Territory and management science: new insights by the ConsulCubo model

Globalisation exacerbates the need to conceive sustainable and shared solutions to the dramatic environmental, social and economic issues at a local level, i.e., for a specific territory. Satisfying this need asks for a decision-making processes awareness of the specific environmental, social and economic features of the territory itself. The paper starts debating the challenge to linking effectiveness and efficiency with a viable sustainability at a local level (par. 1); then, after discussing the vision of the territory in the economic literature (par.2), the work firstly offers deeper insights in understanding the complex nature of the territory according to the viable system approach (VSA) (par. 3) and secondly it proposes a new model, the ConsulCubo VSA, helpful to support the decision-makers facing the increasing challenge of an effective, efficient and sustainable management of territory (par 4); final remarks are then discussed and fully debated (par. 5).