Gender Dis-equality and Urban Settlement Dispersion: Which Relationship?

In the last 50 years, the phenomenon of urban land occupation in Europe has become increasingly relevant, leading to the development of low-density and highly dispersed settlements. The shapes and extensions of urban settlements have moved away from the more traditional and recognized dynamics of urban expansion, acquiring different forms and very low values of settlement density. These are models of unsustainable development because they tend to consume a limited resource, converting those soils intended for other uses or with a different natural vocation into artificial soils. In addition to the direct negative effects related to the amount of land consumed, the indirect effects are related to the total dependence on private cars for daily commuting, resulting in increased pollution, overall economic and social inefficiency, dependence on fossil fuels and minerals and services deficiency. The shape of the urban settlement inevitably influences the quality of life of men and women, and if we consider that, in Italy, there are still important differences in terms of gender equality, we propose the first developments of a research project in which we want to investigate whether and how the dispersion of urban settlement affects and influences the quality of life of women.