© 2013 IAI ISBN 978-88-98650-00-2 Istituto Affari Internazionali The Management and Use of Natural Resources and their Potential for Economic and Social Development in the Mediterranean Vanessa Ushie Abstract In the framework of the IAI-OCP Policy Center project this paper offers a conceptual framework to examine natural resource management in Turkey, Morocco and Italy and its implications for social and economic development. It recognizes the multiplicity of actors involved in natural resource management at the local, national and global level. It then proceeds by 1) advancing a definition of natural resources to be used in the context of this project; 2) highlighting relevant emerging issues in the empirical debates on natural resource management within economics and politics; 3) developing a series of indicators aimed at assessing the dimensions of the management and use of natural resources. In general, this conceptual framework adopts a flexible and plural approach that reflects the multidisciplinary nature of natural resource management, and recognizes the importance of country-specific factors in the relationship between natural resource management and socio-economic development. Keywords: Natural resources / Natural resource management / Economy IAI WORKING PAPERS 13 | 29 – October 2013 ISSN 2280-4331