Bio
Iacopo Maria Taddei is a postdoctoral researcher at Collegio Carlo Alberto (CCA) and its affiliated research centre, the Turin Centre on Emerging Economies (OEET), working within the framework of the STAPLES project (STable food Access and Prices and Lower Exposure to Shocks), funded by PRIMA (Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area). The project involves collaboration among nine institutions, including three universities, two think tanks, one multi-country business network, and the Turin-based research institution.
He is currently contributing to the development of Work Package 1 (WP1) “Understanding External Stressors and Shocks” and WP3 “Developing Innovative Solutions and Evidence-Based Recommendations for Domestic Agricultural Production”, in addition to supporting communication and dissemination activities.
Using static network analysis, his initial work focuses on identifying interdependencies in the global cereals value chains with a particular emphasis on the MENA region. This is followed by dynamic network analysis to detect potential sources of shocks. These findings feed into a multi-scenario analysis aimed at assessing future stressors arising from international markets and their impact on regional food security.
Iacopo holds a PhD in Development Economics and Local Systems (DELoS) from the University of Florence. His research combines micro and macro perspectives, exploring the resilience of international firms to external shocks and the role of global economic integration in shaping the development trajectories of emerging and developing countries. His work particularly investigates the initial gains from integration into international production networks, the structural shift from agriculture to higher-productivity sectors, and the need to reduce reliance on foreign-dominated global value chains (GVCs) in order to avoid premature deindustrialization and the associated risk of falling into the middle-income trap.
