Climate Strategies and Sustainability Pathways of Italian Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

This open access book provides a comprehensive analysis of the resilience of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to climate change, drawing on a unique and extensive empirical investigation involving more than 10,000 Italian firms. It examines corporate perceptions of climate-related risks, the adaptation and mitigation strategies they adopt, their governance mechanisms and organizational characteristics.

The book offers an overview of key concepts in corporate sustainability, with particular emphasis on the evolving regulatory and policy framework of the European Union (EU). It reviews the extensive academic literature on business climate strategies and on corporate governance mechanisms oriented toward sustainability, and introduces an original classification of corporate responses in terms of investment strategies, capturing firms’ levels of preparedness for climate change. In doing so, the book adopts a double materiality perspective, focusing both on the inside-out impacts of corporate strategies and the outside-in financial implications, with particular attention to green finance. A dedicated deep dive explores the agrifood sector in Southern Italy, which is especially exposed to physical climate risks.

The book concludes with actionable recommendations and guidelines for stakeholders to strengthen SMEs’ climate resilience and enhance their contribution to the sustainable transition. By linking climate-risk perception, organizational drivers, and strategic climate responses and outcomes, the research provides an integrated perspective that enriches academic discourse and informs managerial and policy decision-making.

This research is part of the “Growing Resilient, Inclusive and Sustainable (GRINS)” project, funded under the Next Generation EU National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP).

Data were collected in 2024, and the writing of the book was completed in September 2025.

Vera Palea is at University of Turin