Not in My Backyard or Please in My Backyard? A PRISMA-Based Literature Review

The increasing need for energy and the decarbonization of production activities, as well as the necessity for the sustainable management of the growing amount of waste, have led to the identification of alternative technological solutions that are often strongly contested. For this reason, one of the most important nontechnical factors to consider in project development is opposition from local communities. However, there are cases where such proposals are welcomed. This study aims to identify, through a systematic literature review, the reasons leading communities to accept or reject a proposal for intervention in their territory. The results show that communities do not necessarily perceive the implementation of potentially hazardous projects as undesirable. On the other hand, explaining the support for a project solely based on the related economic benefits would be reductive; indeed, it would not take into account the complexity of a phenomenon in which social and cultural factors, such as the sense of belonging and sharing and the perception of generated progress and prosperity, are decisive and deeply context related.