RT info:eu-repo/semantics/article T1 Innovating long-term care policy in Italy from the bottom: confronting the challenge of inclusive local care environments in Lombardy and Piedmont A1 Madama, Ilaria A1 Maino, Franca A1 Razetti, Federico K1 Aging K1 Long-term care K1 Social innovation K1 Inclusive local care environments K1 Italy K1 Envejecimiento K1 Cuidado de larga duración K1 Innovación social K1 Ambientes de cuidado local inclusivo K1 Italia K1 Economía K1 Economics K1 Geografía K1 Geography K1 Sociología K1 Sociology AB Italy is one of the countries with the oldest population in the world. In spite of that fact and the alarming estimates about future demographic trends, long-term care (LTC) policy is still struggling to be acknowledged as a relevant issue in the public debate and political agenda. In sharp contrast with the policy inertia prevailing at the national level, in recent years, many territories have been experimenting with new solutions in the field of LTC, addressing the challenge of building more inclusive local care environments for frail (dependent) elderly people and their families. Building upon this, the current paper aims at dealing with the most recent academic literature on social innovation and the policy discourse elaborated by the European Union to i) develop a “working definition” of social innovation, with specific reference to LTC and elderly care; ii) provide a comparative analysis of a set of selected innovative solutions, which fall between full institutionalization and full family-based care, implemented in two Italian regions, namely, Lombardy and Piedmont; and iii) discuss the factors behind the adoption of socially innovative policy solutions at the local level, thereby shedding light on the key role played by new actors and multistakeholder networks. PB Asociación Española de Ciencia Regional (AECR) SN 2340-2717 YR 2019 FD 2019 LK http://hdl.handle.net/10017/40406 UL http://hdl.handle.net/10017/40406 LA eng DS MINDS@UW RD 29-mar-2024