Towards ‘Mediterranean’ Entropy? A Commentary on Urban Growth, Fringe Land, Demography and Economic Transitions in Southern Europe

Urban expansion and the conservation of fringe landscapes are strictly interconnected issues. The present article debates on the relation between landscape and peri-urban agriculture and the possible implications in the management of rural areas, suggesting a framework to evaluate the intimate links between agro-forest systems and expanding urban settlements in the northern Mediterranean basin. A sustainable land management perspective permeating policies aimed at preserving fringe land to excessive and unwanted settlement scattering and landscape fragmentation is a relevant approach serving different dimensions (social, economic, cultural, political) of urban sustainability. A permanent assessment of such factors allows for the implementation of scenarios based on different development options. The present study contributes to systemic and multi-scale approaches informing territorial policies and integrated management of peri-urban agricultural landscapes.