Legambiente, founded on 1980, is the most widespread environmental organization in Italy, with its headquarter in Rome, 20 Regional branches, more than 1.000 local groups in the whole country and more than 110.000 members and activists. Legambiente is one of the leading member of EEB (European Environmental Bureau) the Federation of European environmental organisation, and of IUCN – the World Conservation Union. Legambiente is also member of CIPRA (International Commission for the Protection of the Alps), of the Forest Stewardship Council and Federparchi (Italian Federation of Parks and Natural Reserves).

Legambiente’s hallmark is the scientific environmentalism, which is the willingness to build every environmental protection project on a solid base made of scientific data. Legambiente mission is to make the environmental culture the centre of a new kind of development and diffused well-being. Important values for the association are the improvement of environmental quality, the fight against all forms of pollution, a wise use of natural resources, the construction of a more balanced relationship between human beings and the nature. Legambiente is engaged in educational policies and awareness campagins on multiple fronts. Each year our experts run several campaigns where children and parents together collaborate to improve schools and cities liveability and safety.

Legambiente carried out several projects financed by European Commission, as partner and as coordinator, since 1999.

The Institute of Atmospheric Pollution Research of the National Research Council of Italy (CNR IIA) is involved in national and international networks of excellence and provides high scientific consulting in several sectors related to Air Quality. Research topics include emission, transport and fate of pollutants in urban and remote areas, observational and legislative strategies of impact evaluation on ecosystems, integrated observational networks and air quality models, socio-economic analyses for the implementation of European directives and international treaties. In the framework of climate changes mitigation, CNR IIA is currently involved in several European and National research projects aimed at evaluating and reducing the environmental impact of bioenergies, and promoting the production renewable energy at a local and EU level. In this sector, research activities also include the development of novel methodologies and prototypes for biomass gassification and tar removal, anaerobic digestion, digestate drying, wastewater denitrification and biogas cleaning and upgrading to biomethane.

IRCrES-CNR (Institute of Research on Sustainable Economic Growth, Italian National Research Council, formerly CERIS-CNR until October 2014) is an economic research institute belonging to CNR (National Research Council of Italy). IRCrES’ permanent staff consists of 60 people distributed in four units (Moncalieri, Genoa, Milan, and Rome). The main fields of research are: Firm strategy and industrial structure; Studies in industrial organisation; Local development dynamics (industrial districts and clusters); Studies on innovation, natural resources and the environment; Technological innovation and competitiveness. The Milan Unit of IRCrES is specialised in the analysis of economic, social and technological consequences of environmental change and environmental policies. In these fields, the Milan Unit carries out externally funded research projects for Italian and European institutions as well as private firms. The IRCrES Milan Unit also cooperates with other CNR’ environmental institutes, at present: IRPICNR (Institute of Research for Hydro-Geological Protection); IDPA (Institute for the Dynamics of Environmental Processes; ICT (Construction Technologies Institute); IIA (Institute on Atmospheric Pollution Research).

IRCrES is leader of a national project on ‘The economic evaluation of natural disasters in Italy’ (2014-2017), in partnership with IRPI-CNR, IDPA-CNR, INGV, and SEEDS (Sustainability, Environmental Economics and Dynamics, interuniversity research center). IRCrES cooperates with ITC-CNR for the definition of a measurement protocol of urban sustainability in Italy.

Chimica Verde bionet (Green Chemistry bionet) is a no-profit organization that promotes and develops, according to ecological and sustainable criteria, the research, the application and the dissemination of industrial products based on plant or animal raw materials, taking into account the whole production pathway and the environmental fate at the end of their life-cycle.

Chimica Verde Bionet was founded on March 2006 from a group of public researchers and Legambiente (the bigger Italian environmental association). Chimica Verde bionet is open to public and private companies, legal persons and other categories, after the procedure of reporting a clear description of their activities in a “Commitment Charter ” and after the positive opinion of the board of directors.

Chimica Verde bionet promotes synergies within members and between members, public institution and consumers.

Chimica Verde is associated to “SPRING – SUSTAINABLE PROCESSES AND RESOURCES FOR INNOVATION AND NATIONAL GROWTH”

By statute, the association promotes all the raw materials and the processing chains that comply with the criteria of environmental sustainability and with the protection of biodiversity and landscape. Application fields regard different green chemistry area: energy from biomass, natural dyes, solvents or thickeners, natural fibres, biofuels, biolubricants, technical oils, surfactants, bioplastics and biopolymers, renewable raw materials for fine chemicals, other uses such as biopesticides and other biobased products and the respective supply chains, following a biorefinery approach.

The main responsibilities and activities of the Association are dedicated to the agricultural production phase, the related environmental balances, the life cycle analysis of products and co- products of plant origin and definition of models for the production of biobased products. The Association has also developed a particular expertise in the assessment of the carbon footprint and the potential for carbon sequestration in soil as factor of a whole evaluation of virtuous biorefineries.

The Consorzio Italiano Biogas e Gassificazione (Italian Consortium for Biogas and Gasification) is the first voluntary group that brings together manufacturers of biogas and syngas from renewable sources (mainly agricultural biomass), business or industrial companies which supply equipment and technology, bodies and institutions that contribute in various ways to achieve social purposes in Italy. CIB is formed in 2009, has national coverage and aims to be the reference point for the supply of data and information in the biogas and gasification sector. Today CIB aggregates 526 ordinary members (plants), 38 company members (manufacturers of biogas plants), 9 institutions and 62 partners (companies operating in the world of biogas).