Purpose: Culture and cultural heritage are usually included in the general discussions on the construction of social capital and its impact on socio‐economic development. Despite that, it seems that there has not been enough in‐depth reflection on the typology and diversity of possible links between heritage and social capital. The purpose of this paper is to focus on an important aspect of heritage impact – its role in creating and enhancing social capital.Design/methodology/approach: The aim of the article is to explain in what ways cultural heritage may constitute a tool, medium or space for enhancing and developing this type of capital. Though the text is mainly of theoretical character, conceptual statements are illustrated with selected cases from Great Britain and Poland, countries which differ significantly with respect to the level of social trust and involvement of residents in non‐governmental organisations, yet both reflect well the broad array of impacts of heritage on social capital.Findings: The article indicates myriad impacts of tangible and intangible cultural heritage on social capital. It points to significant potential of heritage in terms of providing places of encounters and community hubs, sites of social integration and inclusion, functioning as a source of identity and local pride as well as being a reason for common actions, activities of NGOs and volunteers. Attention is paid also to the possible negative effects of heritage on social capital.Practical implications: It seems necessary to include this aspect of heritage impact in policy making, not only in the field of culture and monument protection but also in other spheres, taking into account both positive and negative potential of cultural heritage with respect to social capital.Social implications: The article focuses on an important social aspect of heritage impact in the local and regional context, which should be taken into account by managers of heritage institutions and sites.Originality/value: A new, coherent typology of impacts and links between heritage and social capital is proposed, which may be useful to different level public authorities and organizations and also helpful to practitioners in the field of heritage management, with respect to social implications of heritage projects and activities conducted by them.

Various aspects of beliefs, behaviour and expectations of at-risk populations were analysed in four case study localities in southern Poland that were affected by flooding in 1997 and 2001. They represent localities of different sizes and are characterised by different paths of historical development. Two of them are deep-rooted communities with dense, strong family and neighbourhood ties, while the other two experienced an almost total replacement of their population due to decisions taken after World War II and still suffer from less developed social networks. Historical events also resulted in the disruption of local memories of flooding and transmission of knowledge about natural hazards. A questionnaire survey was conducted in late autumn 2006, followed by structured telephone interviews and focus group interviews in spring 2008. The results of the survey and interviews were analysed with reference to the social capacity framework and its five dimensions: knowledge, motivational, network, economic and governance capacities. Network capacities, that is resources of bonding and bridging social capital, were considered a key notion when analysing and interpreting the results. The differences in the local resources and abilities available in each of the localities to prepare a response to natural hazards were revealed. Consequently, challenges faced in the process of building and strengthening social capacity were identified as well as ways to address these challenges. It was concluded that there are general trends and tendencies that need to be considered in risk management strategies, however the different starting points of each case study community calls for different means and approaches, as well as producing somewhat different expected outcomes.

Cultural ecosystem services (CES) and disservices shape landscape planning policy to a huge extent. We focus on the benefits and disbenefits associated with CES. The study aimed to explore the co-occurrence of the benefits and disbenefits associated with CES as well as the relationship between spatial and landscape characteristics and specific benefits and disbenefits. We conducted a map-based online questionnaire among visitors of two urban green spaces in Kraków, Poland (Wolski Forest and Jordan Park). Respondents were asked to map places visited and assign them benefits and disbenefits using indicator statements. We found three bundles of benefits (connection to nature, social bonding in nature and responsibility) and five to seven bundles of disbenefits (1). The experiences (e.g., strengthening social bonds) were more concentrated whereas the identities (e.g., reflection) were more blurred spatially owing to their individualistic nature (2). The relationship between benefits/disbenefits and landscape features showed a relatively weak correlation, with a more discernible pattern observed in the case of experiences and capabilities (3). Respondents perceived more human-related disbenefits (overcrowding, noise, rubbish), exhibiting a greater geographical concentration, especially in proximity to tourist attractions (4). The ecosystem-related disbenefits (insects, allergies) were less geographically concentrated (5). Furthermore, the study unveiled differences in the perception of disbenefits across seasons. Visitors of warmer months expressed concerns about overcrowding, insects, and allergies, while those exploring the study areas in winter indicated challenges associated with darkness and snow-covered paths (6). These are important implications for management to increase the comfort of visits to green spaces.

The phenomenon of artistic quarters has been explored by many researchers interested in the spatial behaviours of artists in North American and Western European cities. Their analyses have often focused on the impact of this occupational group on transformations of selected urban areas: the arrival of artists as pioneers in degraded, problem neighbourhoods and the evolution of those neighbourhoods, which then attract more established artists, followed by creative professionals and non-creative gentrifiers. As over time the built environment, functions, cultural, gastronomic offer and ambiance of such areas change significantly, their progressive mainstreaming and commercialization prompt some artists to venture into new districts and spaces. The article first offers a review of existing findings with respect to artistic quarters and their transformations. The discussion of the possible stages of development of artistic quarters present in literature is followed by the application of this theoretical framework in the context of Polish cities using the examples of Krakow and Katowice. These significant regional capitals represent two major types of urban centres in Poland: a city with medieval roots, and a city which emerged during the 19^th-century industrialisation process. The phases of evolution of the artistic quarters in both cities are analysed by examining the spatial perceptions of students of artistic majors. The analysis shows that the transformations of urban spaces in terms of their functions and perceptions as artistic quarters are not as straightforward and linear as earlier studies might suggest. Krakow’s more vibrant artistic life and its historic, concentric urban structure, combined with strong commercial pressures, are conducive to the development of new artistic quarters, although its traditional city centre continues to some extent to maintain its position on the artistic map of the city. In contrast, in Katowice the chaotic spatial structure of the heart of this historic industrial region makes the flow of artists more difficult and less likely, as they tend to concentrate in a poorly delineated area of the inner city. In addition, as the case studies reveal, spatial choices of artists are not only dependent on a city’s development path and its built environment but are also to a significant extent shaped by the diverse artistic backgrounds of its creatives and a host of factors linked with post-socialist transformation and neoliberal urban policies.