Giovanni Molina Aguirre

I am a rural development and heritage governance researcher specializing in how wine and heritage territories use institutional tools — geographical indications (GI, DO, DOC, DOCG, DOQ), UNESCO labels, and tourism strategies — to create economic opportunities in data-scarce, rural contexts. Currently a PhD candidate in Economics and Management for Innovation and Sustainability at UNICAS, I combine historical and institutional analysis with fieldwork, interviews, and territorial datasets (producer censuses, business databases such as ORBIS, consortium data) to map how governance arrangements shape value creation and livelihoods in rural territories.

My research is comparative and internationally grounded. My current project analyzes value capture and governance in two heritage wine regions — Priorat DOQ (Catalonia, Spain) and the Emilia-Romagna DOCG appellations (Italy) — tracing how designation systems and territorial branding influence producer outcomes and local development. Beyond wine, I have conducted research on peripheral heritage landscapes including Serra da Capivara (Brazil) and Tierradentro (Colombia), examining how archaeological and cultural heritage sites mobilize their resources under conditions of economic marginality and institutional complexity.

I developed the Territorial Indicators for Value Appropriation Framework (TIVAF), a mixed-methods diagnostic tool that combines institutional analysis, price and tourism data, and digital storytelling to identify where territories benefit — or fail to benefit — from their heritage assets and legal designations. TIVAF is designed to bridge academic research with the practical questions that policymakers, consortia, and local producers face on the ground.

I work in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French, with academic publishing experience in all five languages. I have lived and worked across Europe, North America, and South America, with research collaborations spanning Brazil, Czechia, Spain, Italy, Hungary, and the United States. Beyond academia, I consult on European territorial and rural economic development and am an active member of ICOM (International Council of Museums).

Selected collaborators and partners include: The Walt Disney Company, Stephen & Peter Sachs Museum, Missouri Botanical Garden, UNESP, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Vinícola Salvati & Sirena, Bettina Lobkowicz Winery, Muzeum Mělník, Arquivo Histórico Municipal de Bento Gonçalves, and Alliance Française.

What drives me is bridging disciplines and cultures to show that rural heritage is not a relic of the past but a pillar of economic resilience and sustainable regional development. I am open to EU-funded postdoctoral opportunities and applied roles in wine and heritage institutions that seek evidence-based approaches to strengthen territorial governance, branding, and rural livelihoods.