-
bu ions o SF ha e been in oduced in he Regional S a-
egic Plan 2014-2020, including hose conce ning “Coop-
e a ion o he di e si ica ion o ag icul u al ac i i ies
in o social ac i i ies” (sub measu e 16.9), and hose con-
ce ning “De elopmen and di e si ica ion o ag icul u al
holdings and en e p ises” (sub measu e 6.4) (Gia è,2019).
SF has had a ema kable g ow h in he las ew yea s
in I aly, showing a di e si ica ion o ac o s, expe ience-
sand ecipien s (Gia è e al., 2018), e en i :
- he e is a ele an p esence o social coope a i es
and, o a lesse ex en , a ms; o he ypologies o
ac o s a e less common;
- he ac i i ies conce n all he ypologies de ined by
a . 2 o law 141/20151, wi h a p e alence o social
and wo king inclusion (Gia è e al., 2017);
1 A icle 2 o law 141/2015 de ines he ac i i ies: «a) socio-labo inse -
ion o wo ke s wi h disabili ies ‘and disad an aged wo ke s […], dis-
ad an aged pe sons […] and mino s o wo king age inse ed in p ojec s
o ehabili a ion and social suppo ; b) se ices and social ac i i ies and
se ices o local communi ies h ough he use o ma e ial and imma-
e ial esou ces o ag icul u e o p omo e, accompany and implemen
ac ions aimed a he de elopmen o skills and abili ies, social and labo
inclusion, ec ea ion and use ul se ices o e e yday li e; c) pe o -
mance and se ices ha accompany and suppo medical, psychologi-
cal and ehabili a i e he apies aimed a imp o ing he heal h condi-
ions and social, emo ional and cogni i e unc ions o hose conce ned,
including h ough he use o a med animals and plan cul i a ion; d)
- SF is aimed a di e en a ge g oups: people wi h
physical o psychic disabili ies, p isone s, d ug
addic s, young NEETs, elde ly, e ugees and asylum
seeke s, e c., bu he ac i i ies add essed o people
wi h disabili ies a e p e alen .
The aim o his a icle is o inc ease knowledge,
and o s imula e deba e, on me hodologies employed o
quan i y he o al bene i o social a ming as an inclu-
si e p ac ice a he social-wo k le el o he ca ego y o
people a ec ed by addic ions. In pa icula , he objec-
i es o his s udy we e:
- o analyse he impac o SF p ojec o people a ec -
ed by addic ion, o which he e a e ew s udies in
li e a u e;
- o unde s and o wha ex en he SF p ojec exam-
ined has an impac on he people a ec ed by addic-
ions;
- o es he sui abili y o he Social Re u n on In es -
men me hodology o he ca ego y o people unde
s udy and in his coun y;
- o analyse he sus ainabili y o he speci ic p ojec
conside ed.
To achie e hese objec i es, he Social Re u n on
In es men me hodology was used o he iden i ica ion
o inancial p oxies associa ing a mone a y alue wi h
e e y social and en i onmen al bene i , as ega ds he
p ojec “I u i della buona e a” o he “Ag icol u a
Capoda co” Coope a i e.
In his wo k, a e iew o he li e a u e a ailable on
SF will be gi en. Then we will b ie ly p esen he case
s udy, i.e. he a ms, speci ic p ojec analysed and he
me hodology used. Finally, he esul s will be p esen ed,
s a ing om he iden i ica ion o s akeholde s and he
cons uc ion o indica o s and inancial p oxies, o hen
a i e a he calcula ion o he SROI indica o and he
conclusion conside a ions on he esul s ob ained.
1.1. Li e a u e e iew
The li e a u e on he mul i unc ional ole o ag icul-
u e is b oad and shows a di e en ia ion be ween p ac-
ices ela ed o he ag icul u al wo ld and hose who
bene i om i . Some s udies ocus pa icula ly on he
well-being ole (Hassink, 2016) o ag icul u e acco ding
o ca ego ies o people wi h physical and men al disabili-
ies (Ga cia, 2018), while o he s show he impo ance o
p ojec s aimed a en i onmen al educa ion and nu i ion, he p ese a-
ion o biodi e si y ‘as well as’ he dissemina ion o knowledge o he
e i o y h ough he o ganiza ion o social a ms and educa ional ec-
ognized a he egional le el, such as ini ia i es o he ecep ion and
s ay o child en in age ‘p eschool and people in di icul y ‘social, phys-
ical and men al».
47
The sus ainabili y o social a ming: a s udy h ough he Social Re u n on In es men me hodology (SROI)
he inclusi e ole o SF o a plu ali y o ecipien s (Gia-
è, 2018), and h ough desc ip i e s udies on he cha ac-
e is ics o social a ms (Lan anchi, 2015; Bo gi e al.,
2019; To qua i e al., 2019). In any case, he inclusion o
hese p ac ices in Eu opean de elopmen plans (Scude i
e al., 2014) demons a es he impo ance ha is gi en a
he Eu opean le el o he phenomenon o social a m-
ing. In his con ex , he impo ance o e alua ing he
impac gene a ed by social coope a i es2 appea s e iden
(Zamagni e al., 2015). Mo eo e , he impo ance o an
app oach o he e alua ion o social a ming ega d-
ing i s impo ance in achie ing sus ainabili y objec i es
(Ma chis e al., 2019) was highligh ed (Leck, 2012; Leck
2014; Bo ghi e al., 2020). Howe e , he e a e many c i i-
cal issues ela ed o he me hodology o e alua ing he
p ac ices o social coope a i es (Ma chis e al., 2019),
which globally a e mainly ocusing on iden i ying he
bene i s o his phenomenon a he han on i s economic
quan i ica ion (Di Iaco o, 2020); in addi ion, in many
cases quali y o li e is he only indica o used o assess
he social bene i s de i ed om hese p ac ices (Janke ,
Mann, 2020). The e o e, i ollows ha he e is s ill a lack
o a gene al ag eemen on wha me hods should be used
o assess he mul i unc ionali y o ag icul u e and in
pa icula he social, en i onmen al and economic ben-
e i s de i ed om SF p ac ices.
In he li e a u e he e a e many s udies ha ha e
ied o p opose me hodologies o he e alua ion o
social impac s. I has been shown he need o a mo e
complex me hodology in espec o he mos common
Cos -Bene i Analysis (A idson e al., 2010; Mulgan,
2010). The la e , in ac , has some c i icali ies ega ding
he measu emen o bene i s ha a e di icul o mon-
e ize, such as social ones (Co des, 2017). Some s udies
ha e in oduced he use o he Social Impac Assess-
men (Becke , 2001) o e alua e de elopmen p ojec s
in ag icul u al dispu es (Ahmad an e al., 2009), while
o he s ha e p oposed a SWOT analysis (Fo i e al., 2013)
o he Social En e p ise Impac E alua ion (Zamagni e
al., 2015) o assess he social impac gene a ed by social
coope a i es.
In he las yea s, he quan i a i e assessmen o
SF’s social bene i s has been highligh ed in ecen s ud-
ies, which ha e used, as me hodology, he Social Re u n
on In es men (Leck, 2012; Leck 2014). The use o his
me hodology has so a been limi ed, in mos cases (e.g.,
2 In he I alian legisla ion, Social Coope a i es a e de ined by he law
381/1991, which, a a icle 1, pa ag aph 1 de ines: «Social coope a i es
ha e he pu pose o pu suing he gene al in e es o he communi y o
human p omo ion and social in eg a ion o ci izens h ough: he man-
agemen o social, heal h and educa ional se ices [..]; he pe o mance
o di e en ac i i ies - ag icul u al, indus ial, comme cial o se ices -
aimed a he employmen o disad an aged people».
Tulla, 2018; Leck, 2014), o he ca ego y o people wi h
men al and physical disabili ies and i s applicabili y o
o he ca ego ies, such as p isone s and o me p isone s,
people a ec ed by dependencies and mig an s, among
o he s, has s ill o be ully explo ed. Ne e heless, he
esul s achie ed so a , using Social Re u n on In es -
men as assessmen me hodology, ha e shown ha social
a ming p ac ices a e mo e han sus ainable o people
wi h physical o men al disabili ies, wi h a social e u n
o 2.8 – 3 imes he in es men (Leck, 2014; Tulla, 2018;
espec i ely).
Cu en ly, Social Re u n on In es men , al hough
no e y widesp ead, has shown o be an app op i-
a e me hodology o e alua ing p ojec s ha gene a e
impo an social and en i onmen al bene i s, in addi ion
o he economic ones, and gi ing a comple e and quan-
i a i e e alua ion o he p ojec ’s ou comes (Nicholls e
al., 2009). Social Re u n on In es men is likely o be
an app op ia e me hodology o he s udy o he social
a ming p ac ices on all use ca ego ies, bu s ill equi es
alida ion es s on hose use ca ego ies, such as ha o
use s a ec ed by addic ions, which ha e ecei ed li le
a en ion, so a .
2. THE CASE STUDY
The sus ainabili y o SF has been s udied by analyz-
ing a speci ic p ojec ealized by a social a m, loca ed
in Lazio egion. In his egion SF has been included as a
p ac ice o egional de elopmen . (l. . 7/2018).
The social coope a i e “Ag icol u a Capoda co”,
ounded 40 yea s ago in he municipali y o G o a e -
a a, has been selec ed o he s udy, since i has been
p og essi ely dis inguished o i s social p ojec s ela -
ed o ag icul u e. This a m s ands ou no only o he
a en ion on i s cus ome s and on he en i onmen ,
wi h o ganic p oduc ion (b eeding and zoo echnics,
beekeeping, ui g owing, ho icul u e, oli e g owing,
wine-g owing, di ec sales and ag i ou ism), bu also
o nume ous ac i i ies wi h social pu poses, such as
social-wo k inclusion o disad an aged people, educa-
ional a ms, psycho-social he apeu ic ac i i ies. SF is
conside ed by he Coope a i e as he main way o gene -
a e well-being o he local communi y and o ca y ou
socially ele an in e en ions aimed a people in condi-
ions o ha dship.
In he p esen s udy, he ocus is on a speci ic “Ag i-
col u a Capoda co” p ojec o SF named “I u i della
buona e a” since i was aimed a he occupa ional
ein eg a ion o people a ec ed by di e en ypes o
dependencies, mainly by d ugs, h ough one-yea wo k
48 F ancesco Basse , F ancesca Gia è
and aining g an s. The p ojec , las ing 10 mon hs, was
s a ed in 2017 as a collabo a ion among Ag icol u a
Capoda co, he Municipali y o Velle i and he Vel-
le i Public Se ices o pa hological addic ions o he
Na ional Heal h Sys em (he ea e , Se . D) and epea -
ed e e y yea . The p ojec “I u i della buona e a” is
s uc u ed in o wo di e en phases:
- phase 1 ( i s h ee mon hs): se ing he ins i u ion-
al ne wo k in ol ing he p ojec pa ne s, ainees
(he ea e , use s) and small a ms ac i e in he Vel-
le i pe i-u ban a ea, which we e a ailable o he
aining and wo king s ages o he pa icipan s o
he p ojec ;
- phase 2 (se en mon hs): on he job aining and
wo king s age in he selec ed a ms.
Rega ding he a ms in ol ed, i should be empha-
sized ha a ma ch he pa icipan s and he a ms based
on he in e es s and a ailable ac i i ies. The e o e, he
chosen companies included a ms, bo h o ganic and
non-o ganic, bu also o he companies linked o he
ag icul u al sec o , such as hose in ol ed in ca e ing
and g een main enance ac i i ies.
3. THE METHODOLOGY
The me hodology used in his s udy is he Social
Re u n on In es men (he ea e SROI; Nicholls, 2009),
which in eg a es he social, economic and en i onmen-
al alues o he in es men s on he SF exp essing alues
in inancial e ms (Nicholls e al., 2009), as cha ac e is ic
o mos economic app oaches (Bonazzi, 2005; Fujiwa a,
Campbell, 2011).
Gi en he in e es in analysing a speci ic p ojec
and no he wo k o he whole Ag icol u a Capoda co
coope a i e, he SROI was conside ed he mos sui able
me hod. In addi ion, he SROI me hodology was chosen
because i allows o quan i y he social bene i s a a mon-
e a y le el, which was an objec i e o he s udy. Finally, i
equi es a high le el o s akeholde in ol emen .
The SROI is composed by sequen ial phases: 1. iden-
i ying he main s akeholde s o he SA ini ia i e; 2.
mapping he posi i e ou comes o e e y s akeholde ;
3. de ining p ope quan i a i e indica o s o e e y ou -
come; 4. selec ing he mos compelling inancial p oxies
o each indica o ; and, 5. es ima ing he inancial posi-
i e impac o e e y ou come o each o he iden i ied
s akeholde s. The SROI is e alua ed as he a io o inan-
cial gain and inancial cos s o he SF ini ia i e.
Ou comes, indica o s and p oxies clea ly depend
on he ca ego y o use s conside ed, on he s akehold-
e s in ol ed, on he ype o ag icul u al p ac ices and
on hei loca ion in u ban, pe i-u ban o u al a eas.
Guidelines and p oposals o se ing ou comes, indica-
o s and p oxies a e a ailable in he li e a u e as books,
manuals and published pape s (Leck, 2014), e en hough
adap a ion o bo h ou comes and indica o s o he spe-
ci ic ca ego ies o subjec s, s akeholde s and SF consid-
e ed can be equi ed.
The e a e wo ypes o SROI analysis (Nicholls e al.,
2009): e alua i e, conduc ed ex-pos and based on ou -
comes al eady achie ed; and, p edic i e, o p edic how
much social alue will be c ea ed i he ac i i ies achie e
he expec ed ou comes. In iew o he cyclic pe iodici y
o he “I u i della buona e a” p ojec , which has been
eplica ed yea ly since 2017 on di e en use g oups, in
he p esen s udy he SROI analysis has been implemen -
ed by in eg a ing bo h ypes o analysis. An e alua i e
SROI analysis was ca ied ou on he h ee cycles ha
ha e al eady been implemen ed (in 2017, 2018, and 2019)
and a p edic i e SROI analysis was es ima ed as a sce-
na io o he nex yea ly cycles, in iew o he possible
ex ension o he p ojec o a second h ee-yea pe iod.
This s udy has been ca ied ou on 13 pa icipan s
o he p ojec in he h ee yea s conside ed, wi h 2 use s
pa icipa ing o mo e han one yea cycle, and has con-
side ed all s akeholde s di ec ly o indi ec ly in ol ed
in he p ojec , i.e. he use s, he p ojec p opose (Ag i-
col u a Capoda co), p ojec pa ne s (Velle i munici-
pali y and Se .D.), he small a ms whe e he use s had
hei aining and wo king s ages, and he en i on-
men . The la e has been included as a s akeholde ol-
lowing he UN Uni e sal Decla a ion on he Righ s o
Mo he Ea h, (law on he Righ s o Mo he Ea h, law
71 o Decembe 2010 [Uni e sal Decla a ion o Righ s
o Mo he Ea h, 2010]) and ecen s udies (S one, 2010;
Boyd, 2011, 2012; Ca ducci, 2017), which indica e he
en i onmen as a subjec wi h legal pe sonali y.
Fo all s akeholde ca ego ies, excep he en i on-
men , da a collec ion has been ca ied ou h ough guid-
ed ques ionnai es add essed o all he s akeholde s, who
ga e he a ailabili y o he in e iew and pa icipa ing
o he s udy. In e iewed we e all bu wo use s, he s a
o Ag icol u a Capoda co and o he small companies
in ol ed in he p ojec s, ep esen a i es o he Velle i
municipali y and o he Se .D. All majo ac o s om
e e y s akeholde ca ego y in ol ed in he “I u i della
buona e a” p ojec bu wo ha e accep ed o be in e -
iewed. A o al o 21 people we e in e iewed: 11 o he
13 ecipien s, one Ag icol u a Capoda co social educa-
o , who was managing he p ojec , he esponsible o
hese kind o ac ions in he Velle i municipali y, wo
social wo ke s o he Velle i Se .D. and he six esponsi-
ble o he a ms in ol ed.

49
The sus ainabili y o social a ming: a s udy h ough he Social Re u n on In es men me hodology (SROI)
The ou comes o bo h e alua i e and p edic i e
SROI ha e been iden i ied h ough he answe s o he
guided ques ionnai es. Con en analysis was done manu-
ally and ocused on he meaning and seman ic ela ion-
ship o wo ds and concep s ega ding indica o s. P oxies
and p oxy inancial quan i ica ion we e de i ed om he
in e iews and om he a ailable li e a u e, including
he p ojec documen a ion o “I u i della buona e a”.
4. THE RESULTS
Wi hin he p ojec , he s akeholde s iden i ied ha e
di e en oles: he use s, ep esen ed by he pa ien s
unde ea men a he Se .D. o Velle i, which a e he
main bene icia ies o he p ojec , Ag icol u a Capoda -
co, he Municipali y o Velle i, he Se . D o Velle i,
who designed and implemen ed he p ojec , and p i a e
companies, as hey o e he in e nships o he use s and
supply hem wi h aining. E en i mos a e se ice p o-
ide s, only he Municipali y o Velle i is inancing he
p ojec , wi h an in es men o € 100,343.33 pe yea .
The iden i ica ion o he ou comes, he indica o s
and he inancial p oxies ep esen he i s esul s o
his s udy, hey a e shown in Table 1.
In e iews wi h use s showed ha o all o hem
he majo changes (i.e., ou comes) de ec ed a e imp o ed
quali y o li e, g ea e likelihood o inding a job and less
social isola ion.
The esul s on use s we e es ima ed on a quan i a i e
analysis o he ollowing indica o s and p oxies:
1. The imp o emen o he quali y o li e de i es bo h
om economic ac o s, such as paymen de i -
ing om he in e nships, and psychological ac o s,
which ha e always weighed on his ype o subjec s,
ha ing led mos o hei li es in deg aded si ua ions.
The indica o used o assess his ou come is p ecisely
he amoun o money gained om he wo k g an
(in e nship), wi h which hey can li e a mo e com-
o able li e.
2. Use s a e mos likely o ind a job because hey ha e
lea ned new job skills wi hin his p ojec . In addi-
ion, mos ha e said hey had good ela ionships
wi h colleagues and employe s, and his has con-
eyed g ea e sel -con idence, as hey now eel able
o ace in e iews, o a leas ind hemsel es in new
job si ua ions. The app oach chosen o he measu e-
men and he choice o his indica o is he numbe
o con ac s ha ha e been signed by use s a e
pa icipa ing in he p ojec . The p oxy used is he
sala y ecei ed by he use s who ha e ound a job.
Since his is a p obabili y, he a io be ween he peo-
ple who ound wo k and all hose who pa icipa ed
in he p ojec was calcula ed and mul iplied by he
a e age sala y obse ed.
3. The educ ion o social isola ion de i es om he
ac ha all use s ha e s a ed ha hey eel men ally
be e , ha hey ha e g ea e sel -es eem and ha
hey eel like hey ha e de eloped iendships, as
well as p o essional ela ionships wi hin he p ojec .
In some cases, hey s a ed ha hey ha e s a ed o
ge ou o hei home again, o go o he supe ma -
ke and o ake public anspo . All hese ac o s
demons a e an imp o emen in people’s psychologi-
cal s a e, which has enabled hem o eme ge, a leas
in pa , om he social isola ion hey we e in. The
app oach o e alua ion is gi en by he lowe numbe
o sessions o psychological eco e y and i is cal-
cula ed by es ima ing he a e age cos o hese ses-
sions.
The e u n o he Capoda co Coope a i e has been
es ima ed om he ou come o an in e iew wi h he
u o o he Capoda co Ag icul u e Coope a i e, om
which i eme ged ha he g ea es bene i ob ained by
he coope a i e is he inc ease in social alue de i ing
om he success ul placemen o jobs. This ce ainly
de i es om he ac ha he company’s mission is p e-
cisely o help people who ind hemsel es in ha sh posi-
ions o li e a mo e com o able li e. The indica o cho-
sen is he numbe o success ul social wo k en ies and
as a p oxy, he cos sa ings o he u o , who will be
able o ollow new use s.
The e u n o Se .D. has been es ima ed based on
he social and wo k in eg a ion o he use s, de ining
he ou come on he educ ion o he p obabili y ha he
use s ha e a elapse in o hei addic ion. The in e iews
ca ied ou wi h a social wo ke allowed o de ine as an
economic p oxy he educ ion o cos s o p e en he
sp ead o in ec ious diseases ypical o his ca ego y o
subjec s, such as HIV and hepa i is C. This indica o has
been es ima ed in a p edic i e way, gi en he small num-
be o use s analyzed, and is calcula ed on he a e age
numbe o hospi al admissions o his ca ego y o sub-
jec s. The measu emen is gi en by he p obabili y ha
a Se .D. pa ien has con ac ed he disease, mul iplied by
he a e age cos o hospi aliza ion. P e ious li e a u e
shows ha he lowe p obabili y o a elapse may esul
in a lowe cos o medicines, esul ing om he lowe
use in mo e ad anced phases o he apy, which is ano h-
e indica o used o calcula e he ou come desc ibed
abo e (Se pelloni, 2006). The p oxy ha ep esen s his
indica o , and allows us o measu e i , is he cos o
medicines used in he apy. Finally, a inal indica o ha
can be used is ha o he cos sa ings esul ing om he
50 F ancesco Basse , F ancesca Gia è
ewe medical examina ions ha indi iduals mus do
because o hei heal h si ua ion.
Fo he Municipali y o Velle i, in ended no only
as a public ins i u ion, bu also as a landma k o he
local communi y and as he place o esidence o he
subjec s, he e u n on in es men was measu ed on
h ee di e en ou comes ha exp ess an impo an
social bene i cohe en wi h wha was s a ed in he in e -
Tab. 1. Impac Map.
S akeholde Inpu Ou come Index Possible p oxy Economic alue
Use s Imp o ing quali y o li e Access o wo k g an Sala y om wo k g an 400€*mon h*use s=
68,000€
Highe p obabili y o
inding a job
Pos -employmen g an
con ac Pos -sale con ac sala y
800€*mon h*0,059 use
450€*mon h*0,059 use
=10,588.2€
Reduc ion o social
isola ion
Numbe o sessions
psychological eco e y
Lowe social cos s
psychological eco e y 15€*mon h*use = 1,650€

Coope a i e
o Capoda co Inc eased company
social alue
Numbe o social and
wo k placemen s Sa ings in u o ing cos s 67,76€*mon h*use =
67,76€*10*2= 1,355.2€
Fa ms Dec ease in p oduc ion
cos s
T aineeships h ough
wo k g an Labou cos sa ings 400€*mon h*use =
68,000€
Inc eased epu a ion Inc eased sales Highe e enues 0,05* use labou cos
=3,400€
Se .D.  Reduced p obabili y o
elapse o pa ien s
Numbe o isi s o he
doc o
Cos o medical
examina ion 40*4=160*use = 2,720€
Reduc ion in he use o
medicines Cos o medicines Da 0*day*mon h = 0€
A 0,9€*day*use = 4,590€
Reduc ion numbe o
admissions
Cos o hospi aliza ions
o in ec ious diseases 1024€x0,054= 55,30€
En i onmen  Inc eased incidence o
o ganic a ming
Mo e ca e ul
managemen o na u al
esou ces and less use o
chemical inpu s
Reduc ion o
en i onmen al isks 10€*mon h*use = 200€
1099€*h *yea =
1099€*10*3= 32,970€
  Lowe CO2 emissions Reduc ion o CO2
emissions
Economic alue no
es ima ed by company
size and ype
Expansion o Social
Fa ming P ac ices
Reduc ion o abandoned
land
Be e hyd o-geological
con ol and less i e isk
Economic alue no
es ima ed by company
size and ype
Municipali y
o Velle i
P ojec unding o e 3
yea s = € 100,343.33
Reduced likelihood o
his ca ego y commi ing
o ences and en e ing he
p ison sys em
Lowe de en ion cos s Cos o an inma e o he
local p ison sys em
0,0128*use *daily
cos *yea = 9,831.50€

Reduc ion o d ug
pu chase Reduced use o d ugs D ug cos s
68€*day/week*use
= om 38,896€ o
272,272€
C ea ion o ac i e
wo ke s
Mo e money injec ed
in o he local economy
Pe cen age o sala y
spen in he local
communi y
0,8*400€*mon h* use =
54,400€
Sou ce: ou elabo a ion.
51
The sus ainabili y o social a ming: a s udy h ough he Social Re u n on In es men me hodology (SROI)
iew by he head o he H5 Zone Plan o he Municipal-
i y o Velle i:
1. The dec ease in d ug ela ed c imes o his ca ego y
o use s, which now a e ecei ing a sala y and a e
less p opense o elapse in o addic ion. The indica-
o used was he lowe cos o imp isonmen ha he
local p ison sys em has o bea , and was measu ed
by he p oxy ha exp esses he a io be ween he
numbe o d ug addic s held annually in he I alian
p ison sys em and he o al numbe o d ug addic s
in I aly. The esul s a e mul iplied by he a e age
daily cos pe inma e and hen mul iplied by he
numbe o days in a yea .
2. The decline in pu chases o d ugs on he black ma -
ke . The indica o p oposed o measu e his is he
change in he cos o d ugs on he ma ke (Se pello-
ni, 2006). Two di e en p oxies ha e been calcula ed
depending on he conse a i eness o he alua ion.
The mos conse a i e is based on addic s who use
weekly, he less conse a i e is based on addic s who
use daily. The cos o he dose is hen mul iplied by
one yea and by he numbe o use s in he s udy.
3. The c ea ion o an ac i e popula ion, conside ing
ha p io o he p ojec he subjec s ha e no had a
job, le alone we e looking o i , o a long ime. I
has been calcula ed h ough he p oxy ha exp esses
he pe cen age o income ha subjec s a e es ima ed
o spend wi hin he communi y abou 80% o he
sala y ecei ed om he wo k g an .
Rega ding he companies o e ing he in e nship
se ice, as men ioned in he p e ious chap e , hei
bene i is o ha e an unpaid wo ke a ailable o hem.
Thei bene i is he sa ing o labo cos s, which was cal-
cula ed by mul iplying he income, assuming ha hey
would pay a wo ke o he same hou s pe o med by
use s wi h he same sala y, mul iplied by he numbe
o mon hs and by he numbe o use s. Ano he ben-
e i ha could be seen is a sligh inc ease in sales caused
by he so-called epu a ional e ec . I was calcula ed
h ough an es ima e o he 5% inc ease in companies’
e enues, which in he absence o da a we e es ima ed o
be a leas equal o he labo cos s.
Finally, in e iews wi h he wo a me s who ha e
o ganic a ms showed how Social Fa ming p ojec s can
ha e impo an e ec s on he en i onmen . As o gan-
ic a ming has e y high p oduc ion cos s, especially
when compa ed o he la ge scale cos s o adi ional
la ge a ms, he economic bene i s o pa icipa ing in
p ojec s such as he one unde s udy could be an incen-
i e o shi local ag icul u al p oduc ion mo e owa ds
o ganic p oduc s. This would cause an inc ease in he
bene i s ha de i e om o ganic p oduc ion, such as
he dec ease in en i onmen al isks caused by xenobi-
on s which a e eleased om chemicals used as pes i-
cides in adi ional ag icul u al p oduc ion and slow
down he decomposi ion o o ganic ma e . Ano he
posi i e e ec in o ganic a ming is he dec ease in CO2
eleased in o he a mosphe e by he chemicals used. The
nega i e e ec o xenobion s on soil and wa e bac e-
ia, and mic o ungi can be es ima ed as a 10% loss o
he decomposi ion a e o dead o ganic ma e (Abelho
e al., 2016) which can a ec he elease o 70% o he
nu ien s i con ains, ne o he 30% loss due o leaching.
A 7% educ ion in ecosys em se ice “nu ien cycliza-
ion” can he e o e be es ima ed a € 15,715 pe hec a e
as an a e age in he biosphe e (Cos anza e al., 1997).
Once he alues o he a ious ou comes ha e been
calcula ed, 10% o he alue is sub ac ed o hose ou -
comes ha could also occu ou side he p ojec , i.e. o :
- Inc ease in e enues o companies de i ing om he
epu a ional e ec , as pa o i may no e en de i e
om he AS p ojec in which hey pa icipa ed.
- Reduc ion o he p obabili y o elapse since i is
p esumable ha pa o his change could ha e
occu ed e en wi hou pa icipa ion in he p ojec .
- Reduc ion in he p obabili y o his ca ego y com-
mi ing d ug- ela ed c imes, as i is p esumable ha
he ca ego y unde s udy does no all in o addic ion
beyond he pa icipa ion o non-pa icipa ion in he
p ojec , i is equally p esumable ha hey do no
commi c imes.
- Reduc ion in he pu chase o d ugs, as he same
conside a ions ha e been made o he wo poin s
p eceding his one.
No d op-o alue has been sub ac ed because he
longe he du a ion o he change, he g ea e he e ec
o he ou come.
Be o e p oceeding wi h he calcula ion o he SROI
indica o we summa ize he o al economic alues, ne
o deadweigh alues, by s akeholde ca ego y (Tab. 2).
Acco ding he SROI, economic bene i s a e hose
wi h a emune a ion o cos sa ings, social bene i s hose
wi h an e ec on he quali y o li e o s akeholde s o he
local communi y and, inally, en i onmen al bene i s a e
hose wi h posi i e e ec on na u al capi al.
The e o e, he ca ego y o use s has a o al bene i o
€ 80,238.2, esul ing om an economic bene i o 68,000,
co esponding o he alue o wages ea ned (Tab. 1), and
a social bene i o € 12,238.2 esul ing om he sum o
he alues co esponding o he g ea e p obabili y o
inding wo k in he u u e and he educ ion o social
isola ion. “Ag icol u a Capoda co” Coope a i e p esen s
a o al bene i o € 1,355.2 composed solely o he eco-
nomic dimension, as i co esponds o he alue de i -
52 F ancesco Basse , F ancesca Gia è
ing om he lowe cos o u o ing, w i en o by 10%.
The a ms also p esen a o al bene i composed en i e-
ly o he economic dimension, as i co esponds o he
alue o he sa ings on he cos o he wo ke . The Se .D
o Velle i and he Municipali y o Velle i, on he o he
hand, p esen a o al bene i o € 7,365.3 and € 103,127.5
espec i ely, composed o bo h en i ely o he social
dimension. These esul s a e due o he ou comes iden i-
ied o hese s akeholde s ha ha e e ec s on he local
communi y and on he use s’ sociali y. The economic
alues o hese ou comes ha e been sub ac ed om he
10% esul ing om deadweigh . The en i onmen has a
o al bene i o 33,170, easily iden i iable as an en i on-
men al bene i .
The ne social e u n, acco ding o he mos con-
se a i e hypo hesis, which is calcula ed by sub ac ing
he alue o he inpu s (€ 100,343.33), co esponding o
he alue o he ini ial in es men by he Municipali y o
Velle i, om he o al ou come (€ 290,706.92), is he e-
o e € 190,363.59, wi h a SROI index alue o 1.89 (ne
social e u n/ini ial in es men ).
In his conse a i e es ima e, which conside s he
consump ion o one dose pe week by an a e age use ,
he SROI a io will ha e a measu e o 1: 1.89, which
means ha o e e y eu o in es ed wi hin he p ojec ,
he e will be a social e u n on in es men o one eu o
and eigh y-nine cen s. Es ima ing ins ead he daily con-
sump ion, ins ead o weekly, o one dose pe use , he
SROI a io would ha e a measu e o 1: 3.99, wi h a social
e u n o ou eu os and en cen s o each eu o in es ed.
5. DISCUSSION OF RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS
The s udy aimed o e alua e he o e all alue o SF
as a ool o he inclusion o disad an aged g oups o
popula ion. In his app oach, he wo k ep esen s an
impo an sou ce o li elihood o hese people and an
oppo uni y o acili a e hei social inclusion. Indeed,
he o e all alue o Social Fa ming mus necessa -
ily combine he economic epo o he wo ke and he
company wi h a social epo ha conside s he e ec s
o changes (ou come) on all he s akeholde s in ol ed.
Fo his eason, he Social Re u n on In es men me h-
odology, which appea s o be he mos sui able and
applied in kind o s udies, was applied in he s udy. The
impo ance o his me hodology lies in he ac ha i
seeks o gi e an economic alue o hose social bene i s
ha was p e iously di icul o es ima e and subjec ed o
s ong bias o e en dis o ion in he assessmen o asso-
cia ed alues (A idson e al., 2013).
The esul s ob ained show i s o all ha , depending
on he conse a ism o he es ima es desc ibed abo e,
he SF p ojec shows a social e u n on in es men o €
1.89 o € 3.99 o each eu o in es ed. Secondly, i should
be no ed ha a ound he 90% o he o al social e u n
on in es men is concen a ed on h ee ca ego ies o
s akeholde s, he disad an aged people, he companies
o e ing he in e nship se ice and he local communi y,
indica ing a wide and dis ibu ed social impac o he
in es men . This also shows how SF p ojec s a e impo -
an o he pe sonal g ow h, no only o he use s bu
also o he communi y o which hey a e pa . In ac ,
he da a conce ning he use s o e s a e y posi i e pic-
u e, e lec ed in he imp o emen o hei quali y o
li e, bo h om an economic, hanks o he sala y ha
allows hem o li e a mo e com o able li e, and om a
social poin o iew hanks o he nume ous p o ession-
al and iendship ela ionships ha hey ha e been able
o de elop wi hin he p ojec and ha e allowed hem o
ha e a lowe le el o social isola ion.
The analysis o sus ainabili y in i s h ee dimen-
sions, social, economic and en i onmen al, emphasizes
ha as ega ds “I u i della buona e a” p ojec almos
all sus ainabili y is gi en by he social and economic
dimensions, and jus sligh ly mo e han 10% by he en i-
Tab. 2. Value o bene i o each s akeholde ne o deadweigh alues (10%) and acco ding o he mo e conse a i e hypo hesis o a educ-
ion in d ug pu chase spending a a a e o 1 dose pe week.
S akeholde Economic bene i Social bene i En i onmen al bene i To al
Use s 68,000 12,238.2 80,238.2
Ag icol u a Capoda co 1,355.2 1,355.2
Fa ms 71,060 71,060
Se .D. Velle i 6,628.77 6,628.77
En i onmen 33,170 33,170
Municipali y o Velle i 98,254.75 98,254.75
 140,415.2 117,121.72 33,170 290,706.92
Sou ce: ou elabo a ion.