The Chair conducts research on the development of cities and regions. We are interested in the factors shaping as well as the effects of urbanization, metropolisation, suburbanization, polarization, city-village relations. We study development issues in Poland and in various parts of the world (eg Western Europe, the United States of America, South America).
Recently implemented projects by us:
- The (In) visibility of Chronically Homeless Women in the US
- Dualism of development of communes in Poland in the context of policies and aspirations of local communities and external factors – compared to selected units of the European Union
- Public spaces of the suburban zone
- The impact of spatial reforms in Medellin (Colombia) on social groups and individual relationships “man – space”
Legal systems of development land designation management as tools of controlling migrations of people and investment capital in Germany, Poland and Spain
Wojciech Dziemianowicz, Ph.D., Associate Professor
He specializes in regional and local development policy and is interested in foresight research. He mainly conducts research on development factors in the local perspective – he places great emphasis on the role of local leaders and local communities. He deals with the theory of development strategies and supports regional and local governments in creating their strategic documents. He directs the program of studies in the field of territorial foresight. The area of interest also includes: territorial marketing and foreign direct investment activity. He constantly implements projects financed by the National Science Center.
Mirosława Czerny, Professor
Miroslawa Czerny (PhD) is a full professor at the Faculty of Geography and Regional Studies of the University of Warsaw (Poland). Her topics of academic interest are linked to socio-economic, regional and political processes in the contemporary world and especially in Latin America and in Poland. She is the author of over 200 articles, 12 monographs, 20 monographs as co-author or scientific editor, several textbooks dedicated to regional and urban development, sustainable development and planning, metropolization processes, culture and space, industrialization and deindustrialization of space, regional and urban development, society and its regional impact, poverty, livelihood, vulnerability. She has a very rich teaching experience; she was a full time professor and guest lecturer in many foreign universities in Mainz (Germany), Barcelona, Castilla-La Mancha and Complutense de Madrid (Spain), Havana (Cuba), Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (Lima), UAEM, UNAM, UAM-Xochimilco, Universidad de San Luis Potosí (Mexico), Mérida (Venezuela), Universidad de Los Andes, Universidad Javeriana, Universidad de Manizales (Colombia) – among others. Under the scientific grant of Alexander von Humboldt he has conducted research at the University of Tübingen (Germany) and Oxford (Great Britain) in 1991-1993. The other stay at Oxford University (6 months in 1997) was financed by the European Commission (the PHARE programme). Prof. Dr. Miroslawa Czerny has also carried out her research at Indiana University – Bloomington (USA). She was the technical advisor for the project on the development of small and medium sized cities at the Instituto Geográfico “Agustin Codazzi” in Bogotá (Colombia). She has been the director of several bilateral (between the University of Warsaw and other European and Latin American universities) and international projects of the European Commission. She has co-authored the post-doc programme on Earth Sciences and the Environment at the University of Manizales (Colombia). She has been an expert for the European Commission on Programs 6 and 7, and Horizon 2020. In 2007 she received an honorary doctorate from the Universidad Nacional de San Agustín de Arequipa, Peru, and in 2018 from the Universidad Manizales (Colombia), also in 2013 the SGL Medal in Peru for her geographical work in Latin America.
Magdalena Cybulska, M.Sc.,
She is interested in local and regional politics, especially in context of development strategies, territorial marketing and the concept of path dependence. The main research interests correlate with the subject of the PhD thesis, in which it deals with the impact of the deindustrialization process on the development paths of municipalities.
Sylwia Dudek-Mańkowska, Ph.D.
She is a researcher with knowledge of theoretical and practical aspects of urban development, place marketing, pedestrian accessibility to urban services and urban nightlife. As a visiting scholar at University of Johannes of Gutenberg in Mainz, Charles University in Prague, Vienna University and Paul Valéry University of Montpellier she researched urban regeneration and social mix as a new trend in the development policy and the process of creating or improving new public places in cities. She was also a coordinator in the international project: The nightlife of a city – social, economic and spatial aspects and several projects on Warsaw development.
Agnieszka Dudzińska-Jarmolińska, Ph.D.,
Assistant professor in the Chair of Urban Geography and Spatial Planning, mgr inż. (MSc. Eng.) Landscape Architect having the title of the Doctor of Technical Sciences in Architecture and Urban Studies. She is possesses theoretical knowledge on modern forms of greenery planning in the city (acquired thanks to NCN 2010-2012 grant regarding the integration of modern solutions in landscape Architecture and bodies of buildings) and revitalisation of degraded areas (by way of running the specialisations of second-cycle studies “Urban Studies and Revitalisation”), adaptation of cities to climate changes (by way of running the ERA NET LAC3 grant on the Polish side, titled “Citizen science and nature based solutions as tools for preparation of people for natural disasters”) as well as practical knowledge regarding the preparation of project documentation for commercial undertakings.
Magdalena Fuhrmann, Ph.D.
Research interests: urban geography, influence of spatial development on the quality of life in cities, influence of spatial development on safety and sense of security, development and transformations of housing function in cities, housing economy and policy, research methods in social sciences, development of commercial networks in cities.
Mirosław Grochowski, Ph.D.
His research activities are focused on issues related to urban and metropolitan areas development, urban governance, urban renewal, and the role of creative sector in urban development. Among the most important research projects are: the ESPON Project Best Metropolises – best development conditions in Berlin, Paris, and Warsaw, systemic project under Regional Operational Program of Mazowsze region: Development Trends of Mazovia Region, INTERREG IVC: Creative Metropoles – Public Policies and Instruments in Support of Creative Industries and Cross Innovations. He was also a member of teams that prepared development strategies for Warsaw in 2005 and 2018.
Jacek Kwiatkowski, Ph.D. (habil.)
Research interests: Shrinking cities problems in Central Europe; New settlement concepts, theory and philosophy of urban space – contemporary trends; Commemorative spaces and places – historical and contemporary view; The future of cities, foresight changes in urban units; Avant-garde theory of space (early 20’s and 30’s of the 20th century ) as new thinking about cities; City in a human scale, The “15-Minute City” concept; Contemporary China – settlements, towns, cities, mega-metropolises, society; Strengths and weaknesses in the local spatial development of communes; Dualism as an urban-spatial issue; The potential of spatial composition in the development and increase in incomes of municipalities budgets; Territorial identity
Mikołaj Madurowicz, Ph.D. (habil.)
He holds a position of senior lecturer. His scientific research comprises urban space studies, methodical and methodological cognitive analyses (most recently including the relationship between literature and cartography), as well as attempts at expanding the geographical thought onto other scientific fields (i.a. philosophy, cultural studies, history, architecture and urban planning, urban sociology). His ongoing works are focused on the continuity of a city, geography of perception, history of geographical thought and the problem of time in geographical reflection. He is a chairman of the Historical Committee of the Society of Friends of Warsaw (since 2018) and a member of the board of the Committee on the History of Geography of the Polish Geographical Society (since 2020).
Dorota Mantey, Ph.D. (habil.)
Subject of interests: suburbanization in its spatial, social and functional aspects; – types of suburban spatial layouts (planned and spontaneous); measuring spatial chaos on a micro-scale; suburban real estate market; gated communities; overlapping urbanizations in city regions: (sub-/peri-/re-/urbanization); urban and suburban public space: its utility value and the level of “publicness”, conditions for suburban social life: public spaces, club spaces, third places; green and blue infrastructure; integrated planning system at the local level
Research projects in progress or under preparation: Suburban public space (leader of NCN grant); Suburban local centers in the context of retrofitting suburbs; Suburban governance for liveable suburbs
Magdalena Mostowska, Ph.D.
Her research and teaching activities concern housing, urban studies, and social policies. She is primarily working in the field of homelessness and social housing. She has been focused on EU-migrant homelessness and conducted fieldwork in many European countries. More recently, she led a project on women’s homelessness in Poland, as well as conducted fieldwork in Flanders and the US, where the gender and intersectional perspectives, as well as critical policy analysis are applied to the issue of housing precarity.
Waldemar Wilk, Ph.D. (habil.)
His research and teaching as a geographer focuses on the issues of changes in retail trade, changes in its spatial structure and – more broadly – changes in the service economy and spatial organization of public services. He is particularly interested in the problems of the functioning of enterprises and business networks (location factors, spatial organization). In addition, he is interested in the issues of mobility of people and goods on various spatial scales (from local to supranational). More as a hobby he tries to research sport geography.
Tomasz Zaborowski, Ph.D. Eng.
He researches and teaches issues related to spatial planning (land-use planning, urban & regional planning). Investigating planning policies and instruments is of his specific interest. He applies the theory of market failure to describe urban growth processes and develop planning & economic instruments aimed at managing them. He is interested in land policy & management tools as well as sustainability issues (esp. sustainable urban transport). He is keen on international comparative studies.