Research areas

Chair of Physical Geography

The Chair’s studies are conducted in continental Europe, Iceland, Svalbard, Asia, Africa, S. America and King George Island and include:
  • Structure and functioning of landscape systems, landscape natural and anthropogenic changes, theory and methods of landscape typology and regionalization, biodiversity and its determinants, soil science, city ecology
  • Fluvial, slope, aeolian, glacial, periglacial and littoral geomorphic processes and landforms, geomorphological mapping, soil erosion and multidirectional anthropopressure
  • Mathematical and ecohydrological modeling of hydrological processes at different spatial and temporal scales; forecasting and retrodication of hydrological processes; protection against drought and floods
  • Causes and environmental effects of climatic changes, atmospheric circulation, climate of urbanized areas, extreme meteorological phenomena, estimation and protection of atmospheric resources, local climate and the application climatology

Chair of Urban Geography and Spatial Planning

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, Latin 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

Chair of Tourism Geography and Recreation

The research conducted by the Chair of Tourism Geography and Recreation primarily concerns the spatial determinants (natural and socio-economic), forms, and consequences of tourism and leisure in Poland and other parts of the world. The main research topics are tourism and leisure in urban areas, tourism and recreation in protected and rural areas, tourism for the elderly, and various forms of cultural tourism. Empirical and theoretical studies are conducted within the context of sustainable tourism and incorporate the concept of ecosystem services.

The book Gastronomy and Urban Space. Changes and Challenges in Geographical Perspective was published by Springer Nature in 2020 as part of its Urban Book Series. This was the fruit of research conducted by the Chair and colleagues from other universities in Poland and elsewhere.

More information on the research and teaching activities of the Chair can be found on FB under https://www.facebook.com/turystykanaUW

Chair of Development and Local Policy

The Chair of Local Development and Policy is a dynamic research centre conducting interdisciplinary studies of regional and local development, in particular:
  • local democracy
  • mechanisms of local and regional policy making
  • factors influencing local economic development
  • local public services

The Department currently employs a dozen researchers plus 5 PhD students and a few research students involved in our research grants.

Our staff participates in several international and national research projects. During the last few years we have managed, among others, a large project funded by the Polish-Norwegian Research Cooperation Programme, coordinated Poland’s participation in one project under the European Horizon 2020 programme, and earlier – participated in the European scientific cooperation programme COST Action, in two projects funded by the EU under the 6th Framework Programme. At the moment (spring 2021) the Department  is implementing 7 research grants funded both from national (National Science Centre) and European sources.

The Department maintains lively international academic contacts. In May 2006 and again in June 2017 – we organised the annual conference of the European Urban Research Association (EURA). The Head of the Department, Prof. Paweł Swianiewicz, was the President of EURA from 2005 to 2010. Currently, Prof. Marta Lackowska is a member of the EURA board. Since 2017, Prof. Paweł Swianiewicz has been a member of the Steering Committee of Standing Group on Local Government and Politics of the European Consortium for Political Research (ECPR).

Chair of Regional and Political Geography

Chair of Regional and Political Geography is divided into three parts: Department of World Regional Geography, Political Geography Research Group and Geographical Education Division.

Research interests: regional and political geography, migrations, refugees, minority groups, depopulation processes, social pathology, housing segregation, spatial isolation, the islands, global economic crisis on tourism islands, environment and socio-economic development, social vulnerability to natural hazards, colonial heritage in the urban space,  neocolonialism, urban design and spacial planning, urban climate, air pollution, nature conservation, ecological distribution conflicts, tourism in protected areas, cultural landscapes, historical and electoral geography, war and conflicts, humanitarian aid, geographical education, incl. humanistic and holistic aspects

Chair of Geomatics and Information Systems

 Research interests of the Chair concentrate on:
  • the application of high resolution and hyperspectral imagery in mountain plants analysis
  • the application of high resolution and hyperspectral imagery in city planning and structure analysis
  • the use of aerial and satellite imagery in studies of environmental transformations
  • the development of remote sensing and geoinformatics for environmental research
  • formalisation and automation in cartographic generalisation
  • usability and user study on map design and geovisualization
  • historical GIS and old maps analysis
  • Information and Communication Technologies and development of information society in geospatial technologies (Geographic Information Systems/Spatial Information Systems).