PhD is an Associate Professor at the University of Catania, Department of Civil Engineering and Architecture, where He teaches Urban and Regional Planning and Designs. His research interests are centered on techniques for processes of local development through Participatory Action Research, with a specific focus on Mafia dynamics and anti-mafia practices. He is the scientific coordinator of LabPEAT (Ecological and Environmental Design Lab). With his research groups, he is participating to several action-research projects; amongst them, there is the Simeto River Agreement, a multi-level and polycentric partnership in the widest watershed of Sicily. He is one of the founding members of the Acireale Urban Center and of the association Orti di Pace di Sicilia (an Association aimed at fostering the creation of community gardens with schools).