Professional profile
Landscape Historian & Rural Development Researcher | GIS & Remote Sensing Specialist | Cultural Heritage & Environmental Dynamics Analyst | Rural Territory & Land-Use Evolution Expert
Graduated in Agricultural Sciences and holding a PhD in Rural Development Economics within economic systems, he is currently a Researcher at the CNR ISPC, where he studies the historical and evolutionary dynamics of landscapes, focusing on the cultural, environmental, and productive characteristics that define them. His research is conducted through the analysis of documentary sources and the use of GIS, remote sensing, and eye-tracking technologies. Another major research interest concerns the relationship between landscapes—with their environmental, cultural, and productive features—and the development of inland areas. He serves as scientific coordinator and administrative manager of several research projects, including the management of human and financial resources. These projects are funded through public calls, agreements, and partnerships with public and private institutions within various national and international research programs focusing on landscape evolution, land consumption, and the recovery of cultural heritage related to rural environments and traditional agri-food production.
Below are the main research projects conducted:
- 2025 – present: Member of the CNR-ISPC research team for the project CHANGES, within Spoke 5 – “Science and technologies for sustainable diagnostics of cultural heritage” and Spoke 7 – “Protection and conservation of cultural heritage against climate change, natural and anthropogenic risks”, funded by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), Mission 4, Component 2, Investment 1.3, funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU.
- 2018–2021: Lead coordinator of the research project “Corilus: Sustainable Lucanian Hazelnut Cultivation”, funded by the Basilicata Rural Development Programme (RDP) 2014–2020, Sub-measure 16.1. The project aimed at promoting hazelnut cultivation through research on the historical suitability of the territories involved, with the goal of restoring degraded or abandoned agricultural landscapes in inland areas.
- 2011–2013: Coordinator of the research project “Along the Via Herculia: Between History and Flavours”, funded by the Province of Potenza and ALSIA Basilicata (Lucanian Agency for Agricultural Development and Innovation), involving topographical, archaeological, geological studies and investigations into historical land use in the areas concerned, in order to identify the route of the Via Herculia, an ancient imperial road in Lucania dating back to the 4th century AD.
He has also participated in international research projects, including “Mission for Archaeogeophysics and Heritage Conservation in Peru”, within the ITACA Project of CNR, and the Transnational non-statutory cooperation agreement with public, private and third sector actors (NSCA) project, 2013.
He is the author of several scientific publications in national and international journals and editor of scientific collections and volumes. He also produces animated videos for the dissemination of research results, which have received recognition in various contexts. In the academic field, he serves as subject expert for the scientific-disciplinary sectors AGR/01 and M-GGR/02 and has been a contract lecturer at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart (Piacenza campus), the University of Foggia, and the University of Basilicata.
Furthermore, from 2021 to 2024 he served as Director General of the Regional Department for Economic Development, Labour and Community Services of the Basilicata Region, a top-level position responsible for the planning, coordination, and financial management of the Department’s activities and those of its affiliated sub-regional agencies (Arlab, Sviluppo Basilicata, Apibas).
CNR Disciplinary Fields and Research Management Sectors
- PE10_4 Terrestrial ecology, land cover change
- SH7_1 Human, economic, social and historical geography
- SH8_3 Cultural studies and theory, cultural identities and memories, cultural heritage, architecture
MUR Italian Scientific-Disciplinary Sector
- AGRI-01/A Agricultural Economics, Food Economics and Rural Appraisal
- SDEA‑01/A Demo‑Ethno‑Anthropological Disciplines
Groups & Labs CNR ISPC
Landscape and Biodiversity Research Group →
Publications
Highlight
Sabia C.A. et al., (2025), “How do climate change-driven renewable energy infrastructures affect the visual perception of landscapes? An exploratory empirical study”, in 2025 IMEKO TC26 International Conference on Metrology for Archaeology and Cultural Heritage, Bergamo, Italy, October 15-17. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.21014/tc26-2025.099
Gizzi F., Sabia C.A. et al., (2025) “Can Vandalism Reshape the Way We Perceive Cultural Heritage?”, in 2025 IMEKO TC26 International Conference on Metrology for Archaeology and Cultural Heritage, Bergamo, Italy, October 15-17. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.21014/tc26-2025.051
Sabia C.A. et al., (2023) “Implementing a Development Strategy for Revitalizing Industrial Areas in Crisis. The Experience of the Tito Industrial Areain the Basilicata Region (Southern Italy)” in Computational Science and Its Applications – ICCSA 2023 Workshops Athens, Greece, July 3–6, 2023 Proceedings, Part IV, Springer, ISSN 0302-9743 ISSN 1611-3349 (electronic) Lecture Notes in Computer Science, ISBN 978-3-031-37113-4 ISBN 978-3-031-37114-1 (eBook). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-37114-1
